Background: Adolescent girls often lack knowledge regarding reproductive health including menstruation hygiene which can be due to socio-cultural barriers in which they grow up. Methods: To explore the knowledge, practices and sources of information regarding menstruation and hygiene among adolescent girls in Bangalore, India. Methods: An epidemiologic study was undertaken using cross-sectional study method among 550 school-going adolescent girls aged 13-16 years. Data was collected using a pre-tested questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS version 15. Results: Around 34% participants were aware about menstruation prior to menarche, and mothers were the main source of information among both groups. Overall, 69% of adolescent girls were using sanitary napkins as menstrual absorbent, while 6% were using both cloth and sanitary napkins. Almost half of the rural participants dried the absorbent inside their homes. Conclusions: There is a need to equip the adolescent girls with knowledge regarding safe, hygienic practices to enable them to lead a healthy reproductive life.
Background: Dengue is a major international health concern that is prevalent in tropical and sub-tropical countries. The total burden of febrile illnesses that presents to primary health facilities due to dengue in different parts of Karnataka is largely unknown. Objective: The objective was to study the different clinical manifestations, trend, and outcome of dengue cases admitted in a tertiary care hospital. Materialsand Methods: Prospective study conducted over a period of 6 months (July-December 2013) in a tertiary care hospital at Bangalore. Dengue serology was done for all suspected subjects by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. Detailed clinical and demographic details were taken at admission and serial close monitoring for signs and symptoms was done to watch for the progression of the disease. Results: Of the 100 children admitted with probable dengue fever, 57 had confirmed dengue illness. Of these 57 cases, most of the cases were male, and 34 (60%)cases were in age group of 5 months to 15 years with mean age of 7.5±4.7 years. Among the serology confirmed cases, the most common presentation was fever in 57 (100%), followed by abdominal pain in 37 (65%), rashes in 31 (54%), myalgia in 26 (46%), and vomiting in 23 (40%) cases. The most common hemorrhagic manifestation was cutaneous bleeding manifestations like petechiae. Of 57 cases, 46 patients had dengue with no warning signs, 8 had dengue fever with warning signs, and 3 had severe dengue. Conclusion: Clinical manifestations of dengue seem to be changing. Fever, rash, and body ache are still the common manifestations; however, clinicians in the endemic areas should be aware of unusual and novel presentations such as fulminant hepatic failure, splenomegaly, and myocarditis also.
Background: Perinatal asphyxia is a common neonatal problem and contributes significantly to neonatal morbidity and mortality. Every hour, 104 children die as a result of asphyxia. In India; between 250,000 to 350,000 infants die each year secondary to birth asphyxia and mostly within the first three days of life. The present study was performed to determine the Urinary Uric Acid to Creatinine Ratio in perinatal asphyxia and its correlation between APGAR score and urinary uric acid to creatinine ratio in perinatal asphyxia.Methods: A randomized case control hospital-based study was conducted on 50 asphyxiated and 50 normal newborn. Urinary uric acid and creatinine were estimated in spot urine within 24 hours after birth in both cases and controls. A ratio between the concentrations of uric acid to creatinine was estimated and comparison done between cases and controls.Results: Urinary uric acid to creatinine ratio can be used as an additional non-invasive, easy and early biochemical marker of birth asphyxia which biochemically supports the clinical diagnosis and the severity grading of asphyxia by APGAR score.Conclusions: Urinary uric acid to creatinine ratio can be used as an additional non-invasive, easy and early biochemical marker of birth asphyxia which biochemically supports the clinical diagnosis and the severity grading of asphyxia by APGAR score.
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