Pawan Parashar

A Hospital-based Study on Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Pregnant Women on Gender Preference, Prenatal Sex Determination and Female Feticide

India has witnessed a decline in sex ratio in the past few decades. A hospital-based cross-sectional study was carried out to find out the attitude toward gender preference and knowledge as well as practice toward prenatal sex determination and female feticide among pregnant women. A majority (66.0%) of the pregnant women did not show any gender preference, followed by male preference (22.2%) and female preference (11.8%). A high proportion, i.e. 84.7% and 89.7%, of the total subjects were aware that prenatal sex determination and female feticide is illegal, respectively.

How are our medical students using the computer and internet? A study from a medical college of north India.

Background: In todays world, use of Internet has become indispensable. Medical students have much to gain from the Internet technology that has revolutionized the medical field. There is a very rapid change in the way communication technology is being handled and our medical students should also be ready to embrace it. Very few studies have been done on this topic in India. The aim was to find out the knowledge, practice, and barriers of Internet use among the medical undergraduates of Subharti Medical College, Meerut. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among the MBBS students belonging to the first, second, third, and fourth years of their course during August to October 2009. A pretested questionnaire was used collecting information on their Internet usage patterns, knowledge about information technology, and barriers to using it. Data were entered in Microsoft Excel and appropriate statistical tests were applied for analysis. Results: The proportion of respondents having a laptop were more in cohort of students belonging to the admission year 2009 (65.8%) followed by 2008 (54.7%), 2007 (53.0%), and 2006 (38.0%), i.e., a gradual increase in newer cohorts. About half (57.4%) of the students had some sort of formal training in computer and Internet use. Knowledge about Internet was more among the junior cohorts compared to the senior cohorts (P<0.0001). Only about one-fifths of the respondents used Internet for searching literature for projects from medical journals on the Internet. Majority of the respondents accessed Internet for less than 3 hours per week. About one-tenth (8.0%) of the students felt that Internet is totally useless in medical field. The major barrier (54.4% of the respondents) to using Internet was lack of time. Conclusions: Further research should focus on designing and implementing computer and Internet training for medical students.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of Exclusive Breast Feeding among Women: A Cross-sectional Study in Meerut

Proper breastfeeding practices are effective means of reducing childhood morbidity and mortality. Many mothers understand the importance of breastfeeding, others are less aware of the benefits of breastfeeding.

A Review Study on Impact of Ramadan Fasting on BMI and Biochemical Parameters

Ramadan is the ninth month of the lunar calendar and Muslims keep fast during daytime in Ramadan month. Pre dawn meal is known as “Sahari “ and cut-off time is one hour before the sunrise; fast breaking meal known as “ Iftar” it is taken immediately after the sunset.

Utilization of Statistical Methods in Microbiological Research

Most papers published in medical journals contain analyses that have been carried out without any help from a statistician. Although nearly all medical researchers have some acquaintance with basic statistics, there is no easy way for them to acquire insight into important statistical concepts and principles. There is also little help available about how to design, analyze, and write up a whole research paper. A high level of statistical errors has been noted in several reviews of journal articles and has caused much concern. It has been suggested that comprehensive statistical guidelines could help by making medical researchers more aware of important statistical principles, and by indicating what information ought to be supplied in a paper.

Association of Health Status with Dietary Habits and Lifestyle of Medical, Dental and Nursing Students of Meerut UP

Background: The life of professional students is stressful throughout the whole course of trainings. Types of food intake, lack of exercise, psychological depression due to study burden, pressure of examination, discrepancies between expectation and reality all can be anticipated in bring psychological stress. Research Question: To find out the Association of health status with dietary habits and lifestyle of students? Objective: The purpose of this study was to clarify the association between dietary habits and life style and perceived health status among students. Study design: Cross sectional study Participants: 255 students of medical dental and nursing courses of SVSU, Meerut UP Sample Size: 255 university students Study Period: July 2011 to Dec 2011 Study variables: A Pre-designed, Pre-tested, self administered questionnaire related to life style and perceived health was used. Statistical Analysis: Microsoft Excel Results: In this study, consumption of non-vegetarian diet and fast food was found among students. Smokingatobacco chewing and consumption of alcohol were seen in students. Sedentary life, over weight and high blood pressure was found in students. Conclusion: Medical students were not much conscious to make extra effort to choose a healthier lifestyle. Healthy lifestyle among medical students are even more important as they are future doctors and the students who personally ignore healthy lifestyle are more likely to fail to establish health promotion opportunities for their patients.

Utilization of assisted Reproductive Technology as a Surrogacy and Related Issues

While assisted reproductive technology (ART), including in vitro fertilization has given hope to millions of couples suffering from infertility, it has also introduced countless ethical, legal, and social challenges. ART has emerged as one of the most widely adopted and successful medical technologies in the last century. The objective of this paper is to identify the aspects of ART that are most relevant to present-day society and discuss the multiple ethical, legal, and social challenges inherent to this technology.