Abstract: Objective: Acute coronary syndrome is a clinical
condition encompassing ST segments elevation myocardial
infraction, Non ST segment is elevation myocardial infraction and un
stable angina is characterized by ruptured coronary plaque, stress and
myocardial injury. Angina pectoris is a pressure like pain in the chest
that is induced by exertion or stress and relived with in the minute
after cessation of effort or using sublingual nitroglycerin. The present
research was undertaken to study the drug utilization pattern of
antiplatelet drugs for the ischemic heart disease in a tertiary care
hospital. Method: The present study is retrospective drug utilization
study and study period is 6months. The data is collected from the
discharge case sheet of general medicine department from medical
department Rajiv Gandhi institute of medical sciences, Kadapa. The
tentative sample size fixed was 250 patients. Out of 250 cases 19
cases was excluded because of unrelated data. Results: A total of 250
prescriptions were collected for the study according to the inclusion
criteria 233 prescriptions were diagnosed with ischemic heart disease
17 prescriptions were excluded due to unrelated information. out of
233 prescriptions 128 are male (54.9%) and 105 patients are were
female (45%). According to the gender distribution, the prevalence of
ischemic heart disease in males are 90 (70.31%) and females are 39
(37.1%). In the same way the prevalence of ischemic heart disease
along with cerebrovascular disease in males are 39 (29.6%) and
females are 66 (62.6%). Conclusion: We found that 94.8% of drug
utilization of antiplatelet drugs was achieved in the Rajiv Gandhi
institute of medical sciences, Kadapa from 2011-2012.
Abstract: Various nanomaterials can be used as a drug delivery
vehicles in nanomedicine, called nanocarriers. They can either be
organic or inorganic, synthetic or natural-based. Although synthetic
nanocarriers are easier to produce, they can often be toxic for the
organism and thus not suitable for use in treatment. From naturalbased
nanocarriers, the most commonly used are protein cages or
viral capsids. In this work, virus bacteriophage λ was used for
delivery of different cytotoxic drugs (cisplatin, carboplatin,
oxaliplatin and doxorubicin). Large quantities of phage λ were
obtained from phage λ-producing strain of E. coli cultivated in
medium with 0.2% maltose. After killing of E. coli with chloroform
and its removal by centrifugation, the phage was concentrated by
ultracentrifugation at 130 000×g and 4°C for 3 h. The encapsulation
of the drugs was performed by infusion method and four different
concentrations of the drugs were encapsulated (200; 100; 50; 25
μg·mL-1). Free drug molecules were removed by filtration. The
encapsulation was verified using the absorbance for doxorubicin and
atomic absorption spectrometry for platinum cytostatics. The amount
of encapsulated drug linearly increased with the increasing
concentration of applied drug with the determination coefficient
R2=0.989 for doxorubicin; R2=0.967 for cisplatin; R2=0.989 for
carboplatin and R2=0.996 for oxaliplatin. The overall encapsulation
efficiency was calculated as 50% for doxorubicin; 8% for cisplatin;
6% for carboplatin and 10% for oxaliplatin.
Abstract: Background: Maintaining the correct body balance is
essential in the prevention of falls in the elderly, which is especially
important for women because of postmenopausal osteoporosis and
the serious consequences of falls. One of the exercise methods which
is very popular among adults, and which may affect body balance in
the positive way is the Pilates method. The aim of the study was to
evaluate the effect of regular Pilates exercises on the ability to
maintain body balance in static conditions in adult healthy women.
Material and methods: The study group consisted of 20 healthy
women attending Pilates twice a week for at least 1 year. The control
group consisted of 20 healthy women physically inactive. Women in
the age range from 35 to 50 years old without pain in musculoskeletal
system or other pain were only qualified to the groups. Body balance
was assessed using MatScan VersaTek platform with Sway Analysis
Module based on Matscan Clinical 6.7 software (Tekscan Inc.,
U.S.A). The balance was evaluated under the following conditions:
standing on both feet with eyes open, standing on both feet with eyes
closed, one-leg standing (separately on the right and left foot) with
eyes open. Each test lasted 30 seconds. The following parameters
were calculated: estimated size of the ellipse of 95% confidence, the
distance covered by the Center of Gravity (COG), the size of the
maximum shift in the sagittal and frontal planes and load distribution
between the left and right foot, as well as between rear- and forefoot.
Results: It was found that there is significant difference between the
groups in favor of the study group in the size of the confidence
ellipse and maximum shifts of COG in the sagittal plane during
standing on both feet, both with the eyes open and closed (p
Abstract: Introduction: Whole-Body Vibration (WBV) uses
high frequency mechanical stimuli generated by a vibration plate and
transmitted through bone, muscle and connective tissues to the whole
body. Research has shown that long-term vibration-plate training
improves neuromuscular facilitation, especially in afferent neural
pathways, responsible for the conduction of vibration and
proprioceptive stimuli, muscle function, balance and proprioception.
Some researchers suggest that the vibration stimulus briefly inhibits
the conduction of afferent signals from proprioceptors and can
interfere with the maintenance of body balance. The aim of this study
was to evaluate the influence of a single set of exercises associated
with whole-body vibration on the joint position sense and body
balance. Material and methods: The study enrolled 55 people aged
19-24 years. These individuals were randomly divided into a test
group (30 persons) and a control group (25 persons). Both groups
performed the same set of exercises on a vibration plate. The
following vibration parameters: frequency of 20Hz and amplitude of
3mm, were used in the test group. The control group performed
exercises on the vibration plate while it was off. All participants were
instructed to perform six dynamic exercises lasting 30 seconds each
with a 60-second period of rest between them. The exercises involved
large muscle groups of the trunk, pelvis and lower limbs.
Measurements were carried out before and immediately after
exercise. Joint position sense (JPS) was measured in the knee joint
for the starting position at 45° in an open kinematic chain. JPS error
was measured using a digital inclinometer. Balance was assessed in a
standing position with both feet on the ground with the eyes open and
closed (each test lasting 30 sec). Balance was assessed using Matscan
with FootMat 7.0 SAM software. The surface of the ellipse of
confidence and front-back as well as right-left swing were measured
to assess balance. Statistical analysis was performed using Statistica
10.0 PL software. Results: There were no significant differences
between the groups, both before and after the exercise (p> 0.05). JPS
did not change in both the test (10.7° vs. 8.4°) and control groups
(9.0° vs. 8.4°). No significant differences were shown in any of the
test parameters during balance tests with the eyes open or closed in
both the test and control groups (p> 0.05). Conclusions: 1.
Deterioration in proprioception or balance was not observed
immediately after the vibration stimulus. This suggests that vibrationinduced
blockage of proprioceptive stimuli conduction can have only
a short-lasting effect that occurs only as long as a vibration stimulus
is present. 2. Short-term use of vibration in treatment does not impair
proprioception and seems to be safe for patients with proprioceptive
impairment. 3. These results need to be supplemented with an
assessment of proprioception during the application of vibration
stimuli. Additionally, the impact of vibration parameters used in the
exercises should be evaluated.
Abstract: The objective of this study was to synthesize and
characterize the poly(alkenoic acid)s with different molecular
structures, use these polymers to formulate a dental cement
restorative, and study the effect of molecular structures on reaction
kinetics, viscosity, and mechanical strengths of the formed polymers
and cement restoratives. In this study, poly(alkenoic acid)s with
different molecular structures were synthesized. The purified
polymers were formulated with commercial Fuji II LC glass fillers to
form the experimental cement restoratives. The reaction kinetics was
studied via 1HNMR spectroscopy. The formed restoratives were
evaluated using compressive strength, diametral tensile strength,
flexural strength, hardness and wear-resistance tests. Specimens were
conditioned in distilled water at 37oC for 24 h prior to testing. Fuji II
LC restorative was used as control. The results show that the higher
the arm number and initiator concentration, the faster the reaction
was. It was also found that the higher the arm number and branching
that the polymer had, the lower the viscosity of the polymer in water
and the lower the mechanical strengths of the formed restorative. The
experimental restoratives were 31-53% in compressive strength, 37-
55% in compressive modulus, 80-126% in diametral tensile strength,
76-94% in flexural strength, 4-21% in fracture toughness and 53-96%
in hardness higher than Fuji II LC. For wear test, the experimental
restoratives were only 5.4-13% of abrasive and 6.4-12% of attritional
wear depths of Fuji II LC in each wear cycle. The aging study also
showed that all the experimental restoratives increased their strength
continuously during 30 days, unlike Fuji II LC. It is concluded that
polymer molecular structures have significant and positive impact on
mechanical properties of dental cement restoratives.
Abstract: In the past few years, high consumption of soft drinks
has attracted negative attention world-wide due to its possible
adverse effects, leading the health conscious people to find
alternative nutraceutical or herbal health drinks. In the present study,
a nutraceutical soft drink was developed utilizing some easily
available and well known traditional herbs having nutritional
potential. The key ingredients were selected as bael, amla, lemon
juice, ashwagandha and poppy seeds based on their household routine
use in the summer with proven refreshing, cooling and energetic
feeling since ages. After several trials made, the final composition of
nutraceutical summer soft drink was selected as most suitable
combination based on the taste, physicochemical, microbial and
organoleptic point of view. The physicochemical analysis of the
prepared drink found to contain optimum level of titratable acidity,
total soluble solids and pH which were in accordance of the
commercial recommendations. There were no bacterial colonies
found in the product therefore found within limits. During the nine
point’s hedonic scale sensory evaluation, the drink was strongly liked
for colour, taste, flavour and texture. The formulation was found to
contain flavonoids (80mg/100ml), phenolics (103mg/100ml), vitamin
C (250mg/100ml) and has antioxidant potential (75.52%) apart from
providing several other essential vitamins, minerals and healthy
components. The developed nutraceutical drink provides an
economical and feasible option for the consumers with very good
taste combined with potential health benefits. The present drink is
potentially capable to replace the synthetic soft drinks available in the
market.
Abstract: It is the patient compliance and stability in
combination with controlled drug delivery and biocompatibility that
forms the core feature in present research and development of
sustained biodegradable patch formulation intended for wound
healing. The aim was to impart sustained degradation, sterile
formulation, significant folding endurance, elasticity,
biodegradability, bio-acceptability and strength. The optimized
formulation comprised of polymers including Hydroxypropyl methyl
cellulose, Ethylcellulose, and Gelatin, and Citric Acid PEG Citric
acid (CPEGC) triblock dendrimers and active Curcumin. Polymeric
mixture dissolved in geometric order in suitable medium through
continuous stirring under ambient conditions. With continued stirring
Curcumin was added with aid of DCM and Methanol in optimized
ratio to get homogenous dispersion. The dispersion was sonicated
with optimum frequency and for given time and later casted to form a
patch form. All steps were carried out under strict aseptic conditions.
The formulations obtained in the acceptable working range were
decided based on thickness, uniformity of drug content, smooth
texture and flexibility and brittleness. The patch kept on stability
using butter paper in sterile pack displayed folding endurance in
range of 20 to 23 times without any evidence of crack in an
optimized formulation at room temperature (RT) (24 ± 2°C). The
patch displayed acceptable parameters after stability study conducted
in refrigerated conditions (8±0.2°C) and at RT (24 ± 2°C) up to 90
days. Further, no significant changes were observed in critical
parameters such as elasticity, biodegradability, drug release and drug
content during stability study conducted at RT 24±2°C for 45 and 90
days. The drug content was in range 95 to 102%, moisture content
didn’t exceeded 19.2% and patch passed the content uniformity test.
Percentage cumulative drug release was found to be 80% in 12h and
matched the biodegradation rate as drug release with correlation
factor R2>0.9. The biodegradable patch based formulation developed
shows promising results in terms of stability and release profiles.
Abstract: Numerous investigations suggest that Mesenchymal
Stem Cells (MSCs) in general represent a valuable tool for therapy of
symptoms related to chronic inflammatory diseases. Blue Horizon
Stem Cell Therapy Program is a leading provider of adult and
children’s stem cell therapies. Uniquely we have safely and
efficiently treated more than 600 patients with documenting each
procedure. The purpose of our study is primarily to monitor the
immune response in order to validate the safety of intravenous
infusion of human umbilical cord blood derived MSCs (UC-MSCs),
and secondly, to evaluate effects on biomarkers associated with
chronic inflammation. Nine patients were treated for conditions
associated with chronic inflammation and for the purpose of antiaging.
They have been given one intravenous infusion of UCMSCs.
Our study of blood test markers of 9 patients with chronic
inflammation before and within three months after MSCs treatment
demonstrates that there is no significant changes and MSCs treatment
was safe for the patients. Analysis of different indicators of chronic
inflammation and aging included in initial, 24-hours, two weeks and
three months protocols showed that stem cell treatment was safe for
the patients; there were no adverse reactions. Moreover data from
follow up protocols demonstrates significant improvement in energy
level, hair, nails growth and skin conditions. Intravenously
administered UC-MSCs were safe and effective in the improvement
of symptoms related to chronic inflammation. Further close
monitoring and inclusion of more patients are necessary to fully
characterize the advantages of UC-MSCs application in treatment of
symptoms related to chronic inflammation.
Abstract: Background: Diabetic sensorimotor polyneuropathy
(DSP) is one of the most common microvascular complications of
type 2 diabetes. Loss of sensation is thought to contribute to a lack of
static and dynamic stability and increased risk of falling. Purpose:
The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of low-level
laser (LLL) and monochromatic near-infrared photo energy (MIRE)
on pain, cutaneous sensation, static stability, and index of lower limb
blood flow in diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy. Methods:
Forty diabetic patients with peripheral neuropathy were recruited for
participation in this study. They were divided into two groups: The
MIRE group, which contained 20 patients, and the LLL group, which
contained 20 patients. All patients who participated in the study had
been subjected to various physical assessment procedures, including
pain, cutaneous sensation, Doppler flow meter, and static stability
assessments. The baseline measurements were followed by treatment
sessions that were conducted twice a week for six successive weeks.
Results: The statistical analysis of the data revealed significant
improvement of pain in both groups, with significant improvement in
cutaneous sensation and static balance in the MIRE group compared
to the LLL group; on the other hand, the results showed no
significant differences in lower limb blood flow between the groups.
Conclusion: LLL and MIRE can improve painful symptoms in
patients with diabetic neuropathy. On the other hand, MIRE is also
useful in improving cutaneous sensation and static stability in
patients with diabetic neuropathy.
Abstract: This study compares the intensity of game load among
player positions and between the 1st and the 2nd half of the games.
Two guards, three forwards, and three centers (female basketball
players) participated in this study. The heart rate (HR) and its
development were monitored during two competitive games.
Statistically insignificant differences in the intensity of game load
were recorded between guards, forwards, and centers below and
above 85% of the maximal heart rate (HRmax) and in the mean HR as
% of HRmax (87.81±3.79%, 87.02±4.37%, and 88.76±3.54%,
respectively). Moreover, when the 1st and the 2nd half of the games
were compared in the mean HR (87.89±4.18% vs. 88.14±3.63% of
HRmax), no statistical significance was recorded. This information can
be useful for coaching staff, to manage and to precisely plan the
training process.
Abstract: In this paper, we present a new segmentation approach
for liver lesions in regions of interest within MRI (Magnetic
Resonance Imaging). This approach, based on a two-cluster Fuzzy CMeans
methodology, considers the parameter variable compactness
to handle uncertainty. Fine boundaries are detected by a local
recursive merging of ambiguous pixels with a sequential forward
floating selection with Zernike moments. The method has been tested
on both synthetic and real images. When applied on synthetic images,
the proposed approach provides good performance, segmentations
obtained are accurate, their shape is consistent with the ground truth,
and the extracted information is reliable. The results obtained on MR
images confirm such observations. Our approach allows, even for
difficult cases of MR images, to extract a segmentation with good
performance in terms of accuracy and shape, which implies that the
geometry of the tumor is preserved for further clinical activities (such
as automatic extraction of pharmaco-kinetics properties, lesion
characterization, etc.).
Abstract: EEG correlates of mathematical and trait anxiety level
were studied in 52 healthy Russian-speakers during execution of
error-recognition tasks with lexical, arithmetic and algebraic
conditions. Event-related spectral perturbations were used as a
measure of brain activity. The ERSP plots revealed alpha/beta
desynchronizations within a 500-3000 ms interval after task onset
and slow-wave synchronization within an interval of 150-350 ms.
Amplitudes of these intervals reflected the accuracy of error
recognition, and were differently associated with the three conditions.
The correlates of anxiety were found in theta (4-8 Hz) and beta2 (16-
20 Hz) frequency bands. In theta band the effects of mathematical
anxiety were stronger expressed in lexical, than in arithmetic and
algebraic condition. The mathematical anxiety effects in theta band
were associated with differences between anterior and posterior
cortical areas, whereas the effects of trait anxiety were associated
with inter-hemispherical differences. In beta1 and beta2 bands effects
of trait and mathematical anxiety were directed oppositely. The trait
anxiety was associated with increase of amplitude of
desynchronization, whereas the mathematical anxiety was associated
with decrease of this amplitude. The effect of mathematical anxiety
in beta2 band was insignificant for lexical condition but was the
strongest in algebraic condition. EEG correlates of anxiety in theta
band could be interpreted as indexes of task emotionality, whereas
the reaction in beta2 band is related to tension of intellectual
resources.
Abstract: To ensure targeting of apoferritin nanocarrier with
encapsulated doxorubicin drug, we used a peptide linker based on a
protein G with N-terminus affinity towards Fc region of antibodies.
To connect the peptide to the surface of apoferritin, the C-terminus of
peptide was made of cysteine with affinity to gold. The surface of
apoferritin with encapsulated doxorubicin (APODOX) was coated
either with gold nanoparticles (APODOX-Nano) or gold(III) chloride
hydrate reduced with sodium borohydride (APODOX-HAu). The
reduction with sodium borohydride caused a loss of doxorubicin
fluorescent properties and probably accompanied with the loss of its
biological activity. Fluorescent properties of APODOX-Nano were
similar to the unmodified APODOX; therefore it was more suited for
the intended use. To evaluate the specificity of apoferritin modified
with antibodies, ELISA-like method was used with the surface of
microtitration plate wells coated by the antigen (goat anti-human IgG
antibodies). To these wells, the nanocarrier was applied. APODOX
without the modification showed 5× lower affinity to the antigen than
APODOX-Nano modified gold and targeting antibodies (human IgG
antibodies).
Abstract: Mammography is widely used technique for breast cancer
screening. There are various other techniques for breast cancer screening
but mammography is the most reliable and effective technique. The
images obtained through mammography are of low contrast which
causes problem for the radiologists to interpret. Hence, a high quality
image is mandatory for the processing of the image for extracting any
kind of information from it. Many contrast enhancement algorithms have
been developed over the years. In the present work, an efficient
morphology based technique is proposed for contrast enhancement of
masses in mammographic images. The proposed method is based on
Multiscale Morphology and it takes into consideration the scale of the
structuring element. The proposed method is compared with other stateof-
the-art techniques. The experimental results show that the proposed
method is better both qualitatively and quantitatively than the other
standard contrast enhancement techniques.
Abstract: There are many perceived advantages of microwave
ablation have driven researchers to develop innovative antennas to
effectively treat deep-seated, non-resectable hepatic tumors. In this
paper a coaxial antenna with a miniaturized sleeve choke has been
discussed for microwave interstitial ablation therapy, in order to
reduce backward heating effects irrespective of the insertion depth
into the tissue. Two dimensional Finite Element Method (FEM) is
used to simulate and measure the results of miniaturized sleeve choke
antenna. This paper emphasizes the importance of factors that can
affect simulation accuracy, which include mesh resolution, surface
heating and reflection coefficient. Quarter wavelength choke
effectiveness has been discussed by comparing it with the unchoked
antenna with same dimensions.
Abstract: The posterior reference for the ala tragal line is a
cause of confusion, with different authors suggesting different
locations as to the superior, middle or inferior part of the tragus. This
study was conducted on 200 subjects to evaluate if any correlation
exists between the variation of angulation of palatal throat form and
the relative parallelism of occlusal plane to ala-tragal line at different
tragal levels. A custom made Occlusal Plane Analyzer was used to
check the parallelism between the ala-tragal line and occlusal plane.
A lateral cephalogram was shot for each subject to measure the
angulation of the palatal throat form. Fisher’s exact test was used to
evaluate the correlation between the angulation of the palatal throat
form and the relative parallelism of occlusal plane to the ala tragal
line. Also, a classification was formulated for the palatal throat form,
based on confidence interval. From the results of the study, the
inferior part, middle part and superior part of the tragus were seen as
the reference points in 49.5%, 32% and 18.5% of the subjects
respectively. Class I palatal throat form (41degree-50 degree), Class
II palatal throat form (below 41 degree) and Class III palatal throat
form (above 50 degree) were seen in 42%, 43% and 15% of the
subjects respectively. It was also concluded that there is no
significant correlation between the variation in the angulations of the
palatal throat form and the relative parallelism of occlusal plane to
the ala-tragal line.