Effect of Counselling and Education in Reduction of Anxiety and Behavioural Change in Patients Admitted with Swine Flu.

Since late April 2009, Swine flu (H1N1) influenza has spread to different parts of the world including India. Public threat and anxiety was widespread, as was the change of certain behaviours in the lay public. We tried to tap the anxiety and adaptation of protective behaviours in case of the patients affected with H1N1 pre and post education and counselling about H1N1 in a nodal centre for treatment of H1N1. It was seen that both self-rated anxiety and anxiety scores measured by Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) decreased by counselling and educating the patients about H1N1. A significant change of behaviour towards adaptation of protective behaviours was noticed after counselling and education in the ward. Post-hoc analysis showed a high degree of correlation with self rated anxiety scores and BAI scores. Change in behaviour also correlated with anxiety scores.

Cotard Syndrome — A Case Report.

Cotard’s Syndrome, is a very rare neuropsychiatric condition in which the sufferer holds a delusional belief that he or she is dead, does not exist, is putrefying or has lost his/her blood or internal organs. The syndrome is described to have various degrees of severity, ranging from mild to severe. It is seen in subjects with depression, schizophrenia and psychoorganic syndromes. The present case vignette is of a lady, who manifested the phenomenon of Cotard Syndrome in the background of depression.

Vision screening programme among school children--evaluation of the outcome in a selected urban locality.

To determine the profile of the visual acuity status, refractive error and other ocular morbidities and to asses the performance at different stages following a vision screening programme in school a retrospective analysis of the data obtained from the programme register for school vision screening programme conducted from April 2003 to March 2006 was done. The data was plotted age and genderwise. Statistical analysis was done to find out disease prevalence with 95% confidence Interval and Z-test was applied for comparison. There were 45,087 students for 239 primary and secondary schools who were examined; 1856 students (4.11%) found having visual acuity .5 or less in either or both eyes. Refractive error was evident in 4.03% students and was the aetiology of compromised vision in 98%. Myopia topped the list with the prevalence of 2.85%; 1733 students (3.84%) were provided with spectacles. Correction of refractive error improved the visual disability in 3.93% of students while amblyopia was found in 0.10%. Average student load per teacher for initial screening was 229. The vision screening programme in school helps to detect refractive error and other causes of compromised vision among large section of children between 5 and 15 years age group. Use of correct spectacles prevents amblyopia considerably. Constraints arising in the programme can be removed by proper planning.