Serum beta-glucuronidase levels in children with leprosy.

A study was undertaken to find out the usefulness of determining the circulating levels of beta-glucuronidase, a lysosomal enzyme in leprosy affected children of less than 15 years of age. The serum enzyme levels were significantly higher in BB/BL patients compared to healthy control children as well as children with skin diseases other than leprosy. Treatment with Multidrug regimen advocated by WHO for multi/paucibacillary leprosy resulted in a significant fall in the serum enzyme levels in BB and BL cases. The findings suggest that serum beta-glucuronidase may be a useful parameter for the activity and extent of pathogenesis in leprosy.

A Study of Blastogenic Transformation Under Phytomaemagglutinin (pha) in Leprosy.

The present study was aimed to assess the cell-mediated immune response under PHA stimulus in leprosy patients and healthy contacts. Twenty-one cases suffering from leprosy were included in the study. They were diagnosed clinically by skin biopsy,. smear examination and lepromin reaction. Five cases had lepromatous, 7 borderlines and 9 tuberculoid leprosy. Eleven were healthy contacts. Lepromin reaction was negative in 5 patients in lepromatous group while it was positive in the other patients and healthy contacts. Blastogenic transformation was depressed only in patients with lepromatous leprosy. In tuberculoid and borderline cases, lymphocytes exhibited similar reactivity with PHA as was shown by the controls. Healthy contacts of lepromatous leprosy patients were leprom'm positive and did not show any C M I depression. it is suggested that depression of PHA response may develop after the on set of leprosy infection.

Problems and management of low birth weight babies in an improvised neonatal unit of a developing country.

PIP: Developing countries do not have the resources needed to establish NICUs (neonatal intensive care units) which are used in developed countries for the management of low birth weight infants. In Agra, India a low cost experimental unit for caring for these infants was developed and evaluated. It proved to be a practical alternative to the NICU. In India low birth weight infants are identified as all those infants weighing less than 1000 gm at birth. 100 low birth weight infants were selected for inclusion in the experimental program and were admitted to the hospital. Mothers were requested to stay at the hospital with their infants and were given instructions for caring for the infants. Mothers were encouraged to breast-feed their infants. Since incubators were unavailable babies were kept warm in winter with blankets and hot water bottles and kept cool in summer with an inexpensive room cooler. Sick infants were isolated. 42 of the babies were delivered after the 37th week of gestation and 58 during or before the 37th week. 46 of the babies were born to primiparous women and the incidence of low weight births declined as parity and maternal age increased. Mothers of the infants tended a have of history of obstetrical problems. The % of deaths among infants less than 1000 gm, 1001-1250 gm, 1501-1750 gm, and 1751-2000 gm were respectively 100%, 45.45%, 40.00%, 16.60%, and 4.50%. 61% of the babies experienced some form of illness. The incidence of morbidity decreased as the age and weight of the infant increased. The study demonstrated that the lives of a large number of infants weighing 1000-2000 gm at birth could be saved without resorting to the use of expensive and sophisticated equipment.^ieng

alpha-I antitrypsin enzyme deficiency in Indian childhood cirrhosis.

Antitrypsin activity was measured in 50 healthy controls and 100 cases of Indian Childhood Cirrhosis (ICC). The incidence of alpha-I anti-trypsin (Alpha I-AT) enzyme deficiency was strinkingly higher in cases of cirrhosis (39.0%) than in healthy controls (4%). The enzyme deficiency was more prevalent in severe grades of cirrhosis (51.5%) as compared to mild (17.6%) and moderate cirrhosis (38%). Liver function tests were severely deranged in enzyme deficient cirrhotics and the damage to the liver was directly proportional to the extent of the enzyme deficiency. The incidence of the family history of ICC was noted significantly higher in enzyme deficient cases (20%) as compared to non-deficient cases (3.3%). The enzyme deficiency was also measured in 160 first blood relatives of the deficient cirrhotics and was found to be deficient in 19.4% subjects. It is probable that the deficiency runs in families with an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance.