The Psychosocial Effects of Lockdown Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic on Children in 2021.

Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic led to a nationwide lockdown that isolated numerous children and adolescents, significantly affecting their mental well-being. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the challenges faced by children during the pandemic and identify the potential contributing factors. Additionally, given the existing concerns surrounding the mental health of female children and adolescents, our study aimed to investigate the presence of sex-based disparities in children's observed emotional and behavioral difficulties during the COVID-19 lockdown. Methods Participants in this study were parents of children aged 6-17 years. An observational cross-sectional study was conducted through verbal administration of a validated semi-structured questionnaire, the Parent Report Measure, from June 2021 to August 2021 at a nearby community health center. The questionnaire collected socio-demographic details and utilized the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a screening tool to assess children's emotional and behavioral aspects during the six-month lockdown period. The responses were then analyzed using appropriate statistical tools like SPSS statistics, and cumulative SDQ scores were used to categorize participants. Results Out of the total 280 responses analyzed, the prosocial subscale exhibited the highest number of abnormal responses, 73 (26.1%), followed by conduct (42; 15%), hyperactivity (41; 14.6%), and peer (41; 14.6%) subscales. These results indicated that children displayed decreased empathy towards others, restlessness, fidgetiness, reduced attention span, frequent tantrums, and a preference for solitary activities. Furthermore, there was a significant association between abnormal subscale scores and the sex of children. Females showed a considerably higher prevalence of emotional problems (172; 61.5%) than males. Among the behavioral responses, a more significant proportion of females displayed abnormal scores in the conduct subscale (170; 60.7%), while abnormal hyperactivity scores were more frequently observed among males (178; 63.4%). Regarding the peer problems subscale, the proportion of females was slightly higher than males (150; 53.7%) and nearly equal in the prosocial domain. A more significant proportion of females displayed abnormal scores for overall difficulties 144 (51.5%), indicating a notable sex-based disparity. Conclusion Our findings highlight the pandemic's significant impact on many children's psychological well-being. The results emphasize the need for targeted interventions to address the mental health concerns that arose in this population. The observed disparity in emotional and behavioral difficulties among female children is particularly concerning, highlighting the need for gender-sensitive support and care. Various strategies can be helpful, such as virtual support groups, indoor recreational activities, reduced screen time and excessive news consumption, and effective communication with parents. Furthermore, our study also indicates the need to dive deep into such areas of pediatric research to understand and plan timely interventions.

Stress Level and Its Determinants among Staff (Doctors and Nurses) Working in the Critical Care Unit.

Background: Very few extensive studies regarding job stressors among doctors and nurses have been conducted in India. It is important to explore the workplace to understand various stressors that adversely affect the well-being of an individual and also affect health care and needs of patients and relatives. Considering this, the present study was planned to determine stress among doctors and nurses from the critical care unit (CCU) and to find the association of stress with selected variables. Materials and methods: This observational cross-sectional study was conducted among all staff (doctors and nurses) from the CCU. Data were collected with a pilot-tested, predesigned, validated questionnaire using the Google survey tool consisting of sociodemographic details and the ICMR work stress questionnaire. Analysis of data was done with SPSS version 25. Results: Of 105 participants, 57 (54.3%) were doctors and 48 (45.7%) were nurses. A total of 48.6% (51) of participants scored 32 of 64, that is, managed stress very well, and 51.4% of participants (54) scored 65 of 95, that is, having a reasonably safe level of stress, but certain areas need improvement. Conclusion: Stress was significantly more among females and those who have sleep problems. No statistically significant difference was found between the level of stress and age, relationship with seniors, exercise, and comorbidities. How to cite this article: Patil VC, Patil SV, Shah JN, Iyer SS. Stress Level and Its Determinants among Staff (Doctors and Nurses) Working in the Critical Care Unit. Indian J Crit Care Med 2021;25(8):886-889.

Coherence between Existing System of Defining Urban Poor with Kuppuswamy and Hashim's System; Which is More Relevant?

BACKGROUND: Identification of below poverty line (BPL) households is of paramount importance to provide benefits under poverty alleviation and other programs. OBJECTIVES: (1) To assess households in urban slums in terms of housing, assets, and amenities. (2) To compare three different systems of socioeconomic status (SES) - ration card holders, Modified Kuppuswamy Scale, and Hashim's system. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional, community-based study was conducted in urban slums of field practice area of a medical college, Pune. Considering 35% of urban households in India qualify as poor, sample size of 593 households was calculated. A predesigned, validated, pretested questionnaire was used, covering sociodemographic domains including indicators of three systems. Agreement between these scales was calculated by kappa statistics. RESULTS: Total 639 households were surveyed covering 3078 slum population. Percentage of BPL families according to possession of yellow ration card, Modified Kuppuswamy Scale, and Hashim's system were 35.99%, 48.67%, and 48.51%, respectively. The proportion of agreement between Kuppuswamy scale and ration card was 55.71% and for Hashim system and ration card was 51.79%. CONCLUSIONS: The present study revealed no agreement between these three systems. Hashim system gives more accurate and realistic picture of SES of the urban slums households owing to its holistic approach.

Coculture method for in vitro cultivation of uncultured oral bacteria.

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study is to culture uncultured oral bacteria with helper strains using the coculture method from the subgingival plaque samples of chronic periodontitis patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The samples were processed and inoculated on a blood agar medium enriched with hemin and Vitamin K. A helper strain Propionibacterium acnes (ATCC 6919) was cross-streaked across the inoculums to facilitate coculture. The plates were then incubated for 7 days with subsequent subculturing and further incubation. RESULTS: Satellite colonies around helper strain showed one colony type of Porphyromonas gingivalis, one was of nonpigmented Prevotella, three were of Fusobacterium nucleatum and five isolates remained unidentified. CONCLUSIONS: Coculture could be used effectively as one of the methods in the isolation and in vitro cultivation of oral bacteria. Incubation using the anaerobic jar technique was found to be economical and efficient for the growth of anaerobic oral bacteria.

Effect of curcumin on growth, biofilm formation and virulence factor gene expression of Porphyromonas gingivalis.

Porphyromonas gingivalis is a keystone pathogen and major colonizer in host tissue which plays a pivotal role in periodontitis among the other polymicrobial infections. Increasing facts demonstrate that curcumin has antibacterial activity and anti-biofilm effect against the periodontopathogens through diverse mechanisms that have a positive impact on periodontal health. The present study was aimed to elucidate the effect of curcumin on biofilm formation and virulence factor gene expression of P. gingivalis. By using gene expression studies, we exploited the mechanism of anti-biofilm effects of curcumin on P. gingivalis. The minimum inhibitory concentration and minimum bactericidal concentration of curcumin for both ATCC and clinical strains of P. gingivalis were found to be 62.5 and 125 µg ml-1 respectively. Curcumin prevented bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation in a dose-dependent manner. Further, curcumin attenuated the virulence of P. gingivalis by reducing the expression of genes coding for major virulence factors, including adhesions (fimA, hagA, and hagB) and proteinases (rgpA, rgpB, and kgp). The results indicated that curcumin has shown anti-biofilm as well as antibacterial activity against P. gingivalis. Further, curcumin because of its pleiotropic actions could be a simple and inexpensive therapeutic strategy in the treatment of periodontal disease.