Prevalence of Various forms of Tobacco Use and Factors Related with it in Diamond Cutting and Polishing Workers of Surat City, India.

Over 8 lakh deaths occur every year due to diseases associated with tobacco use in India. The cancer registry data reveals that 48% of cancers in males and 20% in females are tobacco related and are totally avoidable. The present study evaluated socio demographic profile of diamond cutting and polishing workers of Surat city. Additively, the prevalence of various forms of tobacco use and factors related with it in diamond cutting and polishing workers was also studied. The present study was a cross sectional study of 295 diamond cutting and polishing workers selected randomly from different diamond units and interviewed with pre designed and pre tested semi st ructured questionnaire. Data on socio demographic characteristics, various forms of tobacco use and its related factors was collected and analysed with MS Excel and Epi info7. It was seen that the mean age of diamond workers was 29.51±9.02. About 71.2 % workers had history of tobacco use in different forms, from them, 68.1 % were currently consuming tobacco and 3.1 % had already quit their habit. Mean age of starting tobacco was 21.44±6.35 among current users. Mawa-masala (79.6%), khainee (22.39%) and Gutkha (4.48%) were preferred forms of smokeless tobacco among current-users. Smoking form of tobacco was used by 11.4 % of current user, out of which 9.4 % were bidi smokers and 2 % were cigarette smokers. Most common reason for tobacco initiation was peer pressure (74.13%), followed by psychological stress (47.76%). It was concluded that the prevalence of tobacco use among diamond workers is very high compared to that in general population. Preventive strategies are warranted to reduce the future burden of tobacco-related morbidity among these workers.

Are physiotherapy students at risk of Musculoskeletal Pain? A Study on Physiotherapy students of Government Physiotherapy College, New Civil Hospital, Surat.

Musculoskeletal disorders are common in physiotherapists and are continually growing. Many physiotherapists report the onset of musculoskeletal pain during undergraduate course. In fact, physiotherapy students are potentially exposed to the same risks as graduates. So this study is done to find out whether the physiotherapy students are having same musculoskeletal problems as graduate physiotherapists. The objective of the study was 1.) To study the prevalence and distribution of musculoskeletal pain among physiotherapy students at Government Physiotherapy College, New Civil Hospital Surat. 2.) To find out factors related with musculoskeletal symptoms among physiotherapy students. A crosssectional study was carried out at Physiotherapy College, Surat. A pre designed semi structured questionnaire was given to physiotherapy students of all four years (114 students). After signing the consent they completed the questionnaire which took approximately 20-25 min. Following Variables were collected: age, sex, height and weight, year of study, pain and related factors. It was found that around 52% of the students had a musculoskeletal pain in last 12 months. Most common site of pain was lower back 22(37.29%), neck 15(25.42%) and upper back 11(18.64%). Dull aching was the most common pain among 39(66.10%) students. Prolonged standing was the most aggravating factor. As duration of study increased, number of students having musculoskeletal pain also increased. These findings suggest that physiotherapy students are having Musculoskeletal problems during their under graduate course itself. Some preventive measures and educational activities should be done during undergraduate course itself to minimize the problem in future.

Study of Knowledge, Attitude and Practice about sickle cell anemia in patients with positive Sickle Cell Status in Bardoli taluka.

Background: Sickle cell anaemia is widely distributed in African and American negroes. It also seen in Arabian peninsula, Indian Subcontinent and parts of Europe. A high prevalence has been demonstrated in various tribal communities of Gujarat. Aims & Objective: To assess Knowledge, Attitude and Practice about sickle cell anaemia in patients with positive Sickle Cell Status. Materials and Methods: Cross Sectional Observational Study from June 2010 to May 2011. 276 patients with purposive sampling in Bardoli Taluka having sickle cell positivity in age group of 18 to 30 years were taken. Results: Only 16% of the study participants knew correct symptoms of Sickle cell anaemia. 30 % patients were availing the treatment of some kind. It was observed that females were more active as compared to males in taking medication for Sickle Cell Anaemia and the difference between them was found to be significant. It was found that 96 % of the study participants had received Color coded cards after testing showing the high accomplishment of mass screening programs in identifying Sickle Cell Status by simple means. But approximately 90% didn’t know the cause of disease and only 52 (18 %) were counselled about this disease. More than 95% of the participants were unaware regarding their haemoglobin status. Conclusion: All the strategies for the prevention of this outrageous disease will be effective only if they are utilized to its maximal extent by creating more awareness to the affected and also the other population.

Study of psychological stress among undergraduate medical students of government medical college, Surat.

Background: Psychological stress among medical students is common as compared to other professional courses. The prevalence of perceived stress among medical students affects not only their academic performances but also to some extent their health. Objective: The present study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of self – perceived psychological stress among Under-Graduate medical students, to identify probable factors responsible for it and to suggest possible interventions. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study using self administered questionnaire was conducted among a sample of undergraduate students chosen from all the years of MBBS who were enrolled at Govt. Medical College Surat at the time of study period. Results: In this study 3.12% of the students reported having no stressor experience, 55.6% reported mild to moderate stressor experience and 41.2% with severe stressor experience. Major factors responsible for stress identified in this study are increased load towards exam, vast syllabus, not getting expected marks, less time for repeated learning and procrastination Conclusion: This study has found that majority of undergraduate students experience stress. Both academic and emotional factors are responsible for this stress. Proper guidance and counseling by faculties may help to improve the present scenario.

Prevalence of goitre in 6 -12 years school-going children of Panchmahal district in Gujarat, India.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVE: Iodine deficiency disorders (IDDs) are one of the worldwide public health problems of today. IDDs are endemic in various districts of Gujarat. We undertook this survey in Panchmahal district of Gujarat to study the prevalence of goiter in a sample of school children, to asses the level of iodine in salt samples, and to determine median urinary iodine concentration in a sample of children. METHODS: In a cross-sectional study, 15,900 school-going children in the age group of 6-12 yr were studied from 10 talukas. A total of 15 clusters were selected by cluster sampling method. Goitre was assessed in the children and urine and salt samples were studied for iodine concentration. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of goitre was 20.5 per cent among the children examined. The median iodine concentration was 70 mg/l indicating mild iodine deficiency; also 61 per cent of the urine samples examined showed iodine insufficiency. Iodine content was found to be adequate in 54.3 per cent of salt samples. INTERPRETATION & CONCLUSION: Our study showed that goitre is still an important public health problem in the district. This calls for identification of factors to strengthen NIDDCP and the need to reimpose ban on sale of non-iodized salt in Gujarat.

Meningococcal meningitis in an industrial area adjoining Surat City--some clinico-epidemiological aspects.

An industrial area with poor sanitation and inhabited by migrant, male predominant population, situated South to Surat City, experienced an outbreak of pyogenic meningitis during 1985-87. A total of 197 cases of meningitis with 34 deaths were reported during a period of 1 1/2 years. Neisseria meningitidis was the predominant pathogen isolated from 66 out of 138 CSF samples. Recently migrated males of productive age groups drawn from the States of Uttar Pradesh and Orissa were predominantly affected. Male to female ratio was found to be 7.2:1. Nearly 2/3rd of the cases were reported during the dry colder months of winter and spring. Pregnancy and childbirth appeared to be important predisposing factors in females. Nine cases were reported from the family contacts of cases. Majority of the cases were labourers doing manual work.