Antibiotic associated colitis.

It is a prospective study based on 100 consecutive cases of diarrhea following antibiotic therapy admitted to the pediatric services of J.N. Medical College, A.M.U., Aligarh between January to December 1987. They had C. penicillin (50), chloramphenicol (34), ampicillin (34), gentamicin (34), cephalosporin (4) and cotrimoxazole (4) for 3 days to 3 weeks prior to the onset of diarrhea. Apart from routine and special investigations, naked eye and microscopic examination of stool, its culture for pathogens including Cl. difficile were carried out in all cases. Presence of Cl. difficile cytotoxin was demonstrated by observing the cytopathic. Effect on veru cell culture, 18 grew Cl. difficile (14 cyto toxin positive). Frequency of fever, vomiting, abdominal distension, dehydration and duration of diarrhea was not different (p > 0.05) in the two groups. Purge rate and presence of mucus and blood in Cl. difficile positive patients was significantly higher (p < 0.05). Eight Cl. difficile positive (7 cytotoxin+ve) were subjected to endoscopy. Three of them showed P.M. colitis and 2 non specific colitis. Chloromycetin, gentamicin and penicillin were the main culprits responsible for AAC. None of the patients given ampicillin alone suffered from AAC. The mortality was 5%.

C-reactive protein in CNS infection.

Serum and CSF levels of CRP were measured by radial immunoassay in 99 subjects consisting of 20 controls, 34 pyogenic meningitis (PM), 21 tuberculous meningitis (TBM) and 24 viral encephalitis (VE). There was significant difference in the CRP levels (p less than 0.01) depending on the type of disease in both serum and CSF. The initial serum and CSF levels of CRP in patients with TBM was intermediate between those of PM and VE and were found to be significantly (p less than 0.001) low when compared with three days post treatment levels in children with PM. Both serum and CSF-CRP levels were significantly high (p less than 0.001) in patients succumbing to death than those who survived. Measurement of CRP in serum and CSF is a useful parameter in differentiating partially treated PM from TBM.

Comparison of temperatures at different sites in term and pre-term neonates.

Temperatures of 30 term and 20 preterm neonates were recorded by mercury-in-glass thermometer at 4 measurement sites; rectum (2 cm beyond anus), external auditory canal, axilla and between skin and mattress. Whereas, the mean rectal and aural temperatures in term infants were significantly higher than their preterm counterparts (p less than 0.01), axillary and skin mattress temperatures did not differ significantly in the two groups. The variation between stabilized temperature at four measurement sites was less marked in preterm as compared to term infants. The skin mattress temperature measurement is a simpler technique and it closely approximates the rectal temperature in preterm infants. Temperatures at all the measurement sites stabilized by 5 minutes both in term and preterm infants.

A comparative study of three types of ORS in the management of diarrheal dehydration.

Seventy five infants and children aged 6 months to 4 years admitted to Pediatrics services of J.N. Medical College, A.M.U., Aligarh with acute watery diarrhea with or without vomitings and associated with varying degree of dehydration were studied. They were randomly divided into three groups--(A, B, C) and were rehydrated with WHO standard ORS, super ORS and Rice water electrolytes solution. These children were subjected to investigations like hemogram, hematocrit, blood urea, blood glucose, plasma electrolytes, recorded on admission and repeated at 6 hours, 24 hours and at the time of discharge. The observation emerging out of this study include lower rate of purging, earlier control of vomitings, greater weight gain, earlier urination and consistently lower requirement of ORS and shorter time required for initial rehydration associated with early normally in laboratory parameters in dehydrated children receiving either super ORS or rice water electrolyte solution as compared to those on standard ORS. The difference in all these parameters was statistically significant.