Tobacco use patterns among women in reproductive age group: a cross sectional study in the rural area of Belgaum district, Karnataka, South India

Background: Tobacco imposes a colossal burden of disease and death leading to catastrophic health, social, economic, and environmental effects. “Tobacco” kills both men and women but sex-specific differences exist. Traditional forms of tobacco like dentifrice or tobacco tooth powder and betel quid, tobacco and lime mixture are commonly used and also, the new products use is increasing not only among men but even among children, teenagers, women of reproductive age. This study was done to know the patterns and other correlates of tobacco use among the rural women in the reproductive age group.Methods: A community based cross sectional study, conducted from January 2011 to December 2011 among 1200 rural women aged between 15 years to 49 years residing in primary health centre, Vantmuri area, Belgaum, Karnataka, India. Statistical analysis was done using rates, ratios and chi-square tests.Results: Tobacco consumption was seen in 9.7% of the study participants. A very high percentage of 79 (67.5%) had more than 10 years of exposure to tobacco amongst the users. Dentifrice was the most common form of tobacco used (85.5%) followed by 32 (27.4%) plain tobacco consumption. However, 49 (4.1%) consumed multiple forms of tobacco, most common being dentifrice along with plain tobacco or paan with beetelquid or used snuff.Conclusions: The distribution of tobacco consumption is likely to maintain, and perhaps increase, the current considerable socioeconomic differentials in health in India. Dual users are at much higher health risks than those who consume the individual tobacco product. It also emphasizes the variations in patterns of using tobacco among rural women. There is a need for periodical surveys using more consistent definitions of tobacco use and eliciting information on different types of tobacco consumed.

Objective structured clinical examination; a tool for formative assessment.

Background & Objective: Conventional examination system mostly assesses student’s theoretical knowledge and fails to assess clinical competencies required for future practice. OSCE is objective and reliable method of assessment; if included as formative assessment, can identify student deficiencies and help them to prepare better for summative assessments. Methods: The present study was conducted to know the role of OSCE in formative assessment, in comparison with long case discussions in Community Medicine. 126 undergraduate medical students of 2008 admission batch, who had appeared for practical and OSCE exams in pre-final year were included in the study. Mean, S.D. and correlation co-efficient were used for analysis. Results: The students performed better in long case discussions (68.60 ± 9.7) compared to OSCE (48.67 ± 10.3) in the present study. 80% of students perceived that OSCE is one of the good methods of assessment. The students felt that it creates an insight on self performance of students and helps them to prepare better in summative assessment. Conclusion: OSCE can be included in formative assessments, as there is uniformity in assessment and objectivity in scoring. Majority of students perceived OSCE as one of the good methods of assessment.

Epidemiology and outcome of burn injuries.

Burn injury is a serious public health problem in developing countries. The causes vary in different communities and so this study was done to know the epidemiology and outcome of burn injuries. A one year cross sectional study was done of all the burn injury patients admitted during April 1st, 2004 to March 31st, 2005. Data was collected using a pre designed and pre tested proforma from the patients themselves or their relatives and analyzed using chi square test and percentages. A total of 76 burn injury patients were admitted. Majority were females (52.63%) and sustained burn injuries at home (p=0.000). Maximum number of females were wearing synthetic clothes (p=0.000) and suffered from flame injuries (0.006).The case fatality rate was 31.58%.Burn injuries can be reduced by bringing about regulations to develop safer cooking appliances, promoting less inflammable fabrics to be worn at home and educating the community especially women.

Morbidity among infants in south India: A longitudinal study.

To study the incidence and types of morbidity in the first year of life in a birth cohort, a longitudinal study. This study was undertaken in northern part of Karnataka state in India. Birth cohort consisted of all the children born during first six months of the study period. They were assessed at the time of enrollment and monthly follow up was done till they attained one yr of age. Out of the 194 newborns, 46.4% were boys and 53.6% were girls. 24.8% of newborns were of low birth weight and 5.1% were preterm. Four (2.1%) had congenital anomalies and 2.5% developed birth asphyxia. Diarrhea (10.8%) and skin diseases (8.2%) were the commonest morbidities in the neonatal period. The incidence of morbidity was 3.28 per infant per yr. It was more among boys and in the second half of infancy. Commonest morbidities during infancy were respiratory tract infection (62.4%), diarrhea 42.8% and skin diseases (21.6%). Incidence of disease in infancy highlights the need to improve and plan health programmes.

Minor injuries among under-fives in a south indian village.

The present study was conducted with the objective to determine the treatment seeking behavior of parents/caretakers for injuries sustained by children under five years of age in rural Southern India. Out of 325 children, 39.7 % were treated by a health personnel, 29% received home remedy while the rest (31.3%) did not receive any treatment. Abrasion (72.6%) was the commonest type of injury observed. 47.3% of injuries were treated within an hour of onset. Commonest home remedies used ranged from antiseptics to folk remedies. Training of parents and caretakers for hygienic and timely treatment of injury is recommended.