Evaluation of different taste sensations along with body mass index (BMI) in geriatric patients with and without complete dentures.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of acrylic full removable dentures on the perception of four primary tastes (sweet, sour, salty, and bitter), as well as to determine if there is a correlation between changes in body mass index (BMI) and taste perception. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 60 patients who wore acrylic removable dentures and 60 controls were included in the study as a convenient sample. Sixteen solutions for basic tastes were prepared, and the patients were asked to identify the taste of each solution from the lowest concentration. Anthropometric measures, such as height and weight, were measured and recorded in an MS-Excel sheet. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 23. RESULTS: The results showed that patients with complete removable dentures had lower taste scores for sourness (P < 0.001) and sweetness (P < 0.001) compared to the control group. However, there was no significant difference in salt taste scores (P = 0.218) and bitterness (P = 0.002) between the two groups. Additionally, the study found a correlation between lower BMI values and higher taste scores among denture-wearing patients, indicating an inverse relationship between total taste scores and BMI. CONCLUSIONS: The study suggests that geriatric patients with complete dentures have reduced taste sensations compared to those without dentures which can have a negative impact on their nutritional status. Therefore, it is crucial to provide adequate nutritional support and dietary counseling for geriatric patients based on health policy to maintain their overall health and well-being.

Providing Diabetes Education through Phone Calls Assisted in the Better Control of Hyperglycemia and Improved the Knowledge of Patients on Diabetes Management.

Purpose: A recent single-arm pilot study from our group showed a significant decrease in HbA1C in Type-2 diabetes individuals provided with SMS and phone call-based education on glycemic control. Considering the preference of participants to phone call-based education, a randomized control trial (RCT) with parallel design was conducted to determine the impact of phone call-based diabetes educational intervention on the control of hyperglycemia and improvement in the knowledge about diabetes management. Objectives: To determine the impact of phone call-based educational intervention on the control of hyperglycemia and improvement in the knowledge about diabetes management. Methodology: The study was conducted for a period of 12 months on a total of 273 Type-2 diabetic patients (interventional group (n = 135); non-interventional group (n = 138)) who had provided consent to participate. Subjects in the case group received weekly phone calls on diabetes education; whereas the control group received no education. HbA1C investigations were carried out at baseline and at every fourth month until the completion of the study period for the subjects in both the groups. The impact of phone call-based education was measured by comparing HbA1C values as well as by measuring the questionnaire-based knowledge scores on diabetes management. Results: At the end of the study period, there was a significant reduction in HbA1C in 58.8% participants (n = 65) and a manifold (2-5-fold) increase in knowledge on diabetes management among participants in the case group (n = 110). However, no significant difference in HbA1C and knowledge score was observed in participants from the control group (n = 115). Conclusion: Phone call-based diabetes education is a viable option to empower patients for better management of Type-2 diabetes.

Hypertension as a silent epidemic among late adolescent girls, its associated demographic factors, and pregnancy outcome: A report from national family health survey (NFHS) IV data.

Background: Hypertension is predominantly considered to be a disease frequently occurring after the fifth decade of life, its occurrence among adolescents has not received much public health attention. Pathophysiological and epidemiological evidence suggests that essential hypertension initiate in childhood and often goes unnoticed unless explicitly observed for this age group. Aim: The current study estimates the prevalence of hypertension, its predictors, and pregnancy outcome among late adolescent girls (15-19 years). Material and Methods: The study used secondary data from the NFHS 4 from January 2015 to December 2016. The sample of 1,24,878 adolescent girls out of 6,99,686, national women's data was obtained through a stratified two-stage sample using a population proportionate to size sampling methodology. Descriptive statistical tests and inferential statistics were performed to find the relation of hypertension with the independent variables and Chi-square analysis to study association of hypertension during pregnancy and its adverse pregnancy outcomes. Results: The prevalence of hypertension among the late adolescents was 16.4% [CI: 16.2-16.6] (n=20,532). On multivariable logistic regression (after adjusting for all the variables) only age [AOR: 1.09 (1.08-1.11)]; education [AOR: 1.09 (1.006 - 1.2)], and wealth index [AOR: 1.17 (1.11 - 1.24)] retained the significance with hypertension. A significant association was seen between hypertension status of the adolescents and adverse pregnancy outcomes (χ2 = 4.550, P = 0.033). Conclusion: Nearly 1/6th of late adolescents found to be hypertensive, significantly contribution to disease burden. Also, a significant association is seen between hypertension status of adolescents and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Hence, it is imperative to make the National Programme inclusive for adolescents and have a focused approach to health promotion, prevention, and management of non-communicable diseases.

Size at birth and cognitive function among rural adolescents: a life course epidemiology study protocol of the Kisalaya cohort in Mysuru, South India.

INTRODUCTION: It is proven that adverse intrauterine environment results in 'early life programming,' alterations in metabolism and physiological development of the fetus, often termed as 'Developmental Origins of Health and Disease' (DOHaD) resulting in a smaller size at birth, greater non-communicable diseases (NCD) risk factors during childhood and adolescence, and cardiometabolic disorders in adulthood. Nevertheless, very few studies have examined the relationship between DOHaD programming and cognition. This study aims to examine if impaired prenatal growth indicated by birth weight is associated with cognition among adolescents in the Kisalaya cohort, a rural birth cohort in South India, thus providing newer insights into DOHaD programming for adolescent mental health in a low-income and middle-income country setting. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Kisalaya cohort was established in 2008, to provide integrated antenatal care and HIV testing using mobile clinics to improve maternal and child health outcomes. This cohort included pregnant women residing in 144 villages of Mysuru Taluk (rural) who received antenatal care through mobile clinics and delivered their children between 2008 and 2011. Data related to mother-infant dyads for all pregnant women who received care in the Kisalaya programme are available for this study. Presently, children born to women who received care through Kisalaya are adolescents between 10 and 12 years. At this point, information would be collected on sociodemographic data and assessments of mental health, stressful life events, cognition, vision, speech, language, hearing and anthropometric measures would be done and relevant maternal data and child data, available from the cohort would be retracted for analysis. We plan to retrace as many adolescents as possible out of 1544 adolescents who are currently available for study excluding twins, abortions, stillbirths and postdelivery deaths. Analyses will be extended to construct a life course pathway for cognition using structural equation modelling.

Cohort profile: the Kisalaya cohort of mother-infant dyads in rural south India (2008-2012).

The Kisalaya cohort was established in 2008, providing integrated antenatal care (ANC) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing in order to reduce adverse birth outcomes and pediatric HIV infections. The program used a mobile clinic model to deliver health education, ANC, and HIV/sexually transmitted infection testing and management to pregnant women in rural communities in southern India. This cohort includes pregnant women residing in 144 villages of the Mysuru taluk (a rural region) who received ANC through the mobile clinic and delivered their infants between 2008 and 2011. Of the 1,940 women registered for ANC at primary healthcare centers during this time period, 1,675 (75.6%) were enrolled in the Kisalaya cohort. Once women enrolled in the Kisalaya cohort gave birth, the cohort expanded to include the mother-infant dyads with a retention rate of 100% at follow-up visits at 15 days and at 6 months post-delivery. The baseline data collected during the Kisalaya study included both questionnaire-based data and laboratory-based investigations. Presently, a study entitled "Early life influences on adolescent mental health: a life course study of the Kisalaya birth cohort in south India" is in the process of data collection (2019-2020).