Volume 4 | Issue 1 | 2023

Editorial

Blooming of Biosimilars
[Yogita S. Karandikar]

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Original Article

Clinicoepidemiological Features of Hand Eczema in Healthcare Workers during COVID 19 Pandemic
[Nitin D. Chaudhari, Swapna S. Khatu, Abhishek S. Patokar, Chandrakant B. Poulkar, Umesh T. Thombe]

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Background: Regular wearing of gloves and excessive use of hand sanitizers during severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has resulted in increased prevalence of hand eczema. Aims and Objectives: The aim of the study was to study prevalence and clinicoepidemiological factors of hand eczema among healthcare workers during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic at a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted at Smt. Kashibai Navale Medical College and General Hospital, Pune from April 2021 to May 2021. The clinicoepidemiological details were collected from all the doctors and nursing staff of the hospital in a preset questionnaire. Results: Among 200 healthcare workers, age group of participants was 20–50 years with mean age of 29.80 (SD: ± 6.32). Out of 200 healthcare workers, 120 were doctors and 80 were nurses. Out of 200, 94 (47%) experienced hand eczema (males = 43 and 51 were females = 51). Out of 94 cases, 68 had new onset hand eczema and 26 had aggravation of hand eczema. Itching (n = 76) was predominant complaint followed by erythema (n = 66). Distribution of hand eczema was predominantly over dorsum of hands. Most common aggravating factor was stress (n = 11). Commonly used gloves were powdered gloves (n = 122). Most participants suffering from hand eczema used gloves for 4–8 h (n = 95). Conclusion: Although hand hygiene is very important in this pandemic, all healthcare workers should be aware about rational and proper use of gloves and hand sanitizers so as to prevent hand eczema. Awareness about the prevalence of hand eczema in healthcare workers during this pandemic should be raised and preventive measures should be intensified.

Background: The fetal heart’s structural evaluation is well established. Functional evaluation using pulsed-wave Doppler is another option. E/A ratios describe the relationship between the maximal velocities of the E and A ventricular filling waveforms. E/A ratios in normal fetuses are usually <1 but show a constant increment during gestation, which is primarily related to the increment of the E wave. E/A ratios are lower in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) fetuses than in normally grown fetuses at the same gestational age. In normal fetuses, the right ventricle contributes the majority of the combined cardiac output (55–60%). In IUGR fetuses, this preponderance switches to the left ventricle to improve blood supply to the fetal body and brain. Systolic and diastolic heart functions are also measured by the myocardial performance index (MPI). IUGR can affect the fetal and newborn health in the long run. IUGR can be associated with various fetal and maternal conditions; hence, it is necessary to establish an early diagnosis and a therapeutic strategy. It is necessary to determine whether obstetric intervention via preterm delivery is recommended to improve these patients’ perinatal outcomes. Our study’s objective was to determine the distribution of these Doppler values with neonatal outcome in both normal and IUGR fetuses. We did this by measuring the fetal diastolic component of the cardiac cycle using spectral Doppler through the atrioventricular valves. Methods: We did a cross-sectional study of 217 patients out of 3200 screened patients at routine antenatal visits from January 2020 to October 2021 in SKNMC and GH, Pune. Observation: In our study of 217 patients, we observed that all 100% IUGR cases showed an abnormal E/A ratio which was decreased as compared to normal fetuses in the same gestational age. Conclusion: We conclude that E/A ratio with Doppler echocardiography can help evaluate fetal cardiac status and identify IUGR fetuses with cardiac problems. Early intervention for IUGR fetuses with cardiac compromise can improve outcomes and reduce risks.

To Study Correlation between Results of GeneXpert and AFB Culture in Bronchial AspirateSamples in the Diagnosis of Pulmonary Tuberculosis
[Kashaf Javed, Pankaj Magar, Himanshu Pophale, Suhas Kulkarni, Swapnil Thorat, Unmesha Pawar Bhailume]

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Aims and Objectives: The aim of the study was to compare the Nucleic Acid Amplification Assay (GeneXpert) with acid fast bacilli (AFB) in patients with suspected pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) and assess the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value. Materials and Methods: Inclusion criteria: Patients with clinical suspicion of pulmonary TB, including symptoms of weight loss, weariness, hemoptysis, and loss of appetite, as well as cough with or without expectoration for more than 2 weeks, were included in the study. Exclusion criteria: The following criteria were excluded from the study: (1) Samples obtained with no clinical background, (2) samples for all three tests were received without a request, and (3) patient with a history of fungus infections or lung cancer. Pulmonary samples of 150 patients with suspected pulmonary TB were reviewed between January 2021 and November 2021 after being received retrospectively for liquid AFB culture and GeneXpert requests from various wards, icus, and centers to the Microbiology laboratory and DMC Laboratory of Smt. Kashibai Navale Medical College and General Hospital, Pune. One hundred and fifty BAL samples were included in the pulmonary specimens. Information pertaining to patients was gathered from the patients attendants. Results: One hundred and fifty samples in all were examined; of these, 22 showed both culture and gene expert positivity, eight showed just gene expert positivity, and five showed only culture positivity. Test requisition forms were delivered with the sample culture. Conclusion: Gene expert and AFB culture have approximately identical specificities, although gene expert has a substantially higher sensitivity in bronchial aspirates than AFB culture.

Review Articles

Fecal Microbiota Transplantation
[Saurabh Padole, Siddhant Ingle, Jitendra Ingole]

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Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) has been used to treat C. difficile infection and other conditions. FMT can be used to create a unique gut microbiota profile for patients with Ulcerative colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. It should be emphasized, nonetheless, that the faecal microbiota is a complicated starting point, and those planning to reverse engineer it will likely have to determine how the microbial communities in the samples interact with one another and its mode of operation. Future study should concentrate on determining the long-term effects of FMT. Unquestionably, FMT is effective against C. difficile infection. Before wide adoption of FMT as a therapeutic benefit beyond recurrent CDI, further randomized controlled trials and pieces of evidence are required. Among other conditions, it is being investigated as a therapy for IBD, IBS, and metabolic syndrome/insulin resistance.

Postpartum Acute Pulmonary Edema
[Pranav Sawant, Shweta Deshmukh, Jitendra Ingole]

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Case Reports 

A Case of Persistent Hypokalemia
[Abhijit Pundkar, Abhijit Chavan, Jitendra Ingole]

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Case of 51-year-old female patient having persistent features of hypokalemia which on further evaluation came to diagnose as Gittelmen syndrome.

Plexiform Neurofibroma: A Rare Case Scenario
[Swati Shandilya]

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A Case Report of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation
[Supriya Patil, Aditya Patil, Shweta Deshmukh] 

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Patient: Female, 59 years. Final Diagnosis: Paroxysmal atrial fibrillation cold-stimulus headache. Symptoms: Palpitations, Headache, Vomiting, and Tinnitus. Medication: Cordaron and Diltiazem. Clinical Procedure: None. Specialty: Internal Medicine.

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