Effectiveness of educational interventions in improving knowledge and practice regarding infection prevention and control among healthcare workers.

Introduction: Rise of major Healthcare associated infections (HAIs) can be mitigated by inculcating good infection control practices which can only be possible by proper and timely educational training of healthcare workers. Aim: To reinforce infection prevention and control knowledge and practices of nursing staff through proper training program- To conduct the training in multiple sessions, to assess the immediate outcome of training program by conducting Pre and Post test (in written format only) Materials and Methods: This study was done in a tertiary care hospital in Davangere, Karnataka over a period of 2 years. Healthcare workers including 144 nurses and 12 doctors underwent training in four sessions where knowledge on how to identify, audit and conduct surveillance of major healthcare associated infections, management of needlestick injuries were imparted through interactive lectures and video demonstrations followed by hands on hand hygiene, proper use and disposal of personal protective equipments. Pre and Post test were given to know their basal knowledge and effect of our training intervention. Data was collected, analyzed and tabulated. Results: Out of four sessions covering a total of 144 nurses, 84 were trained before the onset of COVID-19 and remaining 60 were trained in the latter half of 2021, when the lockdown was relaxed in our region. The mean total Knowledge score in pre test and post test was 5.93 � 1.336 and 7.95 � 1.040. The mean difference was -2.021 and it was statistically significant by paired test. (p - 0.001). The mean total practice pretest and post test score was 3.57 � 1.48 and 4.56 � 1.114. Paired t test showed significant mean difference between the pretest and post test score. (p - 0.001). Conclusion: Our training intervention was effective in increasing their awareness on proper infection prevention and control practices. Repeated training and retraining of healthcare care workers have to be carried out to prevent and control healthcare associated infections.

The Many Therapeutic Applications of Nigella sativa - A Review of Literature.

Medicinal plants have been used since ancient times as therapeutic agents for treatment of various diseases and ailments. Description of medicinal uses of plants are found abundantly in ancient papyrus writings from various civilizations. Indigenous cultures even today use herbs in their healing rituals. Medicinal plants are considered as rich sources of phytochemical ingredients which play a vital role for the development of new drugs.Nigella sativa (N. sativa) is commonly known as Black seed or Kalongi, sometimes also referred to as miracle herb has been studied extensively for its various medicinal benefits. Apart from being used as a spice it is also used in various traditional systems of medicine including Ayurveda due to its healing properties in the treatment of various diseases. The seeds of Nigella sativa and their oil have been widely used for centuries in the treatment of various ailments throughout the world. And it is an important drug in the Indian traditional system of medicine like Unani and Ayurveda. It has been extensively studied for its biological activities and therapeutic potential and has been shown to possess wide spectrum of activities like diuretic, antihypertensive, antidiabetic, anticancer, immunomodulatory, analgesic, antimicrobial, anthelmintic, analgesic, antiinflammatory, spasmolytic, bronchodilator, gastroprotective, hepatoprotective, renal protective and antioxidant properties. Most of the therapeutic properties of this plant are due to the presence of thymoquinone (TQ) which is a major active chemical component of the essential oil.Research into its therapeutic potential has highlighted its use due to its efficacy as an antioxidant, for glycaemic control, anticancer, antimicrobial and for its various other potential health benefits. Experimental studies have reported that Nigella sativa Oil and Nigella sativa extracts have anti-microbial activity against a wide range of microbes, especially multiple-antibiotic resistant bacteria. The current article tries to present a comprehensive and yet short review of this miraculous herb and its various applications in medicine especially in the backdrop of emerging antibiotic resistant superbugs.

Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity is Associated with Functional Capacity in Young Healthy Individuals

Introduction: Impaired functional capacity and aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) are predictors ofcardiovascular (CV) adverse outcomes in healthy individuals as well as in those with CV disease. However,interrelation between arterial PWV and functional capacity remain to be established. Hence, the aim of thepresent study was to assess the relationship between arterial PWV and functional capacity in young healthyindividuals.Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on young healthy subjects (n=58) with ageranging between 17-24 years. The PWV from four regions was included for the study: brachial-ankle PWV,carotid-PWV/aortic PWV, heart-brachial PWV and heart-ankle PWV. Functional capacity was evaluatedusing a six-minute walk test (6MWT). Relationship between variables were assessed using bivariatecorrelations and multiple linear regression analysis.Results: Walking-distance was significantly correlated with age (r=0.334; p=0.010) and aortic-PWV(r=-0.259; p=0.049). Aortic PWV was robustly associated with 6MWD even after multiple adjustments withpotential confounders using several models.Conclusions: Our findings suggest that aortic-PWV is an independent predictor of functional capacity inyoung healthy individuals. There was an inverse association of aortic-PWV with walking-distance, suggestingthat higher the aortic PWV, lower is the functional capacity.

How to plan and write a budget for research grant proposal?

Medical research can have an enormous positive impact on human health. Health research improves thequality of human lives and society which plays a vital role in social and economic development of thenation. Financial support is crucial for research. However, winning a research grant is a difficult task. Asuccessful grant-winning application requires two key elements: one is an innovative research problemwith best probable idea/plan for tackling it and appropriate planning of budget. The aim of the presentpaper is to give an insight on funding agencies providing funding for health research including traditionalIndian medicine (from an Indian perspective) and key points for planning and writing budget section of agrant application.© 2017 Transdisciplinary University, Bangalore and World Ayurveda Foundation. Publishing Services byElsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Clostridium difficile in Antibiotic-Associated Diarrhoea and Detection of Toxin Producing Strains in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Western Maharashtra.

Background: Rampant and injudicious use of broadspectrum antibiotic in hospitalized patients hasincreased the incidence of Clostridium difficileAssociated Diarrhea (CDAD). In recent years,Clostridium difficile Infection (CDI) has become morefrequent, severe, and difficult to treat. Aim andObjective: A prospective, study was conducted toisolate C. difficile in Antibiotic-associated Diarrhoea(AAD) and to detect toxin producing strains of C.difficile from faecal samples of patients suspected tohave CDI. Material and Methods: A total of 111hospitalized patients who developed diarrhoea after>72 hours of admission and suspected of CDI wereenrolled for investigation. The samples were subjectedto anaerobic culture and toxin assay. Results: The totalsample size of the study was 111 patients who werehaving antibiotic associated diarrhoea. Majority of thepatients were from the age group 21-30 years and 41-50 years i.e., 23 (20.7%). Males 64 (57.7%) wereaffected more as compared to females 47 (42.3%).Third generation cephalosporins were the mostcommon group of antibiotics associated with bothAAD 36 (32.4%) and CDAD 9 (42.85%) cases,followed by carbapenem fluroquinolones incombination 3 (12.5%). Culture positivity was seen in12 (10.81%) of the 111 stool samples and 39 (35.13%)were toxin producers. Conclusion: The use of severalmedications was found to be associated with anincreased risk of CDAD. The only way to reduce Cl.difficile infection is to judiciously use antibiotics,strictly adhere to antibiotic policy and to give primeimportance to strict infection control measures.

Biofilm production and multidrug resistant bacterial isolates in ventilator associated pneumonia

Context: Ventilator-associated pneumonia is the second most common complication among all types of nosocomial infections. Mechanical ventilation predisposes to formation of a biofilm which worsens the prognosis because of increased multidrug resistant isolates implicated in formation of biofilm. Aim of the Study: The study was conducted to find out the relationship between duration of mechanical ventilation, biofilm formation, and antibiotic resistance among VAPpathogens. Study Design and Methods: A descriptive analytical study of 150 clinically suspected VAPpatients was done. Patients were divided into Group I and II based on intubation duration for 1–5 days and more than 6 days, respectively. Endotracheal aspirate was collected from clinically diagnosed cases and processed as per standard microbiological techniques. Bacterial counts ? 106 CFU/ mLfor quantitative cultures were considered significant. Biofilm production was detected by tissue culture plate method. Multivariate analysis was done to find out the association of the various factors. Results: Klebsiella pneumoniae was the predominant bacteria isolated followed by Acinetobacterbaumannii. Among Gram negative bacteria 66.8% were ?-lactamase producers. In biofilm production by tissue culture method, Group I patients, 72.4% of the isolates showed either strong / moderate biofilm formation and in Group II patients, 92.3% of the isolates showed either strong / moderate biofilm formation. Multivariate analysis revealed that bacteria isolated from VAPoccurring after 5 days of mechanical ventilation among prior antibiotic-treated patients were resistant to all the antibiotics tested. Conclusion: Bacterial aetiology, prolonged intubation, biofilm formation, and drug resistance have ramification on outcome of VAP. Hence removal of ET tube in regular intervals should be considered with a proper choice of antimicrobial treatment or using ETtube coated with drugs/ biomaterials that discourage biofilm formation may be explored.

Evaluation of arterial stiffness in elderly with prehypertension.

Arterial stiffness is an independent marker of cardiovascular (CV) risk that increases with age. Hypertension is known to augment the age-related arterial stiffness. The influence of prehypertension on arterial stiffness in elderly is least studied. The present study was aimed to assess the age-associated arterial stiffness in the elderly subjects with prehypertension. A cross sectional study was conducted on elderly subjects aged 60-80 years with prehypertension (n=25) and age-matched normotensives (n=20). The arterial stiffness was assessed by measuring: (1) Pulse wave velocity between carotid-femoral (c-f PWV) and brachial-ankle (baPWV) (2) Augmentation index (AIx) and (3) Arterial stiffness index (ASI) at brachial (bASI) and tibial artery (aASI). We found a significant increase in c-f PWV (p<0.001), baPWV (p<0.001) and AIx@75 (p<0.001) in prehypertensives than normotensive elderly individuals. There was no significant difference in the ASI at brachial and tibial arteries. The significant predictor of c-f PWV and AIx@75 was SBP (β=0.584, p=0.04; β=0.700, p=0.019 respectively), and aASI was PP (β=0.493, p=0.049). These findings show an augmentation of age-related arterial stiffness in elderly with prehypertension.

Effect of Yoga on Short Term Heart Rate Variability Measure as a Stress Index in Subjunior Cyclists : A Pilot Study。

Subjunior athletes experience mental stress due to pressure from the coach, teachers and parents for better performance. Stress, if remains for longer period and not managed appropriately can leads to negative physical, mental and cognitive impact on children. The present study was aimed to evaluate the effect of integrated yoga module on heart rate variability (HRV) measure as a stress index in subjunior cyclists. Fast furrier transform technique of frequency domain method was used for the analysis of HRV. We have found a significant increase in high frequency (HF) component by 14.64% (P<0.05) and decrease in the low frequency component (LF) of HRV spectrum by 5.52% (P<0.05) and a decrease in LF/ HF ratio by 19.63% (P<0.01) in yoga group. In the control group, there was decrease in the HF component and, no significant difference in the LF component of HRV spectrum and LF/HF ratio. The results show that yoga practice decreases sympathetic activity and causes a shift in the autonomic balance towards parasympathetic dominance indicating a reduction in stress. In conclusion, yoga practice helps to reduce stress by optimizing the autonomic functions. So, it is suggested to incorporate yoga module as a regular feature to keep subjunior athletes both mentally and physically fit.