Household symptomatic contact screening of sputum smear positive tuberculosis patients at the DOTS clinic of SGT hospital, Gurugram

Background: Contact screening was conducted under ICMR (REFERENCE ID: 2019-07811) programme in villages near SGT hospital, Gurugram. Objective: To evaluate risk factors, extent of spread of tuberculosis among household contacts of tuberculosis cases and to create awareness. Methods and Material: Address of TB cases were taken from RNTCP register at DOTS clinic, SGT medical college. Then all household contacts of positive cases were screened, counselled and advised to approach ASHA Workers if such symptoms appear. Data was analysed using appropriate statistical methods. Results:21 Index cases along with 94 household contacts were screened. 61.90% families still use chullahs for cooking. 76.1% families have overcrowding. 3) 61.90% families had inadequate ventilation 4) 19.05%families were aware about the spread of this disease. 5)Only 23.80% families practised adequate sanitation methods and precautions6) 42.8% Index cases had a history of smoking. 7) 44.4% 4 continue to smoke with infection. The association of adequate sanitation with presence of awareness was found to be statistically significant. (p-value<0.05). Other factors were not significantly associated with level of awareness regarding prevention of tuberculosis spread among study participants. Conclusions: Contact screening is an effective tool and it gives the real-time picture of TB in India.

Study of colour blindness in Jat Sikhs.

Of the 1306 male and 791 female Jat Sikhs of Patiala city and the surrounding villages between the age group 10-60 years, 50 males and one female were found to be having colour blindness, showing an incidence of 3.83% and 0.13% respectively. The study was done with the help if Ishihara Charts and Pickford Nicolson's anomaloscope. The type of colour blindness in males in its descending order of occurrence was simple deutranomaly 0.92%, extreme deutranomaly 0.77%, protanopia 0.69%, simple protanomaly 0.61%, deutranopia 0.61%, extreme potanomaly 0.15% and tritanopia 0.08%. The sole colour blind female was simple deutranomaly type. The incidence and type of colour blindness found in males are within the range of other Indian samples. Nevertheless the incidence is much lower than the values reported in other European populations.