ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To describe intensive care unit (ICU) facilities in Sri Lanka; to describe the pattern of admissions, case-mix and mortality; compare patient outcome against the various types of ICUs; and determine the adequacy and standards of training received by medical and nursing staff. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Observational study of multidisciplinary (general) and adult speciality ICUs in government sector hospitals. RESULTS: Hospitals studied had 1 ICU bed per 100 hospital beds. Each bed catered to 70-90 patients over a year. Death rates were comparable in each level of hospital/ICU despite differences in resource allocation. Fifty to 60% of patients had their original problems related to medicine, while only 35% - 45% were surgical. Thirty two percent of medical patients and 15% of surgical patients died. More than 90% of ICUs had a multi-monitor for each bed. Seventy seven percent of ICUs had one or more ventilators for each bed. Arterial blood gas (ABG) facilities were available in 83% of ICUs. There were serious inadequacies in the availability of facilities of 24 hour physiotherapy (available only in 36.7%), 24 hour in hospital Ultra Sonography (22.4%), electrolyte analyser in ICU (54.2%), haemodialysis / continuous renal replacement therapy (HD/CRRT) (41.7%), and Echocardiography. Medical Officers' training was anaesthetics dominated as opposed to a multidisciplinary training. There was a severe shortage of critical care trained nurses. CONCLUSIONS: Only limited evolution has taken place in intensive care over the past 5 years. The reasons for higher death rates in medical patients should be investigated further. Moving towards a multidisciplinary approach for training and provision of care for ICU patients is recommended.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Sterol is a very vital compound for most of the insects and mosquitoes to complete their life cycle. Unfortunately mosquitoes cannot synthesize the sterol, it depends on mammals for the same. Mosquitoes take the sterol from the plant decays during their larval stage in the form of phytosterol, which is then converted to cholesterol for further growth and reproduction. This conversion occurs with the help of the sterol carrier protein 2(SCP2). METHODS: Mosquito populations are controlled by plant-based inhibitors, which inhibit sterol carrier protein (SCPI-Sterol carrier protein inhibitor) activity. In this article, we explain the methods of inhibiting Aedes aegypti SCP2 by insilico methods including natural inhibitor selection and filtrations by virtual screening and interaction studies. RESULTS: In this study protein-ligand interactions were carried out with various phytochemicals, as a result of virtual screening Alpha-mangostin and Panthenol were found to be good analogs, and were allowed to dock with the mosquito cholesterol carrier protein AeSCP-2. CONCLUSION: Computational selections of SCPIs are highly reliable and novel methods for discovering new and more effective compounds to control mosquitoes.
ABSTRACT
Role of habitat-structure and climatic factors in the population dynamics of the small green bee-eater Merops orientalis was evaluated in three habitats viz., agricultural lands, river banks and human habitations during 1991-1993. The river banks supported relatively high population of bee-eaters (157/Km2) followed by the agricultural lands (101/Km2) and human habitations (58/Km2). Bee-eater populations showed year-wise variations in river banks and human habitations having high values during 1992 (123/Km2) and 1993 (43/Km2) respectively. Agricultural lands showed a significantly low mean density in 1991 than other years. Seasonal variations in the bee-eater densities among the habitats were also recorded. Vegetation structure, food (insects) availability, climatic conditions and human disturbance were the casual factors for variations in bee-eater populations.
Subject(s)
Birds/physiology , Environment , Seasons , Animals , India , Population Density , Population DynamicsABSTRACT
A new second generation anticoagulant rodenticide, difethialone (0.0025%), was evaluated in the rice fields at three different cropping stages, viz. Milky, Panicle formation and Panicle maturation, during Kuruvai and Thaladi seasons. The difethailone (0.0025%) yielded satisfactory control success suggesting a great potential as a rodenticide especially in the early stages of rice.
