Health and demographic indicators of selected districts of India: An impact of Swasthya Rakshan Programme (SRP).

Swasthya Rakshan Programme (SRP) provides health care services through Ayurveda, an initiative of the Government of India that aims to survey and create alertness of essential health appliances to ameliorate society from its grassroots level. The present study aimed to survey the prevailing health standards of residents in certain districts of India and to record the prevalence of diseases among them according to their living conditions, food habits, lifestyle, education, occupation and other socio-economic status. Data was collected through a community-based cross-sectional survey conducted from April 2018 to March 2019 in 22 Districts of 19 states in India. A stratified multi-stage sampling design was adopted for the survey. Documentation of demographic profile, food habits, lifestyle, hygiene status, and existing health conditions was assessed. A pre-designed semi-structured questionnaire was used for the collection of the data. Before initiating the programme, written consent was obtained. In this study, from 162 selected villages/colonies/areas, a total of 562,913 population and 81,651 households were surveyed. Sixty-nine thousand three hundred nineteen patients were cared for various ailments through health camps. The study found that the most prevalent disease in the concerned population was 'Sandhivata' (Osteo-arthritis), that is, 43.0%, followed by 'Dourbalya' (Debility), that is, 11.7%. The study includes insightful analyses of comprehensive demographic and health indicators classified by various socio-economic categories. The collected data regarding the prevalence of diseases with their sociodemographic correlations may provide a better understanding of the locality and thus may help in all future health endeavours.

Ultraflexible Liposome Nanocargo as a Dermal and Transdermal Drug Delivery System.

A selected active pharmaceutical ingredient must be incorporated into a cargo carrier in a particular manner so that it achieves its goal. An amalgamation of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) should be conducted in such a manner that it is simple, professional, and more beneficial. Lipids/polymers that are known to be used in nanocarriers for APIs can be transformed into a vesicular formulation, which offers elegant solutions to many problems. Phospholipids with other ingredients, such as ethanol and water, form suitable vesicular carriers for many drugs, overcoming many problems related to poor bioavailability, poor solubility, etc. Ultraflexible liposomes are novel carriers and new frontiers of drug delivery for transdermal systems. Auxiliary advances in vesicular carrier research have been made, enabling polymer-coated ethanolic liposomes to avoid detection by the body's immune system-specifically, the cells of the reticuloendothelial system. Ultraflexible liposomes act as a cargo system and a nanotherapeutic approach for the transport of therapeutic drugs and bioactive agents. Various applications of liposome derivatives in different diseases are emphasized in this review.

Mucoadhesive microspheres of glutaraldehyde crosslinked mucilage of Isabgol husk for sustained release of gliclazide.

Mucoadhesive microspheres have their own significant amongst the various sustained release drug delivery systems. The prolonged residence time of these delivery devices at drug absorption site results in steep concentration gradient and enhanced bioavailability. In this study, the mucilage of Isabgol husk was applied as polymeric backbone to develop gliclazide loaded microspheres by crosslinking with glutaraldehyde. The formulations were studied for surface morphology, swelling behavior, particle size, in vitro release, release kinetics, in vitro mucoadhesion and gamma scintigraphy in rabbits. The release of gliclazide from microspheres was controlled by swelling of crosslinked microspheres followed by diffusion. Gamma scintigraphic images acquired for microspheres retention in gastrointestinal track of rabbits indicated the residence of formulation upto 24 h after oral administration. Gliclazide retained its integrity in polymeric matrix of microspheres as observed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, differential scanning calorimetry and powder X-ray diffractometry. The sustained release of gliclazide and prolonged retention of microspheres in gastrointestinal track disclosed the rationality of mucoadhesive Isabgol husk microspheres in controlling the hyperglycemia in diabetes.

Mucoadhesivity Characterization of Isabgol Husk Mucilage Microspheres Crosslinked by Glutaraldehyde.

The microspheres of Isabgol husk were prepared by emulsification-crosslinking technique and the gastrointestinal transition behavior of the formulation was studied by gamma scintigraphy. The impact of different process variables such as amount of glutaraldehyde, concentration of Isabgol husk and temperature was studied on surface morphology and mucoadhesion. In vitro mucoadhesive testing of formulations was performed by determination of zeta potential, mucus glycoprotein assay and mucus adsorption isotherms. The effect of feeding on retention of microspheres in the gastrointestinal track (GIT) was studied in albino rabbits by gamma scintigraphy study. The results indicated the formation of microspheres as observed by scanning electron microscopy. The smooth and round surfaces of microspheres were obtained on increasing Isabgol husk and glutaraldehyde amount. The positive zeta potential of all formulations indicated the electrostatic interaction as a mechanism of mucoadhesion between the mucus of GIT membranes and the microspheres surfaces. The influence of electrostatic interaction on mucoadhesion of microspheres was again ascertained when the mucin equilibrium adsorption on preparations indicated well fitness in Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms. During gamma scintigraphy, the stability of (99m)Tc-sodium pertechnetate was found 98.82% at pH 6.8 and 96.78% at pH 7.2, respectively. It indicated the minimal leaching of bound radionuclide from microspheres during gastrointestinal transition as observed in gamma scintigraphic images of the rabbits. The microspheres retained in GIT even after 24 hrs of oral administration. The results indicated the applicability of Isabgol husk mucilage in the development of mucoadhesive microspheres.

Gastrointestinal transition and anti-diabetic effect of Isabgol husk microparticles containing gliclazide.

Isabgol husk with sodium alginate was formulated into gliclazide loaded microparticles which were characterized for particle size, swelling index, entrapment efficiency, in vitro release, release kinetics, stability, hypoglycemic effect, surface morphology, and gastrointestinal transition. The particle size in different formulations varied from 752.83 ± 0.630 to 872.03 ± 0.293 µm. It was analyzed by dissolution study that up to 98% of loaded gliclazide was released in simulated intestinal fluid (SIF, pH 7.4) within 8h. The formulations containing sodium alginate and Isabgol husk-sodium alginate showed bioequivalency with marketed sustained release tablets (Glizid MR 60(®)) in terms of release pattern. The drug maintained its integrity in terms of functional groups after fabrication in formulations as observed by FTIR analysis. The hypoglycemic effect of gliclazide loaded Isabgol husk-sodium alginate microparticles was found to be 37 ± 6.356% in terms of changes of blood glucose level from base glucose level (100%) in diabetic condition after 24h of oral administration and it was more than marketed conventional tablets (95.5 ± 3.286%). The retention of microparticles was observed in small intestine up to 10h during whole body X-ray imaging. The study revealed that microparticles composing of Isabgol husk may have the potential for regulating blood glucose level in diabetic animals with controlled release of gliclazide.

Fluidity enhancement: a critical factor for performance of liposomal transdermal drug delivery system.

Liposomes are well known lipid carriers for drug delivery of bioactive molecules encapsulated inside their membrane. Liposomes as skin drug delivery systems were initially promoted primarily for localized effects with minimal systemic delivery. Subsequently, a novel vesicular system, transferosomes was reported for transdermal delivery with efficiency similar to subcutaneous injection. The multiple bilayered organizations of lipids applied in these vesicles structure are somewhat similar to complex nature of stratum corneal intercellular lipids domains. The incorporation of novel agents into these lipid vesicles results in the loss of entrapped markers but it is similar to fluidization of stratum corneum lipids on treatment with a penetration enhancer. This approach generated the utility of penetration enhancers/fluidizing agents in lipids vesicular systems for skin delivery. For the transdermal and topical applications of liposomes, fluidity of bilayer lipid membrane is rate limiting which governs the permeation. This article critically reviews the relevance of using different types of vesicles as a model for skin in permeation enhancement studies. This study has also been designed to encompass all enhancement measurements and analytical tools for characterization of permeability in liposomal vesicular system.

Rheological Characterization of Isabgol Husk, Gum Katira Hydrocolloids, and Their Blends.

The rheological parameters of Isabgol husk, gum katira, and their blends were determined in different media such as distilled water, 0.1 N HCl, and phosphate buffer (pH 7.4). The blend properties of Isabgol husk and gum katira were measured for four different percentage compositions in order to understand their compatibility in dispersion form such as 00 : 100, 25 : 50, 50 : 50, 75 : 25, and 100 : 00 in the gel strength of 1 mass%. The miscibility of blends was determined by calculating Isabgol husk-gum katira interaction parameters by Krigbaum and Wall equation. Other rheological properties were analyzed by Bingham, Power, Casson, Casson chocolate, and IPC paste analysis. The study revealed that the power flow index "p" was less than "1" in all concentrations of Isabgol husk, gum katira, and their blends dispersions indicating the shear-thinning (pseudoplastic) behavior. All blends followed pseudoplastic behavior at thermal conditions as 298.15, 313.15, and 333.15°K and in dispersion media such as distilled water, 0.1 N HCl, and phosphate buffer (pH 7.4). Moreover, the study indicated the applicability of these blends in the development of drug delivery systems and in industries, for example, ice-cream, paste, nutraceutical, and so forth.