Perceptions of poor performers are significantly different from those of better performers in the same institution. More importance should be given to the perceptions of students to improve the educational environment, as perceptions are associated positively with learning outcome, learning approach and attitude toward studying. Use of the DREEM as a monitoring tool might permit timely interventions to remediate problematic educational environments.

Background:Stigma associated with mental illnesses is one of the principal causes for mentally ill people not receiving adequate mental health care and treatment. The study was conducted to assess the extent of stigma associated with mental illness and knowledge of mental illness among the community.Materials and Methods:Community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 445 respondents from Udupi district; the community attitude toward the mentally ill (CAMI) scale was used to assess stigma. The probability proportional to sampling size technique was adopted to select the wards/blocks. Household from blocks/wards were selected using convenience sampling. Self- administered semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect the information. Data was analyzed using the software SPSS version 15.Results:Of the total 445 respondents, the prevalence of stigma toward mentally ill people was 74.61% (95% confidence interval, 0.7057, 0.7866). The prevalence of stigma was high under all the four domains of CAMI scale. High prevalence of stigma was seen among females and people with higher income.Conclusions:The overall prevalence of stigma toward PWMI was found to be high. The stigma toward PWMI was associated with gender with respect to AU, BE and CMHI. Hence, the study suggests that there is a strong need to eliminate stigma associated with mental illness to improve the mental health status of the region.

Context:Incidence of breast cancer is very high among women around the world. Breast cancer patients experience cancer-related fatigue at some points during the treatment for breast cancer. Since cancer-related fatigue is of multifactorial origin, there are no evidence-based treatment strategies for fatigue. This study tested the effectiveness of certain pranayama techniques in reducing cancer-related fatigue among breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy.Aims:The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of pranayama on cancer-related fatigue among breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy as measured by cancer fatigue scale.Settings and Design:Shirdi Sai Baba Cancer Hospital and Research Center, Kasturba Hospital Manipal.Materials and Methods:Study was a randomized controlled trial done among breast cancer patients receiving radiation therapy.Statistical Analysis Used:Demographic characteristics of the participants are presented as frequency and percentage. Comparison of means of cancer-related fatigue between the two groups is done by Mann-Whitney U-test and comparison of pre- and pos t-test means of cancer-related fatigue among the experimental group is done by Wilcoxon sign rank test.Results:There was a significant difference between the two groups with regard to the scores of cancer-related fatigue. The experimental group of patients who performed pranayama along with radiation therapy experienced less fatigue.Conclusions:Pranayama can be used as a supportive therapy for breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy.

Background:During a given year, almost 30% of the people around the world are affected by mentally ill health. In India, it accounts for about 20%. Caregivers face a lot of strain, ill health, and disrupted family life, with literature suggesting an increasing concern about their ability to cope up. The needs of caregivers of the mentally ill are given low priority in the current health-care setting in India.Aim:The aim of the study was to assess the burden of caregivers of mentally ill individuals and their coping mechanisms.Methods:A cross-sectional study was employed with a quantitative approach. A convenient sample of 320 caregivers was taken from two private tertiary care centers and one public secondary care center in Udupi taluk. This study was conducted using the Burden Assessment Schedule (BAS) and Brief Cope Scale (BCS). Statistical analysis was done on categorical variables, and they were expressed as frequencies and percentages. Continuous variables were measured using mean and standard deviation. Univariate and multivariate analysis using binomial logistic regression was done. SPSS version 15 was used to analyze the data.Results:According to BAS, severe burden accounted for 40.9% and moderate for 59.1%. The highest amount of burden was seen in the areas of physical and mental health, spouse related, and in areas of external support. The BCS showed that the most frequently used coping styles were practicing religion, active coping, and planning.Conclusion:This study concluded that caregivers of the mentally ill individuals do undergo a lot of burden. Hence, there is a need to develop strategies that can help them such as providing them with a support structure as well as counseling services.

Background Diabetes mellitus patients are at increased risk of developing diabetic foot with peripheral neuropathy, vascular and musculoskeletal complications. Therefore they are prone to develop frequent and often foot problems with a relative high risk of infection, gangrene and amputation. In addition, altered plantar pressure distribution is an important etiopathogenic risk factor for the development of foot ulcers. Thus the review on study of foot kinematic and kinetic in type 2 diabetes mellitus to understand the biomechanical changes is important.Methodology Scientific articles were obtained using electronic databases including Science Direct, CINAHL, Springer Link, Medline, Web of Science, and Pubmed. The selection was completed after reading the full texts. Studies using experimental design with focus on biomechanics of diabetic foot were selected.ResultsThe meta-analysis report on gait velocity (neuropathy = 128 and non-diabetes = 131) showed that there was a significantly lower gait velocity in neuropathy participants compared to non-diabetes age matched participants at a high effect level (−0.09, 95 % CI −0.13 to 0.05; p < 0.0001). Regarding knee joint flexion range there was a significant difference between neuropathy and non-diabetes group (4.75, 95 % CI, −7.53 to 1.97, p = 0.0008).ConclusionsThe systematic review with meta-analysis reported significant difference in kinematic and kinetic variables among diabetic with neuropathy, diabetic without neuropathy and non-diabetes individuals. The review also found that the sample size in some studies were not statistically significant to perform the meta-analysis and report a strong conclusion. Therefore a study with higher sample size should be done.