ABSTRACT
Background and aim: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a proliferation of intubation barriers designed to protect healthcare workers from infection. We developed the Suction-Assisted Local Aerosol Containment Chamber (SLACC) and tested it in the operating room. The primary objectives were to determine the ease and safety of airway management with SLACC, and to measure its efficacy of aerosol containment to determine if it significantly reduces exposure to health care workers. Method(s): In this randomized clinical trial, adult patients scheduled to undergo elective surgery with general endotracheal anesthesia were screened and informed consent obtained from those willing to participate. Patients were randomized to airway management either with or without the SLACC device. Patients inhaled nebulized saline before and during anesthesia induction to simulate the size and concentration of particles seen with severe symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection. Result(s): 79 patients were enrolled and randomized. Particle number concentration (PNC) at the patients' and healthcare workers' locations were measured and compared between the SLACC vs. control groups during airway management. Ease and success of tracheal intubation were recorded for each patient. All intubations were successful and time to intubation was similar between the two groups. Healthcare workers were exposed to significantly lower particle number concentrations (#/cm3) during airway management when SLACC was utilized vs. control. The particle count outside SLACC was reduced by 97% compared to that inside the device. Conclusion(s): The SLACC device does not interfere with airway management and significantly reduces healthcare worker exposure to aerosolized particles during airway management.Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd
ABSTRACT
Background: During Covid pandemic the teaching/learning shifted from face to face to online. All institutions around the world developed learning environment for the students to facilitate distant learning. Subsequently assessments also followed online. After opening of the institutions on campus learning and assessments were carried out as usual. Objective(s): To see the effectiveness of teaching methods (online versus on campus) and to suggest improvement in both methods of teaching. Study Design: Retrospective comparative study Place and Duration of Study: Hitec-IMS, Taxila Pakistan from 1st September 2021 to 29th February 2022. Methodology: One hundred and ninety six academic performances of students in both the methods of learning were enrolled. Using purposive sampling technique, the EOB results of online and on campus were analyzed. Result(s): The better performance of student in term of summative assessments during online learning. Conclusion(s): Students found online environment better for learning and performing during examinations. Copyright © 2022 Lahore Medical And Dental College. All rights reserved.
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Introduction: Sungkai (Peronema canescens Jack.) plant had been used as an immune system enhancer. Aim: In this study, the effect of Sungkai leaf extracts from 4 different fractions, namely n-hexane, ethyl acetate, butanol and residual water with 3 variations in doses of 1,10 and 100 mg/kg bw on the activity of NK and CD8+T cells in male white mice that have been exposed to SARS-Cov-2 virus antigen was investigated. Methods: The experimental animals used were 60 animals divided into 12 groups with 14 days of treatment which had previously been induced with SARS-Cov-2 virus antigen (Moderna) and given with Sungkai leaf extracts for 14 days and evaluated on day 15. The evaluation results of NK cells concentrations sequentially were 2.96;4.66;5.38;5.43;4.05;2.89;3.56;4.21;2.88;1.99;2.07;4.40;3.21;3.40;and 6.93 ng/ml. On the other hand, the evaluation results of CD8+T cells concentrations sequentially were 27.47;28.96;29.19;27.90;21.85;25.79;27.98;23.50;23.39;26.56;22.62;25.19;23,55;26,75;and 29,69 ng/ml. One-way ANOVA and Duncan test were used for the data analysis. Results: The results showed significant increase of concentration (p<0.05) towards concentration of NK cells in the butanol fraction at a dose of 1 mg/kg BW and CD8+T cells in the residual water fraction at a dose of 100 mg/kg BW. Conclusion: It can be concluded that fraction from sungkai (Peronema canescens Jack.) at doses of 1,10 and 100 mg/kg bw shows immunostimulatory activity.
ABSTRACT
Vaccinations are one of the most successful initiatives of the new era in the public health sector. Different types of vaccines are available nowadays depending on the antigen used and the methods of delivery and administration. Conventional vaccines are produced from dead, attenuated, or inactivated pathogens. The antigen activates the body’s immune system to recognize the foreign body as a threat and kill the virus in question. Antigen proteins can be administered directly, naturally, to strengthen the immune response along with the adjuvant. However, safety and efficacy remain the two main issues in conventional vaccine production. Therefore, new vaccine formulations have been introduced to target the antigen at the worksite, reduce toxicity, increase the bioavailability of active compounds, and prolong release time, thus improving therapeutic efficacy and safety. Loading the antigen into different delivery platforms such as lipid vesicles, nanoparticles, microparticles, microemulsions, virus-like particles, embedding complex agents, and cyclodextrins is a promising current vaccine strategy. The current review focused on the most recent research on vaccine delivery systems and briefly described the design and development of the COVID-19 vaccine uploaded to these carriers. This paper also discusses the current situation and future scenarios in the field of vaccine production. © 2022. Bazigha K. Abdul Rasool et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
ABSTRACT
Avibacterium paragallinarum is an important pathogen affecting the respiratory tract of chickens. There is a paucity of information on the molecular characteristics and pathology of A. paragallinarum in Turkish poultry flocks. In the present study, broiler and layer flocks (n = 2) suspected of viral infections with serious respiratory signs and significant mortality were visited. Chickens showed various disease signs and necropsy lesions, including purulent nasal discharge, respiratory distress, facial edema, sticky eyes, mucoid tracheitis, hemorrhagic inflammation of the infraorbital sinuses along with fibrinous mass and conjunctivitis. Histopathological lesions included loss of cilia along with necrosis and exfoliation of the superficial mucosal epithelium of the trachea, facial cellulitis, dermatitis, fibrinous plasmatic edema and infiltration of inflammatory cells, especially heterophils. A. paragallinarum was detected in tissue samples by species-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The sequencing and phylogenetic analysis of the core region of the hemagglutinin (HA) gene revealed that Turkish strains detected here belonged to serotype A (serovar A1). They were related to strains reported from India (VRDC), the United States (0083), and Japan (0221), which are representatives of serovar A1. A homology of 88-90% was found between Indian strains and the Turkish strains detected in this study. Surprisingly, only vaccine strains of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) were detected as a co-infecting agent in all samples positive for A. paragallinarum. Our findings suggest that A. paragallinarum may be an emerging pathogen in Turkish poultry flocks, and direct PCR may facilitate rapid diagnosis of infectious coryza. These results will also help to develop control strategies for A. paragallinarum..