3D Bitemark Analysis in Forensic Odontology Utilizing a Smartphone Camera and Open-Source Monoscopic Photogrammetry Surface Scanning

Abstract Bitemark analysis is a challenging procedure in the field of criminal case investigation. The unique characteristics of dentition are used to find the best match between the existing patterned injury and the suspected perpetrator in bitemark identification. Bitemark analysis accuracy can be influenced by various factors, including biting pressure, tooth morphology, skin elasticity, dental cast duplication, timing, and image quality. This review article discusses the potential of a smartphone camera as an alternative method for 3D bitemark analysis. Bitemark evidence on human skin and food should be immediately recorded or duplicated to retrieve long-lasting proof, allowing for a sufficient examination period. Various studies utilizing two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) technologies have been developed to obtain an adequate bitemark analysis. 3D imaging technology provides accurate and precise analysis. However, the currently available method using an intraoral scanner (IOS) requires high-cost specialized equipment and a well-trained operator. The numerous advantages of monoscopic photogrammetry may lead to a novel method of 3D bitemark analysis in forensic odontology. Smartphone cameras and monoscopic photogrammetry methodology could lead to a novel method of 3D bitemark analysis with an efficient cost and readily available equipment.

Automatic Method for Optic Disc Segmentation Using Deep Learning on Retinal Fundus Images / 대한의료정보학회지

Objectives@#The optic disc is part of the retinal fundus image structure, which influences the extraction of glaucoma features. This study proposes a method that automatically segments the optic disc area in retinal fundus images using deep learning based on a convolutional neural network (CNN). @*Methods@#This study used private and public datasets containing retinal fundus images. The private dataset consisted of 350 images, while the public dataset was the Retinal Fundus Glaucoma Challenge (REFUGE). The proposed method was based on a CNN with a single-shot multibox detector (MobileNetV2) to form images of the region-of-interest (ROI) using the original image resized into 640 × 640 input data. A pre-processing sequence was then implemented, including augmentation, resizing, and normalization. Furthermore, a U-Net model was applied for optic disc segmentation with 128 × 128 input data. @*Results@#The proposed method was appropriately applied to the datasets used, as shown by the values of the F1-score, dice score, and intersection over union of 0.9880, 0.9852, and 0.9763 for the private dataset, respectively, and 0.9854, 0.9838 and 0.9712 for the REFUGE dataset. @*Conclusions@#The optic disc area produced by the proposed method was similar to that identified by an ophthalmologist. Therefore, this method can be considered for implementing automatic segmentation of the optic disc area.

A COMPARISON BETWEEN TWO METHODS OF FALLOPIAN TUBAL LIGATION FOR STERILIZATION OF WOMEN IN A LOW RESOURCE SETTING

Objective: To compare two methods of tubal sterilization; modi?ed Pomeroy and a modi?cation added to modi?ed Pomeroy's method, in a low resource setting. In this prospective study conducted from Methods: 2019 to 2021 in one thousand women, we compared Pomeroy's method with an other method in which a slight modi?cation in the original modi?ed Pomeroy's technique was introduced, in a very low resource rural community hospital with only basic operation theater facility. In modi?ed Pomeroy's method, a loop of fallopian tube is resected and trans?xed with 2-0 chromic catgut surgical suture material. In our study we added another modi?cation to the modi?ed Pomeroy's method, wherein the proximal end of the fallopian tube was additionally ligated with a 2-0 silk suture. The patients were followed up from 6months-2 years. A failure rate of 0.4% was observed in women who underwent Modi?ed Pomeroy's method in contrast to no Results: failure in women in whom the proximal end of the tube was additionally ligated. Additional modi?cation to the Conclusion: original modi?ed Pomeroy's method of sterilization can be potentially promising in reduction of sterilization failure rate in parts of world where salpingectomy is less readily accepted

Potential of microbial inoculum from buffalo feces in activating lignite coal bed methane

Aim: This research aimed to study the ability of microbial consortium from buffalo feces to produce coal bed methane (CBM) in lignite coal through in-vitro technique.Methodology: This study was carried out in 2 stages: In first stage, microbes activated using in-vitro technique, and at second stage volatile fatty acids (VFA) and coal bed methane production were estimated. The nutrition source for inoculum activation was of three types: 100% concentrate: 70% concentrate: 30% grass and 30% concentrate: 70% grass. Biogas digester in laboratory-scale utilized 100 ml serum bottle filled with 70 ml, 98-5 media and 7 g coal. Microbial inoculum was inoculated on digester using a 10 ml syringe and incubated at 39oC. Parameters observed to measure the quality of inoculum were total number of anaerobic microbes, kinetics, and biogas production during fermentation. Complete Randomized Design with two factorial consisted of incubation period as factor A and inoculum dosages as factor B. Results: The activation process of inoculum from buffalo feces was required to produce coal bed methane in anaerobic digestion. During activation process, the microbes from buffalo feces in a mixture of 70% concentrate and 30% grass at 48 hr observation could produce total gas approximately 22.5 ml at 48 hr observation. Addition of activated buffalo feces anaerobic inoculum on the anaerobic digestion as much as 6% produced the highest number of anaerobic bacteria, and VFA accounted for 31 x 1010 CFU ml-1 and 171.7 mM, respectively. Meanwhile, the highest methane production reached 128.61 ml on adding 6% inoculum

Histopathological spectrum of brain tumors: A 4-year retrospective study from a single tertiary care facility

Background: Central nervous system (CNS) tumors are infrequent tumors comprising <2% of all malignancies. However, a rising global trend in these tumors has been observed over the years with new potential risk factors being identified for brain tumors. Objective: The aim of the present study is to highlight the histopathological spectrum of brain tumors in a single tertiary care center in our region. Materials and Methods: This retrospective histopathological analysis of brain tumors was carried out in the Postgraduate Department of Pathology, Government Medical College, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India, from January 2015 to December 2018. During this period, a total of 117 neurosurgical biopsies were retrieved from the archives of the department. The diagnoses in all the cases were made on histopathological examination of routinely processed tissue. The hematoxylin and eosin (H and E) stained sections in all cases were reviewed by the authors, and diagnosis was confirmed applying the WHO classification 2007. The relative frequency of tumors and the distribution as per age, sex, and location of the lesion were analyzed. Results: A wide range of histopathological spectrum of CNS tumors was observed and was classified according to the WHO classification system of 2007. The primary CNS tumors were graded from Grade I to Grade 1V. Overall tumors of meninges (41.02%) were the most common entity followed by the astrocytic tumors (35.04%). Conclusion: The present study helps to provide information regarding the burden of disease in our area. Despite the use of modern imaging technique that helps in provisional diagnosis of disease, histological examination is gold standard in the diagnosis of varied types of brain tumors. Further utility of immunohistochemistry aids in confirmation of the disease.

Accuracy and utility of intraoperative squash smear cytology in neurosurgical practice

Background: Intraoperative squash smear cytology (ISSC) is a rapid and reliable diagnostic tool that provides guidance to the neurosurgeon for precise targeting of the lesion and its surgical resection. It also helps the surgeon to modify the approach at surgery at times based on the preliminary impression of the lesion on cytology. Objectives: The present study was undertaken to assess the utility of ISSC for cytomorphological diagnosis in a resource-limited setting. The accuracy of the method was assessed by correlating cytological diagnosis with histopathological diagnosis. Materials and Methods: A total of 106 cases of central nervous system (CNS) tumors were examined by squash smear technique for cytological diagnosis which were then compared with histopathological diagnosis provided on paraffin-embedded sections. Results: Cytohistological correlation was available in all the 106 cases included in the study. Of these 106 cases, 96 were concordant with the final histopathological diagnosis, while 10 were discordant. Thus, complete correlation with final histopathological diagnosis was observed in 90.56% of cases. Conclusion: Intraoperative squash smear cytology proved to be a simple, rapid, and inexpensive technique for intraoperative consultation of CNS tumors in the absence of frozen section facility.

Pharmacological and chemical properties of some marine echinoderms

Abstract Echinoderms have attracted the attention of scientists over the past few years after identifying a variety of unique structures endowed by interesting biological properties. However, the Moroccan coast biodiversity is still uninvestigated. In our ongoing attempts to valorize the rich Moroccan marine environment, this study aimed at assessing the antimicrobial activity of extracts obtained from three echinoderms Astropecten irregularis, Luidia sarsi and Ophiura albida against the human pathogens: Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica and Bacillus subtilis. Moreover, their antioxidant activities were tested using standard methods in addition to the antidiabetic activity which has been evaluated in vitro against α-amylase and α-glucosidase enzymes. HPLC-DAD-QTOF-MS analysis revealed a significant content of some phenolic compounds such as pyrogallol, gallic, sinapic, ferulic, p-hydroxybenzoic and salicylic acids whose existence can be related to the endophytic fungi and/or dietary intake whereas GC-MS analysis exhibited diverse chemical structures such as cholesterol, oleic acid and glycerol 1-palmitate.

[Evaluation of carbapenem prescribing practices at the Mohammed VI University Hospital in Marrakech]

Carbapenems are antibiotics of last resort reserved for severe infections with resistant germs, and the abuse of which makes us fear the emergence of resistance to carbapenem. The objective of this survey is to evaluate the relevance of carbapenem prescriptions in the Mohammed VI CHU in Marrakech. This is a prospective evaluation performed on a given day in January 2017. Included were all hospitalization services at the Arrazi Hospital and the Mother Child Hospital of the Marrakech CHU Mohamed VI, including resuscitation services. The investigation concerned all hospitalized patients present in the department on the day of the survey and for whom a carbapenem prescription was made. During the study period, 30 patients were prescribed carbapenem, 63% in intensive care units and 37% in surgery. This carbapenem mainly concerned adults [57%] followed by newborns [33%]. The reason for introducing carbapenem antibiotics was mainly sepsis [46, 5%]. Carbapenems were prescribed as second-line therapy after initial clinical treatment [73, 5%]. The imipenem was the most frequently prescribed carbapenem [83, 5%]. 80% of the infections justifying this prescription were nosocomial. A prescription after microbiological documentation was only found in 9 cases. This evaluation helped to better understand the typology of carbapenem prescriptions in our context

Change seen in histological pattern in patients with lupus nephritis with positive antiphospholipid serology

Background: it is debatable whether a repeat renal biopsy during lupus nephritis [LN] flare is helpful in guiding the treatment and predicting prognosis

Objective: to determine the value of serial renal biopsies in detecting histological changes in patients with lupus nephritis with APL antibodies

Study design, settings and Duration: this cross sectional retrospective study was conducted at King Saud University Medical City Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia [KSA] during May 2013 to August 2017

Patients and Methods: patients having diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus [SLE] with positive APL antibodies and who underwent two or more renal biopsies for various indications were included into the study. The histological features of serial renal biopsies were compared. Renal biopsies were reassessed with light microscopy, immunofluorescence and electron microscopic studies and were categorized according to ISN/RPS 2004 classification. Data was analyzed using chi-square test to assess the differences between categorical study variables

Results: a total of 15 patients with LN having positive APL antibodies were included. The mean age of the patients was 38 +/- 10.5 years, and the disease duration was 160 +/- 9 months. The Interval between the two biopsies was 73.5 +/- 48 months. Antiphospholipid syndrome nephropathy [APSN] was noted in 4 [26%] patients at time of the first renal biopsy and in 9 [60%] on repeat biopsies. Thrombotic microangiopathy [TMA] which is the hallmark of APSN was detected in the repeat biopsy in two patients Change in the histological class was frequent and was seen in 12 out of the 15 patients while patients with proliferative LN class switching to non-proliferative class was rare

Conclusion: histological changes are common in serial biopsies in patients with lupus nephritis with positive APL serology. Repeat renal biopsies led to change in immunosuppression treatment in more than half of patients on average

Comparison of effect of Olanzapine and Resperidone on Serum Prolactin levels in patients with first episode Psychosis

Objective: To compare frequency of Hyperprolactinemia with Risperidone and Olanzapine in patients with first episode psychosis

Study Design: Randomized controlled trial

Place and Duration of Study: Combined Military Hospital [CMH] Lahore, over a period of six months from Sep 2015 to Feb 2016

Subjects and Methods: Total 60 patients who had psychosis as accompanying feature in any of the various psychiatric illnesses according to ICD-10 diagnostic criteria were enrolled in this Randomized controlled Trial. Fasting venous blood samples for serum prolactin were collected between 0800 hrs and 1000 hrs at baseline [first visit]. The patients were then randomly assigned to receive risperidone or olanzapine by lottery method. Serum prolactin levels were then collected at 3 months follow-up visit. All samples were tested in labortary of Pathology department, CMH Lahore for measurement of serum prolactin levels and results were verified by a classified pathologist. Confounding variables were identified and excluded by exclusion criteria

Result: A total of 35 patients [58.33 percent] developed hyperprolactinemia. The olanzapine group showed 13 out of 30 patients [43.33 percent] and risperidone group showed 22 out of 30 patients [73.33 percent] with raised prolactin levels with p-value of 0.018 indicating that the difference was statistically significant

Conclusion: Frequency of hyperprolactinemia is high with risperidone than with olanzapine in first episode psychosis

Epidemic of kala pathar [paraphenylene diamine] poisoning: an emerging threat in Southern Punjab

Objective: To assess cases of the spectrum of Kala Pathar poisoning in all age groups. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Combined Military Hospital [CMH] Bahawalpur and Bahawal Victoria Hospital [BVH], Bahawalpur, from January 2016 to April 2017

Methodology: All the cases of Kala Pathar [Paraphenylene diamine [PPD]] poisoning, admitted and treated at the study places during said period were included in the study. The assessed variable included gender, age, education status, socioeconomic status, reason of poisoning and mortality. Chi-square was applied for qualitative variables with p-value less than 0.05 was considered significant

Results: A total of 1,258 cases of PPD poisoning were included in the study; 814 [64.7%] females and 444 [35.3%] males. Their age ranged from 5 - 63 years, with median age 21 [IQR 4]. Sixty-six [5.2%] were children and the rest 1,192 [94.8%] were adults. In adults 1,125 [94.37%] cases of PPD poisoning were suicidal and 62 [5.20%] accidental cases; only 5 [0.42%] adults were intentionally poisoned. On the other hand, only one child took it with suicidal intent, 54 [81.81%] ingested it accidentally and 11 [16.66%] children were given poison deliberately with the intent to murder. The overall mortality was 24.08% - 22.81% in adults, and 46.96% in children

Conclusion: Kala Pathar [PPD] is a lethal substance when ingested. PPD poisoning is not limited to adults; many cases of pediatric poisoning are also being reported in Southern Punjab. Mortality due to Kala Pathar is high. Tracheostomy should be done immediately in all such cases; and high intensive multidisciplinary approach is required

Automatic Glaucoma Detection Method Applying a Statistical Approach to Fundus Images / 대한의료정보학회지

OBJECTIVES: Glaucoma is an incurable eye disease and the second leading cause of blindness in the world. Until 2020, the number of patients of this disease is estimated to increase. This paper proposes a glaucoma detection method using statistical features and the k-nearest neighbor algorithm as the classifier. METHODS: We propose three statistical features, namely, the mean, smoothness and 3rd moment, which are extracted from images of the optic nerve head. These three features are obtained through feature extraction followed by feature selection using the correlation feature selection method. To classify those features, we apply the k-nearest neighbor algorithm as a classifier to perform glaucoma detection on fundus images. RESULTS: To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, 84 fundus images were used as experimental data consisting of 41 glaucoma image and 43 normal images. The performance of our proposed method was measured in terms of accuracy, and the overall result achieved in this work was 95.24%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This research showed that the proposed method using three statistics features achieves good performance for glaucoma detection.

Clinicopathological characteristics of triple negative breast cancer

Objective: To analyze the clinicopathological characteristics of triple negative breast cancer. Study Design: Descriptive case series. Place and Duration of Study: Armed Forces Institute of Pathology [AFIP], from Jan 2014 to Dec 2014

Material and Methods: All cases of triple negative breast cancer diagnosed on histopathological examination followed by immunohistochemistry were retrieved from AFIP tumour registry. Patient's gender, age, tumour laterality, tumour size, histological tumour type, histologic grade, lymphovascular invasion, involvement of surgical margins and lymph node status were noted. The data were analyzed by using computer software program SPSS version 19. Descriptive statistics, frequencies and percentages were calculated

Results: A total of 35 cases of triple negative breast cancer were included in the study. The age at presentation ranged from 32-79 years with mean age of 50.9 +/- 11.7 years. Most of the patients were females [n=34, 97.1%], out of which 51.4% cases [n=18] belonged to premenopausal age group. Right sided breast tumours were more common [n=17, 54.8%]. The most common T stage at presentation was p T2 [n=20, 57.1%], while the mean tumour size was 5.2 +/- 2.2 cm. The most common histological type was invasive ductal carcinoma, NOS [n=32, 91.4%] while the commonest histological grade was Grade II [n=22, 67.7%]. Lymphovascular invasion was observed in 54.3% [n=19] of the cases while lymph node metastasis was seen in 74.1% [n=20] of the cases. Five cases [14.3%] had positive surgical margins

Conclusion: Triple negative breast cancer was more common in premenopausal females. Most common tumour type was invasive ductal carcinoma, NOS [Grade II] with a pT2 stage at presentation. Lymphovascular invasion and lymph node involvement was also seen in a large number of cases

Immunohistochemical expression of Alpha Methylacyl-Coa Racemase [AMACR] in carcinoma prostate in Pakistani population

Objective: To determine the frequency of expression of positive diagnostic marker alpha methylacyl-COA RACEMES [AMACR] in the examination of prostate needle biopsy specimens from patients of adenocarcinoma prostate from a subset of Pakistani population

Study design: Cross-sectional study

Place and Duration of Study: Department of Histopathology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, Rawalpindi from Apr 2015 to Oct 2015

Material and Methods: All specimens of adenocarcinoma prostate diagnosed at Armed forces institute of pathology on the basis of immunohistochemistry and routine histopathology irrespective of age of patient, histological type or grade of the tumor were analyzed. Mean and Standard deviation were calculated for quantitative variables like patient's age and frequencies along with percentages were calculated for qualitative variables like AMACR expression

Results: Out of the total 80 cases, 68 [85%] were positive for AMACR while 12 [15%] were negative. Among the cases that were negative 9 [11.3%] showed 1 +/- staining [Weak, non-circumferential] and 3 cases [3.8%] displayed 0 staining [No cytoplasmic staining]

Conclusion: Positive staining for AMACR can be used to support a diagnosis of cancer on prostate needle core biopsies when the focus in question is <1mm in maximum dimension. The results of AMACR expression in a subset of Pakistani population are comparable to the western studies. AMACR staining must be interpreted in the context of basic haematoxylin and eosin criteria for malignancy along with the results expansion of other supportive markers, such as a basal cell specific marker like p63 or 34betaE12

Influence of symmetric and asymmetric alterations of maxillary canine gingival margin on the perception of smile esthetics among orthodontists, dentists, and laypersons.

Introduction: Esthetics is one of the major concerns among people seeking orthodontic treatment, and its perception varies from person to person. Our objective was to determine the differences in the perception of smile esthetics among orthodontists, general dentists, and laypersons with respect to alteration in the maxillary canine gingival margin in close‑up smile analyses. Materials and Methods: Close‑up photograph of an ideal Indian female smile was selected. The images were digitally altered to create symmetrical images with the gingival margin levels of maxillary canine matching the central incisors. Twelve alterations were created in the gingival margin of the canine with discrepancies of 1, 2, and 3 mm in relation to the most superior point on the labial gingival margin of patient’s central incisor and divided under four groups. Finally, close‑up images of the smile were assessed by orthodontist, general dentist, and layperson who indicated the level of attractiveness of each smile on a visual analogue score. The data collected were then statistically analyzed by one‑way analysis of variance followed by Newman–Keul’s range test. Results: Most evaluators considered all the three components, i.e., lips, teeth, and gingiva while assessing the smile’s attractiveness. Statistically significant differences were observed between different evaluator groups when considering bilateral increase in crown height by 2 and 3 mm. The perceptions of asymmetries in the gingival margin levels of the maxillary canines were 1.0 mm for orthodontists and 2.0 mm for laypersons. Conclusion: The result of this study suggested that the orthodontists were more critical than dentist and layperson in evaluating smile esthetics.

Primary gastrointestinal lymphomas in children: An experience of 12 years from a tertiary care center of North India.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Lymphomas are among the dominant solid tumors in children and primary gastrointestinal lymphomas (PGILs), although rare, are the most common extranodal lymphomas and the most common malignancies affecting the gastrointestinal tract in children. This study was undertaken to analyze childhood PGIL with reference to clinical presentation, anatomic distribution, histopathologic, and immunohistochemical (IHC) characteristics. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this 12 year combined retrospective and prospective descriptive study, all the cases of PGIL in children were selected according to Dawson’s criteria. RESULTS: A total of 11 cases were found which included 9 boys and 2 girls (male:female ‑ 4.5:1) ranging in age from 1 to 14 years (mean 6.6 years). Abdominal pain (81.8%) and intestinal obstruction (63.6%) were the most common presenting features. Grossly, most of the lesions were ulcero‑infiltrative (72.7%) and involved the terminal part of the ileum (36.4%) and ileocecal region (27.3%) most commonly. Histopathologically and IHC, all the cases were high‑grade lymphomas of diffuse large B‑cell type except for one case of mucosa‑associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma. No case of Burkitt’s lymphoma was found. CONCLUSION: PGILs are an important cause of morbidity and mortality in children worldwide with considerable variation in their clinicopathological features and treatment modalities. Only some studies are available in literature for comparison. Further studies are required to define the genetic and molecular basis of the different histopathological pattern found in our setting.

Frequency of dyslipidemia in normotersive non diabetic obese patients

Objective: to determine the frequency of dyslipidemia in normotensive, non-diabetic obese patients

Methods: it was a cross sectional study including admitted patients and patients visiting outdoor. After obtaining informed consent, demographic information such as name, age, gender was collected .This study included 200 normotensive, non-diabetic obese patients. Serum lipid profile was checked in all patients. The frequency and pattern of dyslipidemia was assessed which was described in frequency distribution tables

Results: the mean total Cholesterol, mean LDL C, HDL and Triglyceride levels were 211.59 +/- 42.39 mg/dl, 131. 39 +/-17.21 mg/dl, 36.46+/-7.93 mg/dl and 164.69 +/- 11.80 mg/dl, respectively. The dyslipidemias were found in 87 [43.5%] patients

Conclusion: the frequency of dyslipidemias is high among normotensive non diabetic obese patients. So, every patient with obesity should be screened with lipid profile

Prediction of oesophageal varices in cirrhotic patients by prothrombin time as a non-invasive marker

Objective: the objective of the study was to determine the diagnostic accuracy of prothrombin time for the non-invasive diagnosis of esophageal varices keeping upper gastrointestinal endoscopy as Gold Standard

Methods: the study was conducted in Medical unit 4, Services Hospital Lahore over a period of 6 months. It is a cross-sectional study

Results: in our study, 43.5%[n=87] were between 12-30 years and 56.5%[n=113] were between 31-60 years, mean+/-sd was calculated as 39.90+/-12.29 years, 43.5%[n=87] were male and 56.5%[n=113] were females, frequency of esophageal varices keeping upper gastrointestinal endoscopy as gold standard was recorded in 57%[n=114] while 43%[n=86] had no findings of the morbidity, diagnostic accuracy of prothrombin time for the non-invasive diagnosis of esophageal varices keeping upper gastrointestinal endoscopy as gold standard 53%[n=106] true positive, 2%[n=4] false positive, 4%[n=8] false negative and 41 %[n=82] as true negative. Whereas specificity, sensitivity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and diagnostic accuracy was calculated as 92.98%, 95.35%, 96.36%, 91.11 %, and 94% respectively

Conclusion: we concluded that the predictive value of prothrombin time for presence of oesophageeal varices is a higher and it is a useful non-invasive diagnostic modality

Frequency of thyroid dysfunction in patients of chronic hepatitis C treated with interferon alpha 2B and ribavirin

Objective: to determine the frequency of thyroid dysfunction in patients of chronic hepatitis C treated with Interferon alpha 2b and Ribavirin

Methods: a total of 120 cases having active hepatitis C assessed by HCV RNA PCR as per operational definition for at least 3 months between 15 years to 60 years of both gender were included in the study from outdoor of Services Hospital Lahore after a written informed consent. All the demographics including name, age, gender and address were entered in a pre-defined questionnaire. Patients were treated with Interferon alpha 2b [dose] three million international units subcutaneously three times a week and Ribavirin [dose] 1200 mg oral dailyfor24 weeks. As per hospital routine Thyroid dysfunction was evaluated as per operational definitions bycollecting4ml of blood in a 5cc syringe at 0 [baseline] and 12 week. Presence or absence of thyroid dysfunction at 12 weeks was labelled as per operational definition

Results: in our study, out of 120 cases, 42.5% [n=51] were between 15-40 years while 57.5% [n=69] were between 41-60 years of age, mean +/-sd was calculated as 42.49+/-11.54 years, 59.17% [n=71] were male while 40.83% [n=49] were females, frequency of thyroid dysfunction in patients of chronic hepatitis C treated with interferon alpha 2b and ribavirin was recorded in 21.67% [n=26]

Conclusion: we concluded that the frequency of thyroid dysfunction in patients of chronic hepatitis C treated with Interferon alpha 2b and Ribavirin is not very high but reaches at a considerable level and necessary steps should be taken for the management of this morbidity while interferon therapy is given to the Hepatitis C virus cases

Squamous cell carcinoma arising in background of mature cystic teratoma

Mature cystic teratoma of ovary is a common benign adnexal tumor in females. Malignant transformation in a mature cystic teratoma of the ovary occurs in only 1 - 2% of cases. Most common malignant transformation is squamous cell carcinoma [70-80% of cases], occurring mostly in postmenopausal women with large sized cysts. Here, we report a case of 46-year lady who presented with pain in lower abdomen. Ultrasound and CT scan revealed complex adnexal mass measuring 16x9 cm. Size and older age of the patients should be regarded as important predictors of malignant transformation in mature cystic teratoma. Adequate sampling followed by histopathological examination has important role in diagnosis of such rare tumor