Challenges encountered in community-based physiotherapy interventions for urinary incontinence among women in rural areas of Anand District of Gujarat, India

Background: It is necessary to understand the way women think about their health. There is a 揷ulture of silence� among women regarding urinary incontinence (UI). Physiotherapy is proven effective mode of therapy in case of UI. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the attitude of the women toward UI, to understand the related sociocultural factors and health-seeking behavior, and to ascertain the challenges encountered in community-based physiotherapy interventions. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted among women who refused to participate in a physiotherapy intervention for UI in the rural community of Gujarat, India. Fourteen in-depth key informant interviews were conducted using an interview guide. The responses were noted and compiled into a composite interview script. Interviews were not recorded due to nonavailability of consent. Interviews were reviewed by investigators and content analysis was carried out. Key themes were identified after multiple iterations. Results: Most of the women were unaware of the UI and believed that it may be due to their gender or due to aging. Physiotherapy interventions were disregarded due to various reasons such as shy nature, lack of priority and privacy, dependency, self-neglect, and influence of social and cultural norms. Conclusion: Cultural and social systems were more important determinants of health seeking than health systems themselves particularly when sensitive issue such as UI in women of rural Western India was concerned.

Study on hygiene practice among adolescent girls with special reference to menstrual hygiene in Barpeta, Assam

Background: Lack of awareness and poor hygiene practices during menstruation can lead to various gynecological problems in the reproductive life of girls. Menstruation is still considered as unclean in the Indian society. Objectives: The objective of the study is to assess the hygiene practices among adolescent girls with special reference to menstrual hygiene in urban area of Barpeta and to assess the restrictions practiced by them during menstruation. Materials and Methods: It was a community-based cross-sectional study involving 200 adolescent girls of Barpeta conducted from August 2018 to January 2019. The data were collected using predesigned and pretested pro forma. Results: The study revealed that 92% of the respondents knew about menstruation before menarche. As high as 92% of the respondents believed that menstruation occurs due to natural or hormonal cause, whereas 1.5% considered it as a disease process. 81.5% girls used commercially available sanitary pads and 78.5% girls cleaned external genitalia with soap and water. All the participants avoid attending religious occasion, followed by kitchen work (57.5%), marriage party (31.5%), and 30.5% of them were sleeping separately. 46% of the respondent avoid sour food during menstruation. Conclusion: Although awareness regarding menstrual hygiene is quite satisfactory in majority of the respondents, yet false perceptions, ignorance, and unsafe practices are still prevailing in the community. Behavior change communication to bring about safe and hygienic practices during menstruation through different stakeholders will help in solving menstruation-related problems among the adolescent girls.

Effect of zinc on antioxidant response in maize (Zea mays L.) leaves.

Maize (Zea mays L. cv kanaujia) plants grown with Zn [10 (control), 0.1 (low) and 20 microM (high)], were investigated for concentration of antioxidants and activities of antioxidative enzymes in leaves. Young leaves of low Zn plants developed whitish-necrotic spots. Leaves of both low and high Zn plants showed decrease in chlorophyll concentration and accumulation of lipid peroxides, ascorbate and dehydroascorbate, associated with a decrease in the activity of ascorbate peroxidase and superoxide dismutase. Low and high Zn, however, showed diverse effect on glutathione reductase. While low Zn increased the activity of glutathione reductase, high Zn decreased its activity. Zinc effect on antioxidative constituents suggested Zn involvement in sustaining the antioxidative defense system in maize leaves.