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Background:Candida species are one of the most common causes of blood stream infections among neonates and account for 9-13% of such infections. Although Candida albicans remains the most common fungal isolate from neonatal candidemia, longitudinal studies have detected a shift towards non-albicans Candida (NAC) species.Aim:To examine the prevalence and epidemiology of candidemia among infants admitted to our hospital.Materials and Methods:Blood samples were collected from 548 neonates and only those which yielded pure growth of Candida spp. were included in the study. The isolates were identified as per standard mycological techniques and antifungal susceptibility (AFS) was done by disc diffusion method.Results:Of the total 132 neonates included in the study, NAC species were responsible for 80.30% cases with C. parapsilosis (25.0%) and C. tropicalis (21.97%) as the most predominant species; whereas 19.70% of cases were caused by C. albicans. AFS results revealed that 65.91, 73.49, and 96.21% isolates were sensitive to fluconazole (FLK), itraconazole (ITR), and amphotericin B (AMB), respectively.Conclusion:Candidemia in neonates is an ominous prognostic sign and is an important entity in our hospital. Strict infection control strategies, appropriate preventive and therapeutic measures such as prophylactic antifungal use and a restrictive policy of antibiotic use should be implemented.

Background:Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) is a notorious infection and a major health problem in developing countries causing serious local damage and threatening complications. Early and effective treatment based on the knowledge of causative micro-organisms and their antimicrobial sensitivity ensures prompt clinical recovery and possible complications can thus be avoided.Aims:The aim of this study was to isolate the organisms associated with CSOM and to detect the antibiogram of the aerobic isolates.Materials and Methods:A total of 204 patients clinically diagnosed of CSOM were enrolled in the study and the samples were obtained from each patient using sterile cotton swabs and cultured for microbial flora. Drug susceptibility testing for aerobic isolates was conducted using Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method.Results:The most common causative organisms isolated were Staphylococcus aureus (48.69%) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (19.89%) amongst the 191 aerobic isolates. Anaerobes accounted for 29.41% of the isolates while 12.25% were fungi. Antimicrobial profile of aerobic isolates revealed maximum sensitivity to amikacin (95.5%), ceftriaxone (83.4%) and gentamicin (82.7%).Conclusion:Knowing the etiological agents of CSOM and their antimicrobial susceptibility is of essential importance for an efficient treatment, prevention of both complications and development of antibiotic resistance and finally, the reduction of the treatment costs.

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Background:Global burden of hospital-associated infection (HAI) is on the rise and contributes significantly to morbidity and mortality of the patients. Mobile phones are indispensible part of communication among doctors and other health care workers (HCWs) in hospitals. Hands of HCWs play an important role in transmission of HAI and mobile phones which are seldom cleaned and often touched during or after the examination of patients without hand washing can act as a reservoir for transmission of potent pathogens. This study aimed to investigate the rate of bacterial contamination of mobile phones among HCWs in our tertiary care hospital and to compare it with personal mobile phones of non-HCWs (control group).Materials and Methods:The mobile phones and dominant hands of 386 participants were sampled from four different groups, hospital doctors and staff (132), college faculty and staff (54), medical students (100) and control group (100). Informed consent and questionnaire was duly signed by all the participants. Samples were processed according to standard guidelines.Results:316 mobile phones (81.8%) and 309 hand swab samples (80%) showed growth of bacterial pathogens. The most predominant isolates were Coagulase-negative Staphylococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter species, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas species and Enterococcus species.Conclusion:Hundred percent contamination was found in mobile phones and hands of HCWs indicating mobile phones can be the potential source of nosocomial pathogens. Our study results suggest that use of mobile phones in health care setup should be restricted only for emergency calls. Strict adherence to infection control policies such as proper hand hygiene practices should be followed.

Toxoplasmosis is a well-documented cause of bad obstetric history (BOH) and a major reason of congenitally-acquired infection. The study was conducted to determine the seropositivity of toxoplasmosis in women with BOH, attending the antenatal clinic of the Mamata General Hospital, Khammam, Andhra Pradesh, India. The study subjects included 105 antenatal women with BOH and 105 antenatal women who had previous normal deliveries. A serological evaluation was carried out to determine the presence of Toxoplasma gondii-specific IgG and IgM antibodies, using commercial diagnostic kits, by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method. The seropositivity for Toxoplasma was 49.52% in the study group compared to 12.38% in the control group. The difference in seropositivity was significant (p=0.00). The seroprevalence gradually increased with advancing age. Abortion (51.92%) was the commonest form of pregnancy wastage, followed by stillbirths (36.53%) and premature deliveries (7.69%). The seropositivity of toxoplasmosis was significantly higher in the study group than that in the control group, and the seropositivity played an important role in determining the foetal outcome. Considering the subclinical pattern of infection, routine serological test is recommended for all pregnant women for both IgG and IgM antibodies.

Intestinal parasitic infection-intensity, prevalence and associated risk factors, a study in the general population from the Uttarakhand hillsBackground: Intestinal parasitic infection is an important public health problem in developing countries. Low socioeconomic conditions, lack of access to potable drinking water, poor personal hygiene and environmental sanitation are the factors associated with intestinal parasitic infection. Aim: The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of intestinal parasitic infections and identify the associated risk factors. Materials and Methods: Study was performed on 327 stool specimens of all age groups from August 2012 to May 2013. Specimen collected and examined with direct wet mount, formal ether sedimentation and salt fl otation methods. Results: Out of the total 327 participants prevalence of intestinal infections was 11.62%. Among the Protozoa, Giardia lamblia (3.06%) was the most common, followed by Entamoeba histolytica (0.92%). Hookworm (2.75%) and Hymenolepis nana (2.14%) were the most common helminthes found. Parasitosis was seen more in female (17.07%) than male (8.33%) and highest between 51 and 60 years (22.22%) age group with risk factors like open defecation (22.69%), untreated river water (17.91%) and among people living in rural areas (15.17%). Conclusion: There is a need to create awareness about safe drinking water, personal hygiene and environmental sanitation and to take urgent remedial steps to prevent and control intestinal parasitic infections. Abstract Access this article onlineWebsite: www.ijmedph.org

The diverse and magnificent plant kingdom of the world is widely known for its medicinal importance. The potential medicinal properties of plant species have contributed significantly in the development of various herbal therapies for a number of diseases across the globe. The benefits of herbal medicine over allopathic medicine have helped medicinal plants to regain their importance in the field of health and medicine. Cancer is one of the major health problems that have widely affected the world's population. There is a great need to combat this disease with better and more effective medication as compared to existing therapies. A vast number of medicinal plants are known to have biochemical constituents with anticancer properties. The chemical metabolites of natural origin that possess anticancer properties can serve as potential lead compounds in drug designing. This association of medicinal plants and cancer needs further research and experimentation in order to develop and design anticancer drugs. The present review is an effort to compile information on some of the geographically diverse and important medicinal plants that possess anticancer activity.