Rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic inflammatory disease, and its exact aetiology is not defined clearly. The free radicals produced in large amount in RA are associated with alteration in molecular structure resulting in glycation of proteins. As a result of glycation, advanced glycation end products (AGEs) produced. In this study, collagen type II suspension was injected into Wistar rats to make RA model of rats. Simultaneously, hesperidin 50 mg kg−1 body weight was orally administrated to the rats for 21 days. X‐rays of the rat hind paws were analyzed and found to be significantly effective against bone loss after treatment with hesperindin. Nε‐(carboxymethyl)lysine (CML) and pentosidine (PTD) concentrations in collagen‐induced RA plasma were determined as 565.29 ± 30.15 and 37.23 ± 1.02 ng ml−1, respectively, while CML and PTD in IgG were 6.63 ± 0.44 ng mg−1 IgG and 425.33 ± 37.26 ng g−1 IgG, respectively. After treatment with hesperidin, the elevated levels of CML in plasma and in IgG were significantly (p < 0.001) lowered to 450.95 ± 15.05 mg ml−1 and 5.23 ± 0.27 ng mg−1 IgG, respectively. Similarly, concentrations of PTD in plasma and IgG of rats treated with hesperidin were 28.46 ± 1.20 ng ml−1 and 359.35 ± 31.11 ng g−1 IgG, respectively. Thus, after treatment with drug, plasma CML and IgG PTD levels were restored as 93% and 16%, respectively, through free radical scavenging activity of hesperidin resulting in alleviation of RA disease by decreasing the AGEs concentrations. Therefore, use of hesperidin may be useful to alleviate severity of RA disease.

Creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) is considered as sensitive and specific indicator for myocardial infarction. Various methods are available for CK-MB measurement but are associated with inherent shortcomings. The routinely used Immunoinhibition method is evaluated for the various interferents and their impact on the estimated CK-MB value. Materials and Methods: The CK-MB values were analyzed for 500 patient samples whose total CK values were within the normal reference interval. Immunoinhibition method (INH) & N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) methods were used for CK-MB and total CK estimation respectively. Results: The observed mean ± S.D. for CK was 90.15 ± 48.9 U/L and for CK-MB was 33.29 ± 20.47 U/L. The box and whisker plots were used to represent the data of CK & CK-MB. The CK-MB levels were observed to exceed the total CK under certain circumstances owing to interferents. The CK-MB values were observed to exceed the total CK in 8.6% of the cases. Conclusion:The utility of CK-MB has ever been questioned. It has been categorized as over-used test. The conventional immunoassay methodology for CK-MB measurement is not free from interferences, awareness about these is important while interpreting the results so as to exclude method related artifactual values.

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Introduction: Multiple choice questions (MCQs) are one of the popular tools used for evaluating medical students since they can be used to test a large number of candidates with only minimal human intervention. These MCQs also need testing for quality and standard which will ultimately improve the teaching-learning process. This study is conducted to assess the quality of MCQs of our in-use question bank. Methods: A total of 80 MCQs from the biochemistry internal examinations conducted in 2021 held at Al-Falah Medical College, Haryana for 147 students of 1st year Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (M.B.B.S) were analyzed for difficulty index, discrimination index, and distractor effectiveness. The MCQs were the single best response type with one key option and three distractors. Statistical analysis for calculation of Mean, Standard Deviation, and Pearson correlation was performed on the data obtained using Microsoft excel 2010. Results: The observed mean of difficulty index, discrimination index, and distractor effectiveness was 75.08±15.68, 0.32±0.17, and 53.30±29.37 respectively. No item had a negative discrimination index. The Pearson correlation between DIF I and DI was negative (r = -0.43) and insignificant. Conclusion: Item analysis helps to optimize the existing question bank by helping in identifying flawed items. It is recommended to use this tool to standardize the testing process so as to accurately assess the student performance and improve the teaching-learning outcome.