Assessing Low-cost Capacitive Soil Moisture Sensors: Accurate, Affordable, and IoT-ready Solutions for Soil Moisture Monitoring

This research, conducted at G D Goenka University, assesses the performance of low-cost capacitive soil moisture sensors in comparison to the standard Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) sensors, with a focus on accuracy, reliability, cost-effectiveness, and IoT integration. The results indicate that these sensors are highly accurate, exhibit low error rates, and are a cost-effective alternative to TDR sensors, making them well-suited for large-scale deployments in agricultural and environmental applications. The study's findings support the integration of these sensors into IoT-based soil moisture monitoring systems, with recommendations for optimizing their performance in specific use cases, thereby contributing valuable insights to the field of soil moisture measurement.

Placental polyp after normal vaginal delivery: a rare diagnostic dilemma

Placental polyp is retained placental tissue within the endometrial cavity, which forms a nidus for inflammation and bleeding. Placental polyp is a rare entity with an incidence of less than 0.25% of all pregnancies as reported. Here, we report a case of 23-year-old P2L2 woman with complaints of intermittent vaginal bleeding since her recent normal vaginal delivery, 1.5 months back. A polypoid mass (51×41 mm) with abundant vascularity was detected as retained products of placenta (RPOC) within the endometrial cavity by imaging studies. A combination of polypoidal mass within the endometrial cavity with normal beta human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) of <2.0 mIU/ml raising the suspicion of retained products of placenta or trophoblastic neoplasms. After yielding an unsatisfactory biopsy containing only fibrin deposition, total hysterectomy was performed due to profuse bleeding during biopsy. The uterus specimen showed slight globular enlargement with presence of a red-coloured polypoid mass within the endometrial cavity with rough outer surface and fragile consistency. The histological specimen of the protruding lesion, from the exaggerated placental implantation site, showed intermediate trophoblastic cells infiltrated into the myometrium, which might lead to the diagnosis of placental polyp. However, since placental polyp and uterine arteriovenous malformation have similar clinical characteristics, it is important to accurately identify and differentiate between them to ensure optimal treatment therapy. Definite diagnosis is ultimately made by histopathological examination. We report here a case that is suggestive of either a placental polyp or uterine arteriovenous malformation and will discuss the differential diagnoses and treatments for both diseases, based on a literature review.

A study of effect of intra umbilical oxytocin in active management of third stage of labour

Background: Postpartum haemorrhage is a single major and leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality. PPH is the loss of more than 500 ml blood following vaginal delivery or 1000 ml blood following caesarean section. India has a maternal mortality ratio of 167 per 1 lakh live births. The most common cause of maternal mortality is haemorrhage which accounts for 25-30% of maternal mortality of which PPH is a significant cause.Methods: 200 patients were included in this prospective observational study and divided into two groups, group A, underwent only active management of third stage of labour and group B received intra umbilical oxytocin administration in addition to AMTSL. The maternal and neonatal outcome was observed between the two and the difference was noted.Results: Mean duration of third stage of labour of group A patients was 3.89±0.89 minutes and Mean blood loss was 386±85.30 ml and that of group B patients was 1.96±0.68 minutes and 235±72.99 ml respectively. These were found to be statistically significant among all the other parameters.Conclusions: The duration of third stage of labour and the amount of postpartum blood loss was significantly less when intra umbilical injection of oxytocin was used in addition to AMTSL. So, to conclude intra umbilical vein oxytocin injection should be used routinely in addition to AMTSL in order to prevent PPH.

Family environment and self-regulation among young adults

Background: The purpose of the research is to understand the relationship between family environment and self- regulation in young adults (20-25 years). Methodology: A sample of 100 young adults participated in the study. Family environment scale and Self- regulation scale was used to measure the variables. Results: The result indicated that there is significant relationship between cohesion and competitive framework, moral orientation and recreational orientation, organization and expression, organization, and moral orientation at 0.01 level. There was significant relationship between independence and expression, independence, and organization at 0.05 level. Self-regulation had correlation with competitive framework at 0.05 level and self-regulation also had correlation with cohesion at 0.01 level. Conclusion: To increase self-regulation family should promote more recreational orientation, that is, the extent of participation in social, recreational political intellectual and cultural activities by the family members

TTF1-positive SMARCA4/BRG1 deficient lung adenocarcinoma

SMARCA4/BRG1-deficient lung adenocarcinoma (SD-LUAD) is being recognized as a distinct subtype based on subtle differences in its clinical, morphological, and immunophenotypic attributes compared to other non–small cell lung carcinomas. We present here a case of SD-LUAD with curious thyroid transcription factor 1 (TTF1) expression in a morphologically heterogenous lung adenocarcinoma. The better differentiated area showed preservation of TTF1 expression, and a poorly differentiated tumor had loss of TTF1 expression with universal BRG1 loss.

Founder BRCA1 mutations in Nepalese population

Background@#Founder mutation is a heritable genetic alteration observed with high frequency in a geographically and culturally isolated population where one or more ancestors becomes the forebearer of the altered gene. The current study reports two founder mutations in the BRCA1 gene in the Nepalese people. @*Methods@#Germline BRCA testing in all surface epithelial ovarian cancers and the selected case of breast, prostate, and pancreatic cancers has been the standard practice from 2016 to 2021. One thousand one hundred thirtythree probands were screened for germline BRCA variants by next generation sequencing. The variants were classified as per the American Society of Medical Genetics and Genomics recommendations. Pathogenic (class V) and likely pathogenic (class IV) were considered clinically relevant and utilized for cascade screening. @*Results@#Nepalese population made up a subcohort of 5.12% (58/1,133) of probands tested for germline BRCA1/2 variants. Twenty-seven of these 58 tested harbored pathogenic genetic alterations in BRCA1/2 genes, with 23 being BRCA1 mutant. Sixteen of 23 BRCA1 mutant cases shared one common pathogenic mutation c.2214_2215insT (p.Lys739Ter) (NM_007294.4). Additionally, a second highly recurrent mutation in BRCA1 gene c.5068A>T (p.Lys1690Ter) (NM_007294.4) was noted in six patients from this population. @*Conclusions@#The overwhelming abundance of the above two variants in a geographically confined population confers these two genetic alterations a status of founder mutations amongst the people of Nepal. A more extensive population-based study to reaffirm these findings will help establish a dual site-specific germline testing similar to the “Multisite-3-assay” in Ashkenazi Jews as the primary screening tool, especially in a resource-constrained environment.

A WhatsApp-based introductory histopathology and cytology course for first-year pathology postgraduate students

BACKGROUND The first-year pathology postgraduates can take a long time to learn the basic skills of microscopy, which can become a barrier to learning. METHODS A WhatsApp group comprising all 14 postgraduate first-year students with one senior resident and one faculty as group administrators was formed. For the study, 50 routine cases (35 histopathology cases and 15 cytopathology cases) captured by using a smartphone camera and annotated using image-editing software, along with relevant descriptions and weblinks, were sent to the WhatsApp group. A pre- and post-test comprising 15 cases each was conducted and the results were compared by non-parametric Wilcoxon rank test. A feedback form about the effectiveness of this method of learning was circulated at the end of the study. RESULTS The results of the post-test were better than the pre-test by the non-parametric Wilcoxon rank test. Both the active participants (>10 posts) and passive participants of the study group showed statistically significant improvement in the scores and posted a similar number of intellectually thought-provoking posts. The students’ responses to the questionnaire also indicated that they liked the new method of instruction. CONCLUSION This pilot study shows that smartphone-based learning methods can supplant the traditional methods of teaching for pathology postgraduates.

A study on the surgical management of abdominal tuberculosis in patients attending a tertiary hospital

Background: Tuberculosis is seen due to various factors such as overcrowding and unhygienic conditions. In order to diagnose a case of abdominal tuberculosis, a detailed history and a thorough clinical examination must be done. The objective of this article was to determine the number of patients who presented to a tertiary hospital with abdominal tuberculosis and in which of these patients management in the surgical department was required.Methods: A total of 50 patients who had abdominal tuberculosis were studied. The study was carried out at SRM Medical College Hospital and Research Center, Kattankulathur, Tamil Nadu, India. The study was carried out from February 2017 to January 2020. A detailed history was obtained and a thorough clinical examination was done. Investigations such as CBC, chest X-ray, abdomen X-ray, ultrasound scan and CT scan of the abdomen were done. When required, patients underwent surgery and the results obtained were analyzed and tabulated. In our study, out of a total of 50 patients, 32 patients were found to have required surgery. The statistics were analyzed using SPSS package 16.0.Results: It was seen that in this study, male patients were more commonly affected with abdominal tuberculosis, and resection and anastomosis was the most common surgical procedure done when required. The findings obtained were compared with other studies.Conclusions: In patients with abdominal tuberculosis, a detailed history and a thorough clinical examination are required in order to diagnose the condition as early as possible.

Changing Trends in the Histological Types of Lung Carcinoma

Introduction: Lung cancer is a major cause of cancer-relatedmortality and morbidity in males and females. Althoughsmoking is the major cause of lung cancer, only 10 % of heavysmokers develop lung cancer suggesting that other factorsmay also act independently or synergistically with smoking.Recent studies have suggested that there are changes inhistological type in recent years.Objectives: This study was to determine incidence of varioushistological types of lung carcinoma and analyse their changingtrends.Material and Methods: This is a prospective study. A total of184 cases of lung carcinoma were undertaken to analyse from2011 to 2014 in a tertiary care centre.Results: Overall adenocarcinoma was found to be mostcommon with 73 (39.67%) cases followed by squamous cellcarcinoma with 68 (36.96%) cases. However, in malessquamous cell carcinoma still remains predominant with 59(43%) cases followed by adenocarcinoma with 49 (35.7%)cases .Male to female ratio was 2.9:1. In females,adenocarcinoma was the most common type.Conclusion: Overall adenocarcinoma was the mostpredominant variant of lung carcinoma in our region closelyfollowed by squamous cell carcinoma. However, in malessquamous cell carcinoma was most common histological type.Incidence of lung tumor also shows increase in femalesthereby decreasing the male to female ratio to 2.9.

A non-interventional comparative study between medical and dental undergraduates regarding their knowledge, attitude and practice of antibiotic use in a tertiary care teaching rural hospital: emphasis on WHO fact-sheets

Background: The threat of antibiotic resistance is rapidly progressing and intensifying. The awareness generation of antibiotic use, its seriousness and significance are the first step towards restricting its progress. It is in this regards that this comparative questionnaire-based study was conducted.Methods: The knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) among medical and dental students of a tertiary care teaching rural hospital was assessed. Before initiating the study, their written consent was taken, and 125 structured questionnaires were distributed to medical and dental students. Data collected was further entered in Microsoft excel sheet and further comparison of KAP between them was analysed.Results: The results were depicted in percentage. Regarding the indiscriminate and injudicious use of antibiotics can lead to prolongation of illness, the medical students were more aware 82.4% compared to the dental 65.6%. When asked about additional burden of medical cost to the patient, the medical students responded with yes 88.8% and dental student’s response of yes was 47.22%. Also, medical 90.4% students had heard about antibiotic resistance and 60.8% from dental students, which implies that UG students should be made more aware of antibiotic resistance and its consequences.Conclusions: Thus, the results of the study give useful information about the knowledge, attitudes and practices of medical and dental students, that can be further utilized to plan suitable educational interventions that target at improving the knowledge for prescribing antimicrobial medicines. This can further help in minimizing the development of bacterial resistance.

A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study of knowledge, attitude and practice of antibiotic usage among the undergraduate students of a tertiary care teaching rural hospital: with an emphasis of WHO fact-sheets

Background: Awareness regarding the antibiotic usage forms vital way to overcome the quickly deepening problem of antibiotic resistance. Hence, all the medical students should be made aware of the current emerging health related issues as future clinicians. It is in this regards that this study was undertaken among undergraduate (UG) students, in order to assess their knowledge, attitude & practice concerning antibiotic use.Methods: The present observational study was conducted over a period of four months starting from May 2018 till August 2018 among undergraduates. A total of 250 structured questionnaires were distributed. Data collected was further entered in Microsoft excel sheet and further analysed.Results: Total 250 students participated in this present study. Out of them, nearly 75.6% had heard about antibiotic resistance while 24.4% denied. Regarding the improper use of antibiotics that can cause antibiotic resistance 70% was aware. Moreover, nearly 40.4% attended a CME about rational use of antibiotics. The belief that the antibiotics are safe drugs hence they can be commonly used was reported by 48%. The results were grouped into knowledge, attitude and practice regarding the antibiotic use.Conclusions: Thus, the result gives us useful insight regarding KAP of the undergraduate students who will be future prescribers of antibiotics. This can be further applied to plan desirable educational informative interventions that focus on improving the knowledge for prescribing antibiotics in future clinicians, which can further help in reducing the development of antibiotic resistance.

Evaluation Of Tensile Strength Of Gutta Percha Cones With Different Disinfectant Solutions - An In Vitro Study

This study was done to evaluate the tensile strength of gutta–percha using 5% sodium hypochlorite(SH), 2% chlorhexidine(CH) and 1% peracetic acid disinfectant solutions. 40 guttapercha cones of size 30(6% taper) were obtained from sealed packs as 4 different groups. Experimental groups were disinfected using 5% sodium hypochlorite, 2% chlorhexidine, 1% peracetic acid respectively except the control group. Then tensile strength of gutta–percha cones were measured using the universal testing machine. The mean tensile strength values for group I, II, III, IV are 7.003MPa, 8.49 MPa, 6.60MPa and 9.45MPa respectively. Results were subjected to statistical analysis one–way analysis of varience test and unpaired ‘t’ test. 1% peracetic acid decreased tensile strength significantly as compared to 5% sodium hypochlorite and 2% chlorhexidine. The result concluded that the least decreased in tensile strength is for chlorhexidine followed by sodium hypochlorite and peracetic acid.

Rehabilitation of a complex oro-facial defect by modified prosthetic approach

Loss of part of the face is associated with physical disability, social isolation and immense psychological trauma. Proper rehabilitation of such a patient is a challenging yet satisfying task for a maxillofacial prosthodontist. Facial prostheses are commonly fabricated of silicone because of many favorable properties, though it predisposes to fungal growth. This report is of a patient with history of uncontrolled diabetes and associated invasive fungal infection, leading to a complex oro-facial defect, which was rehabilitated successfully with a silicone facial prosthesis lined by a material more resistant to fungal growth along with a cast partial obturator. Other design and procedural modifications were also made to suit the needs of the case. Wise selection of materials, keeping in mind the properties of materials, is important in successful rehabilitation

Spontaneous intracranial hypotension: an interesting cause of intractable headache

Intracranial hypotension [ICH] is a benign syndrome which is often under-diagnosed. It is characterized by orthostatic headache which is predominantly occipital. ICH is diagnosed in the presence of a typical history and characteristic imaging findings. Further confirmation by Lumbar Puncture to document low CSF pressure is necessary in some cases. Treatment is mainly conservative. However, surgical intervention might be required if conservative measures fail. In this report we present a case of 42 year old male patient who presented with symptoms of orthostatic occipital headache of three months duration and was subsequently diagnosed with Intracranial Hypotension based of characteristic MRI findings

Anton Babinski syndome - A rare complication of cortical blindness

In this case report, we present a rare complication of cortical blindness which is Anton Babinski syndrome. Patients with this syndrome usually disaffirm their blindness and confabulate to fill in missing visual information. The commonest etiology of cortical blindness is posterior cerebral artery infarction but in this particular report we present a case of hypertensive patient with Anton Babinski syndrome who developed bilateral cerebral hematoma confined to parieto-occiput area

Attenuation of quorum sensing controlled virulence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by cranberry.

Background & objectives: Emergence of antimicrobial resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa has led to the search for alternative agents for infections control. Natural products have been a good alternative to present antibiotics. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of cranberry in attenuation of virulence of P. aeruginosa in experimental urinary tract infection (UTI) in mouse model. Efforts were also directed to explore the action of cranberry towards virulence of P. aeruginosa through quorum sensing (QS) inhibition. Methods: Efficacy of cranberry was evaluated in an experimental UTI mouse model and on production of QS signals, alginate, pyochelin, haemolysin, phospholipase-C, cell-surface hydrophobicity, uroepithelial cell-adhesion assay and biofilm formation by already standardized methods. Results: Presence of cranberry showed significant decline in the production of QS signals, biofilm formation and virulence factors of P. aeruginosa in vitro (P<0.001). Further, cranberry was found to be useful in prevention of experimental UTI in mouse model as indicated by reduced renal bacterial colonization and kidney tissues destruction. Interpretation & conclusions: The findings of the present study indicated that cranberry inhibited QS and hence elaboration of virulence factors of P. aeruginosa. It also affected the adherence ability of this pathogen. This approach can lead to the discovery of new category of safe anti-bacterial drugs from dietary sources such as cranberry with reduced toxicity without the risk of antibiotic resistance.

Status of complete denture service in geriatric patients: a clinical study

Aim: The aim of the study was to analyze the elderly edentulous and denture user population in the vicinity of the institution qualitatively and quantitatively; to estimate the number of edentulous patients requiring dentures and the factors depriving them of the complete denture rehabilitation; and to qualitatively analyze the quality, make and the use of dentures in the denture users of the community

Subjects and Methods: Total 600 [50% male and 50%females] subjects with the age of more than 60 years, from dental camps and old age homes, were randomly selected for the study. The edentulous and denture wearer groups were separately interviewed with a leading questionnaire by qualified dental officers and prosthodontists. The dentures and oral conditions of the denture wearer group were assessed. The data was compiled and analyzed

Results: In the edentulous group, 402 [67%] subjects were without dentures out of a total of 600 subject. There was no significant difference between males and females. The mean edentulous period was 5.5 years. As many as 254 [63%] people had remained deprived of complete denture treatment due to their financial constrains. Also 56 [14%] subjects had problems of transportation and care taker with 44 [11%] unaware of the procedure, time schedule and importance of complete dentures and its beneficial advantages on the overall health. There were 48 [12%] had decision-making problems and dependent on the immediate family members and caretakers for their health problems. In the denture users group out of 198, 90 [45%] were unsatisfied with their denture with 32 [16%] having their made by quacks [unqualified denturists]. As many as 67 [34%] of the dentures were incorrectly prepared in terms of material, retention, stability, support, extensions and occlusion. 9 [5%] people were diagnosed of suffering from denture related stomatitis, epulis fissuratum, candidiasis and hyperplasia

Conclusions: Considering the large number of untreated edentulous patients, and the many those with poor quality complete dentures it is suggested to; plan immediate strategies by healthcare providers to make oral Healthcare and quality denture provision service available to the unpreviliged section of the community, plan and organize periodic workshops, treatment and evaluaton camps and concession in treatment cost, and bring awareness and encouragement for denture rehabilitation by qualified dental practitioners through frequent visits to these peoples

Awareness about hypertension among entry year undergraduate health science students in gulf medical university, Ajman, UAE

Hypertension is a colossal problem experienced by one in three adults, leading to 1,000 deaths in a day that people need to be aware of various aspects regarding blood pressure. To determine the level of awareness about hypertension among entry year undergraduate heath science students in Ajman, UAE. A cross sectional study among students enrolled in first year, in the four academic programs, with the use of a validated, self-administered questionnaire on different domains of hypertension such as general knowledge, symptoms, complications, risk factors, treatment and management as well as sources of information. Each factor/statement was given a score of one if it was answered correctly and zero for a wrong answer. Out of a total score, a score of fifty percent and above was considered as good knowledge and a score less than fifty percent considered no knowledge. The data was analyzed by SPSS 20, Chi square and Fisher exact test was done. Out of 161 participants, 130 participants were

Medication Turnaround time in Hospital Pharmacy Department.

Medication turnaround time is defined as the interval from the time a medication order is written (manually or electronically) to the time the medication was administered. Monitoring medication turnaround time in inpatient settings allows organization to measure the impact of their efficiency of patient care. Objective: To trace the delays in the order and delivery system of In-patient pharmacy and check the average total time consumed in delivering drugs and medical consumables to the patients. Method: A time motion study was done in the in- patient pharmacy at a multi specialty hospital in Jaipur. A sample size of 300 indents was taken by using nonprobability convenient sampling method. Out of 300 indents, 56.6% were normal indents, 26.6% were new admission indents and 16.6% were urgent indents. Both primary and secondary data has been used in the study. The secondary data was obtained from the track care software, which was used in the pharmacy. SPSS and Microsoft excel was used for data analysis. Results: The study found that 25.2% of the normal indents, 48.7% of the new admission indents and 60% of the urgent indents were delayed. In addition, the average time taken to deliver normal indent was found to be 1hour 8 minutes, for new admission indent it was 48 mins and for urgent indent it was 1hr 20 minutes i.e. more than the normal indent and new admission indent. It was also found that the peak hours of the indent order were 10:00 pm to 12:00 am, also the peak hours of indent order and the availability of work force at that time was contradicting. The average number of indents per day was found to be 1224. Conclusion: Through this study, we were able to identify various points of delays, which were occurring in delivering indents to the patients. The results of the study revealed that all types of indents were delayed; especially urgent indents also got delayed, which became the major area of concern. In addition, if hospital follows indenting practices by the nursing staff, than the training for nursing staff is essential requirement regularly, to overcome this problem. The results of the study will definitely benefit in improving TAT of the pharmacy indents and most importantly the patient care.