Prolonged fever is a common problem faced by clinicians in everyday practise. Since the first description of the entity "fever of unexplained origin" by Petersdorf and Beeson in 1961, the case definition of this entity was further refined with modifications over the last 55 years. Durack and Street proposed noteworthy changes in the definition of "fever of unknown origin (FUO)". First, they divided FUO into four groups, namely, classic, nosocomial, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) related and neutropenic FUO. They also proposed a change in the time frame from "one week hospital study" to "three outpatient visits or three days of in-hospital investigations". The more recent definition modified the temperature recording of above 38.3 o C (101 o F) on "several occasions" to "at least two occasions" and has listed the minimum essential laboratory testing required for diagnosis. The last five decades have also witnessed a change in the aetiological spectrum of FUO. Infectious diseases like tuberculosis are still common causes of FUO in India; an increase in non-infectious causes of FUO are increasingly being documented in studies form the west. Inspite of great advances in imaging and laboratory diagnostic methods a significant number of patients with FUO remained undiagnosed. Studies from other parts of the world have shown 9%-78% cases of FUO to remain undiagnosed while studies from India have shown this figure to be 0%-27.4%. Generating reliable epidemiological data regarding the aetiological spectrum of FUO will facilitate development of optimal work-up strategy to establish the aetiological diagnosis and facilitate the specific tests.
Introduction: Surveys in different parts of India indicate that about 50 to 60 per cent of women belonging to low socioeconomic groups are anemic in the last trimester of pregnancy. The major etiological factors are iron and folic acid deficiencies. Materials and Methods: In current study baseline data of antenatal cases is recorded with the help of a pretested questionnaire. Their blood samples are collected on the date of registration and analyzed for hemoglobin concentration by cyan meth hemoglobin method. First pack of IFA containing 30 tablets is given to the subjects along with administration instructions. These steps were repeated on subsequent antenatal visits at 20, 32 and 36 weeks of pregnancy as per norms. During these subsequent visits hemoglobin concentrations are measured and compliance for IFA supplementation is enquired. Results: A total of 598 subjects could be followed till the outcome of pregnancy. The mean age was 23.6 yrs. Out of all the risk factors complicating pregnancy most common risk factor was anemia. Most common type of anaemia was due to iron deficiency. Mean Hemoglobin values at the time of registration did not vary significantly in respect to their age groups, community, economic status, gravid status and parity of pregnancy. Conclusion: Mean Hemoglobin values varied significantly with the literacy status of women. Mean Hemoglobin values varied significantly at every visit with supplementation of IFA. All the women receiving IFA supplementation did not have adequate hemoglobin levels at the time of delivery.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.