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Biomedical subjects

S Joshi

Publications and source records attributed to S Joshi.

263 records · Page 15Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Growth in some physical dimensions in relation to adolescent growth spurt among rural Indian children.

Measurements other than weight and height are rarely used in adolescent growth assessment. It is necessary to examine changes in other physical dimensions especially in relation to spurt in height as stature growth has a significance in the assessment of adolescent growth. The present study, therefore, reports data on four such measurements viz. foot length, sitting height, leg length and shoulder width along with height in a semilongitudinal growth study carried out over a 3 year period, on rural Indian boys (n = 587) and girls (n = 433), to examine the occurrence of their maximum increments in relation to spurt in height. Our analysis shows that the sequence of spurt in these physical dimensions is the same in the case of boys and girls, viz. spurt in foot length and leg length occurs before age at peak height velocity (14.3 yr--boys, 12.1 yr--girls) while that for sitting height and shoulder width occurs after attaining the peak height velocity. While foot length is the first one to reach peak (14 yr--boys, 11 yr--girls), shoulder width is the last one (16 yr--boys, 14 yr--girls) in this sequence. Thus the duration between the first spurt and the last spurt was observed to be larger in case of girls (3 yr) as compared to boys (2 yr) and apart from biological differences it could be partly due to the differential treatment received by rural girls. Sitting heights and leg lengths of rural children were significantly (p < 0.01) lower compared to Indian well-off and British children suggest that undernutrition prevailing in rural community affects all components of linear growth.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Green tea (Camellia sinensis) protects against selenite-induced oxidative stress in experimental cataractogenesis.

Cataract is the leading cause of blindness worldwide. It is a multifactorial disease primarily associated with oxidative stress produced by free radicals. The protection offered by various antioxidants in cataract development is well established. Polyphenolic compounds present in green tea (Camellia sinensis) are reported to possess antioxidant property in various pathological conditions. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the anticataract potential of green tea leaf (GTL) extract in the development of lens opacification. Enucleated rat lenses were randomly divided into normal, control and treated groups and incubated for 24 h at 37 degrees C. Oxidative stress was induced by sodium selenite in the culture medium of the two groups (except the normal group). The medium of the treated group was additionally supplemented with GTL extract. After incubation, lenses were subjected to glutathione and malondialdehyde estimation. Enzyme activity of superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione peroxidase was also measured in different sets of the experiment. In vivo cataract was induced in 9-day-old rat pups of both control and treated groups by a single subcutaneous injection of sodium selenite. The treated pups were injected GTL extract intraperitoneally prior to selenite challenge and continued for 2 consecutive days thereafter. Cataract incidence was evaluated on 16th postnatal day by slit lamp examination. There was positive modulation of biochemical parameters in the organ culture study. Green tea was also found to reduce the incidence of selenite cataract in vivo. The results suggest that green tea possesses significant anticataract potential and acts primarily by preserving the antioxidant defense system.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Enteral glutamine spares endogenous glutamine in chronic acidosis.

Metabolic acidosis associated with the catabolic state mobilizes muscle nitrogen and releases it into blood as glutamine (GLN) targeted for renal consumption and base generation. Because GLN removed by the kidneys during acidosis is a major drain on the GLN available to other sites, subsequent deprivation may lead to impaired organ function. Conversely, GLN supplementation may spare endogenous supplies and restore organ function. To test this, Sprague-Dawley rats weighing between 250 and 350 g were pair-fed elemental diets supplemented with GLN 4.9 g/L (GLN-ED) or an equivalent mixture of neutral amino acids substituted for GLN (ED). Acid loading was effected by adding hydrochloric acid to the liquid diet (110 mmol/L). Animals were studied in metabolic cages for five consecutive 24-hour urine collection periods and then anesthetized for short-term studies of interorgan fluxes and tissue GLN content. Acidosis effected an increase in ammonium nitrogen excretion (fivefold) and a reciprocal decrease (24%) in urea nitrogen excretion. Enteral GLN had no effect on the acidosis-effected ammonium (2170 +/- 71 vs 2059 +/- 361 mumol/100 g, ED vs GLN-ED, respectively) or urea excretion (5522 +/- 95 vs 5915 +/- 984 mumol/100 g, ED vs GLN-ED, respectively). Although arterial blood GLN was not increased in the GLN-ED group (531 +/- 58 vs 438 +/- 51 nmol/mL, p = .10), both liver and muscle GLN were elevated (11,650 +/- 1137 nmol/g vs 7063 +/- 578 and 5503 +/- 489 and 4742 +/- 333 nmol/g, respectively, each p < .05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Acidosis↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Counting women's work in the agricultural census of Nepal: a report.

Like many national statistical surveys, the Agricultural Census of Nepal does not reflect the actual contribution of women's work in agriculture. Inadequacies in conceptualization, definition of terms and data gathering methods result in undervaluation and underrepresentation of women's work. This study of 124 Newar households in the Lubhu Village Development Committee, Kathmandu Valley, provides a statistical representation of women's roles in agricultural operations and household activities by assessing the actual extent of their work. After analyzing the gender division of labor, the study concludes that women's work in agriculture and household activities is significantly higher than men's work.

Agriculture↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Visual inspection for cervical cancer screening: evaluation by doctor versus paramedical worker.

BACKGROUND: In the absence of an effective cervical cancer screening programme, efforts are being made to explore the feasibility of using the existing infrastructure to develop effective low-cost screening methods. AIMS: To evaluate and compare test performance of visual inspection of the cervix by a doctor and a paramedical worker. SETTING AND DESIGN: Gynaecology outpatient department (OPD), All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi; cross-sectional study. MATERIAL AND METHODS: One hundred women with complaints of vaginal discharge, irregular bleeding, post coital bleeding or unhealthy cervix underwent visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) and Lugol's iodine (VILI) by a doctor and nurse, followed by colposcopy and biopsy. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated for each test and compared. Concordance was determined by kappa statistics. RESULTS: VIA by nurse had a higher sensitivity (100% versus 87.5%), but lower specificity (53% versus 63%) when compared with the doctor, but it was not statistically significant. There was moderate agreement between their VIA findings (kappa=0.56). VILI findings were comparable to that of the VIA, both by the doctor and nurse. There was almost perfect agreement (kappa=0.89) between VILI by the doctor and nurse. CONCLUSION: Visual inspection can be performed reliably by trained paramedical workers and doctors and is an effective screening option in low resource settings.

Acetic Acid↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Faculty opinion survey following attendance to teacher training workshop in Kathmandu Medical College.

INTRODUCTION: With the growing awareness of the importance of teaching and learning in Universities, the need to improve professional qualities in teachers has been identified. AIM AND OBJECTIVES: This paper describes the outcome of the impact of teacher training workshops on faculty- teaching performance. METHODOLOGY: A total of 30 faculties who had undergone teacher training in the one-year period were included in the study. Survey questionnaire were distributed and all the forms were returned. RESULTS: All (100%) respondents found the teacher training to be very useful/useful for improvement of teaching skills. A total of 76.66% said that the skills learnt in the workshop were very applicable, 80% perceived changes in students classroom behaviour and found their lecture to be more participatory and interactive. As for their own change in behaviour, 66.66% respondents experienced better interaction with the students in classroom. DISCUSSION: The overall impression of the training was very positive. Future studies should include student feed back and classroom teaching observation for faculty teaching evaluation. We also need to utilise the feed back information obtained in this article, to further improve the strength of the future teacher training workshops. The future workshops should include sessions in problem-based learning and follow up refresher courses.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Delipidified cell components of Mycobacterium leprae and its applications.

Delipidified cell components (DCC) of Mycobacterium leprae obtained as an insoluble material consist of several proteins. This preparation, DCC, has ability to differentially bind to sera from lepromatous leprosy patients and antibodies to this complex get reduced as patients improve under chemotherapy. The antigenic complex has no ability to bind to proteins of sera from normal healthy individuals or tuberculoid leprosy patients. The DCC is antigenic and is recognised by immune deficient cells of lepromatous leprosy patients, leading to lymphocyte proliferation, production of Interleukin II and interferon gamma, and resulting in activation of the phagocytes to initiate killing of endocytosed M.leprae through reactive oxygen intermediates, primarily superoxide. The DCC has also immunomodulatory properties to protect mice against M.leprae infection. Experiments with mice and isolated peripheral blood cells from patients have indicated the probable molecular mechanism of immunomodulation by DCC.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Cri du chat syndrome.

Three cases of cri du chat syndrome with varying ages of presentation are compared and contrasted to highlight the clinical features and evolution of the phenotype with time.

Chromosome Deletion↗