Background: Although psychotropic medications have had a remarkable impact on psychiatric practice that legitimately can be called revolutionary, their utilization and consequences on real life effectiveness and safety in actual clinical practice need continuous study.Methods: The current retrospective study of six months’ duration was designed to assess the utilization of antipsychotics and its prescribing pattern in a tertiary care hospital of south India, which included prescriptions of patients suffering from a psychiatric illness with at least one psychotropic drug of all ages and both sexes.Results: Out of 150 cases reviewed, 46% were of schizophrenia, where male (60.67%) at higher incidence of psychiatric illness, and maximum patients were under the age group of 29-39 years (54.67%). In present study of 355 prescribed drugs 72.67% were psychotropic medications. As per World Health Organization/International Network for Rational Use of Drugs (INRUD) drug use indicators average number of drugs per prescription (2.37%), average number of psychotropic drugs per prescription (1.72%), psychotropic drugs prescribed as Fixed Dose Combinations (FDCs) was 26.36%, and percentage of drugs prescribed by generic name (91.08%). In our study, 48.09% of psychotropic drugs were utilized in the treatment of schizophrenia, diazepam (17.06%) was the only psychotropic medication distributed in the management of all three observed psychiatric disorders and the study showed a higher utilization of psychotropic drugs as FDCs (25.98%) in the management of schizophrenia.Conclusions: The study advocated an overall rational utilization of psychotropic drugs with a fewer deviations due to socio-economic status of patients and prescription practices of healthcare providers.

Challenging stimulus can lead to positive outcomes such as motivation and improved task performance while threatening ones or distress can result in anxiety, depression and stress. The current prospective observational exploratory study was designed to assess the stressors causing academic stress in pharmacy students of India. In the study a standard stressors scale was designed with 35 questionnaires as open -ended questions to assess both the positive and negative responses of the student participants in a pharmacy institute of Andhra Pradesh. As based on hypothesis of assumption the stressors were categorized as curriculum framework and course of study, faculty and academic learning process, peer evaluation and placement cell and its activities. The study involved 603 participants out which 253 (42%) were male and 350 (58%) were female, the education qualification of the sample 94 were Diploma students, 246 were B. Pharmacy students, 103 were M. Pharmacy students and 160 were Pharm. D students including 20 students of post baccalaureate programme. In our study, the response in pharmacy students towards the stressors was found positive. In conclusion, our study was able to assess certain stressors with a help of a self-developed and administered standard stressors scale, from which the stressor component designed reported a considerable stress in pharmacy students which is negligible in regard to the sample size, but in specific it's the responsibility of the institution and faculty team for early screening and intervention are advisable to limit and minimise the stress.

Background: Maternal nutrition status is an important determinant of pregnancy outcomes since pre-pregnancy underweight has been traditionally considered a risk factor for adverse gestation outcomes. Objectives: The current study aims to offer updated information on the nutrition status of pregnant women and newborns to facilitate the development of health care protocols based on current knowledge. Materials and methods: The current prospective, observational study of six months descriptively assessed the nutrition status in a cohort sample of 220 pregnant women, in which vital parameters, treatment, laboratory parameters, anthropometric details, food habits and intake were obtained and documented during their regular clinical visits. During the study period all the health information's were documented and assessed. Statistical tool used was WHO Nutri Survey 2007 calculator. Results: The study observed nearly 80.45% of pregnant women were within age group of 20-30 years, illiteracy population was 35.45%. In our study, 78.19% of pregnant women were anaemic, and an overall distribution of 60.45% pregnant women within BMI of 18.5-25. In the present study the mean ± SD calorie and protein intake of the study subjects per day was found to be 1839.8 ± 250.2 Kcal and 63.1 ± 7.2 g. The prevalence rate of low birth weight during the study period was 87.43%. Conclusion: Low birth weight in India has been attributed to widespread maternal undernutrition. A better understanding of the relationship of birth size to maternal nutrition is critical for planning effective intervention to improve birth weight in Indian babies unless we perform extensive researches.

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Background: Rheumatoid arthritis is defined as a chronic, progressive, auto immune mediated systemic inflammatory disease that primarily affects synovial joints. The management of rheumatoid arthritis according to the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) aims in relieving pain and discomfort and ameliorate symptoms; arrest or limit disease progression and, if possible, reverse pathological changes; maintain mobility and function, and promote the best possible quality of life, were pharmacist role is considered significant. Materials and methods: The current prospective interventional study (quasi experimental design) was conducted in a secondary care hospital for a period of six months to evaluate the impact of clinical pharmacist mediated patient counseling on health related quality of life in rheumatoid arthritis. The study involved collection of data by administration of a questionnaires SF-36 health survey during the first visit through direct patient interview. After which counseling was provided regarding disease, drug and lifestyle modifications by using a patient information leaflet. At the second visit the same questionnaire was administered and the responses were documented, finally the comparative score was calculated and the improvement in quality of life was calculated. Results: Our study observed that there is a significant difference in the quality of life in rheumatoid arthritis in all the domains both physically and mentally after providing the patient education through the patient information leaflet and the mean quality of life score for baseline and follow up visits 28. 98 ± 16.35, 41.17 ± 16.15, 37.5 ± 16.23 respectively. Conclusion: Pharmacist based patient education and counseling may have greater positive impact on the quality of life in rheumatoid arthritis patients.