Vigorous Appraisal of Fluoride on Industrial Proponent in Thermal Power Plant over Anthropoid Biosphere Using F(-) Ion-Selective Electrode.

This study was conducted to analyze the impact of fluoride in the anthropogenic condition in an industrial region promoting and affecting the health of the workers. Fluoride is toxic to humans in high concentrations, such as can occur in persons working in fluoride-containing mineral industries like aluminum industries. When workers are exposed to fluoride-containing minerals, they can suffer from a variety of health problems, such as dental disease. This paper presents the relationship of different clinical conditions correlated against the fluoride level. Contributing clinical aspects, such as morbidity, dysentery, overcrowding, and skin disease, are also studied to assess the consequences of fluoride upon consistent exposure. The relationship between pH and hardness of water with fluoride was measured, and then spatial maps were generated. The investigations resulted in a conclusion that hardness of water had a more pronounced impact on the level of fluoride concentration as compared with pH. Water with more hardness contains more fluoride concentration (25 mg/ml) as compared with soft water (4 mg/ml). This paper also revealed the concentration of fluoride content in the bodies of aluminum plant workers, which varied from 0.06 to 0.17 mg/L of blood serum in the case of pot room workers and 0.01 to 0.04 mg/L in the case of non-pot room workers. In fingernails, it varied from 0.09 to 3.77 mg/L and 0.39 to 1.15 mg/L in the case of pot room and non-pot room workers, respectively. In urine, it varied from 0.53 to 9.50 mg/L in pot room workers and 0.29 to 1.80 mg/L in non-pot room workers. This paper concluded that water was safe for drinking purposes if it has a low hardness (60-140 mg/ml) and pH (7.1-7.4).

Aditya Jyot-Diabetic Retinopathy in Urban Mumbai Slums Study (AJ-DRUMSS): study design and methodology - report 1.

PURPOSE: To describe the methodology of Aditya Jyot-Diabetic Retinopathy in Urban Mumbai Slums Study (AJ-DRUMSS), which was designed (i) to estimate the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) in a general population, (ii) to study the risk factors associated with DR in those with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), and (iii) to create awareness for early detection and develop timely interventional management for DR. METHODS: AJ-DRUMSS is an ongoing population-based cross sectional study conducted in seven wards of slums in Mumbai, India, wherein eligible subjects from the general population were screened for DR and profiled for their demographic, social and biochemical parameters to study the associations of these factors. RESULTS: To date, nearly 54,000 households have been enumerated for both awareness and DR prevalence in five study areas (out of seven) during 17 awareness campaigns and 78 DR screening camps. Of these, 4295 households were included in AJ-DRUMSS. Nearly 15,000 camp subjects (including subjects from awareness-focused areas who also turned up for the screening camps) were screened from the total enumerated households, of which 16.1% were diagnosed with type 2 DM. A total of 14.5% of these had evidence of DR and 3.5% had sight-threatening DR. CONCLUSIONS: A detailed study design of AJ-DRUMSS is described. In the screening camps nearly 3.5% of the diabetic population had sight-threatening DR, which needed an active interventional strategy. This study will help in formulating efficient eye care policies, making optimum use of available resources, reorienting healthcare providers and the ignorant within the population regarding the need for periodic ophthalmic surveillance and timely intervention.

Comparing outcomes of HIV versus non-HIV patients requiring mechanical ventilation.

BACKGROUND: Mechanical ventilation (MV) is a predictor of mortality in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in the intensive care unit (ICU). Patients with HIV-infections are admitted to the ICU for a variety of reasons that frequently require intubation. While survival rates for HIV-infected patients continue to improve, ICU admission rates have remained consistent. METHODS: To observe the consequences of MV in HIV-infected patients, we conducted a retrospective chart review on patients with HIV (n=55) vs. matched HIV-negative patients (n=55) who required MV over a one-year period and compared the groups for differences in outcome and complications. RESULTS: The HIV group had twice the number of deaths (44% vs. 22%, all-cause mortality) (P=0.01). Among the HIV-positive group, 5 of 55 patients required tracheostomy and prolonged MV, compared to 15 of 55 in the control group (9% and 27%, respectively). Successful extubation was virtually identical (47% MV vs. 50% control). Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) was significantly higher among HIV-positive cases (39 of 55 HIV vs. 14 of 55 non-HIV) (P=0.05). Regression analysis revealed that hypotension, hypoalbuminemia, and fever predicted a poorer outcome. Low CD4 cell counts were strongly associated with mortality. CONCLUSION: HIV-infected patients requiring MV have significantly higher mortality and VAP rates than HIV-negative patients. Since VAP is associated with a poor prognosis, discovering ways to prevent it in the HIV-infected patient may improve outcome.