Naturopathic Interventions for Reduction of Perceived Pain in Patients Suffering from Arthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Arthritis affects millions of lives with its pervasive effects on physical health and quality of life. Addressing the complexities of managing symptoms such as swelling, inflammation, and pain requires prolonged treatment. Naturopathy is a treatment method that enhances the body's innate ability to restore optimal health through a holistic approach including natural products and lifestyle modifications. This systematic review addresses the intersection of naturopathy and arthritis treatment to provide current evidence about its potential benefits. Four databases (PubMed, AYUSH Research Portal, Web of Science, and Google Scholar) were searched with the keywords "Naturopathy" AND "Arthritis". Randomized, non-randomized, and cross-over studies in English were included. Studies reporting perceived pain using a visual analogue scale (VAS) were selected for meta-analysis. A total of 15 studies were included in the systematic review. The studies were from Denmark, Egypt, France, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Spain, and Turkey, and the study periods ranged from 1992 to 2017. They suggested that naturopathic treatment modalities like exercise, mud compress, sand bath, or hydrotherapy may be used in addition to conventional modes of treatment for added benefit. There was a diversity of naturopathic treatment modalities and outcome evaluation methods. Most studies used mud compress or mud baths with reported improvement of symptoms. The meta-analysis of 10 studies (11 sets of data) showed a significant improvement in pain measured by VAS. The studies included in the review have a high level of heterogenicity. There is a need for more studies and uniform assessment methods with standardization of interventions for robust evidence. More clinical trials from countries where naturopathy is approved treatment modalities are needed.

The Tribal Health System in India: Challenges in Healthcare Delivery in Comparison to the Global Healthcare Systems.

The tribal health system in India faces unique challenges in comparison to non-tribal health in the nation and global healthcare systems. The tribal health issues are distinct due to the diverse socio-cultural practices, rituals, customs, and languages of the tribal communities. Despite commendable efforts, there are several obstacles that hinder the successful delivery of healthcare services to these underserved populations. These challenges include geographical remoteness and limited infrastructure, language, and cultural barriers; scarcity of healthcare professionals; socioeconomic disparities; and the need for cultural sensitivity and integration of traditional healing practices. Overcoming these challenges requires collaborative efforts between the government, medical specialists, and the indigenous tribes themselves. By addressing these obstacles, it is possible to enhance the accessibility, quality, and cultural appropriateness of healthcare services for tribal groups, leading to improved health outcomes and reduced health inequalities.

The International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce (INPST) and the power of Twitter networking exemplified through #INPST hashtag analysis.

BACKGROUND: The development of digital technologies and the evolution of open innovation approaches have enabled the creation of diverse virtual organizations and enterprises coordinating their activities primarily online. The open innovation platform titled "International Natural Product Sciences Taskforce" (INPST) was established in 2018, to bring together in collaborative environment individuals and organizations interested in natural product scientific research, and to empower their interactions by using digital communication tools. METHODS: In this work, we present a general overview of INPST activities and showcase the specific use of Twitter as a powerful networking tool that was used to host a one-week "2021 INPST Twitter Networking Event" (spanning from 31st May 2021 to 6th June 2021) based on the application of the Twitter hashtag #INPST. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The use of this hashtag during the networking event period was analyzed with Symplur Signals (https://www.symplur.com/), revealing a total of 6,036 tweets, shared by 686 users, which generated a total of 65,004,773 impressions (views of the respective tweets). This networking event's achieved high visibility and participation rate showcases a convincing example of how this social media platform can be used as a highly effective tool to host virtual Twitter-based international biomedical research events.

Effect of Practicing Meditation, Pranayama, and Yoga on the Mental Health of Female Undergraduate Medical Students: An Interventional Study.

Background Medical education is a rigorous formal education with a vast syllabus. Burnout and stresses are common among medical students and more prominent in females. Female medical students suffer from a higher level of stress than male medical students. For the improvement of physical and mental health, meditation, pranayama, and yoga are some of the ancient techniques. Meditation is a technique of focusing the mind on a target like an object, activity, or any thought. Pranayama is an ancient yogic practice focusing on the breath. Yoga is a combination of physical, mental, and spiritual dimensions that has the potential to improve mental and physical health. Objective This study aimed to find the effect of meditation, pranayama, and yoga on the improvement of mental health among female undergraduate medical students. Materials and methods This was an interventional study. A total of 105 females with a median age of 19 years (first quartile - third quartile: 18-20) first-year undergraduate medical students were recruited for this study. They were randomly allocated to control, meditation, pranayama, and yoga groups. The control group did not practice any form of meditation, pranayama, or yoga. The rest of the group practiced a designated program for their group, six days a week for 12 weeks. The anxiety, depression, anger, and sense of well-being were assessed by a validated self-administered questionnaire developed by the Defence Institute of Physiology and Allied Sciences, New Delhi before starting the study, at six weeks, and at 12 weeks after the intervention. Inter-group levels of anxiety, depression, anger, and well-being were compared by the Kruskal-Wallis test with Dunn's posthoc test. Intra-group parameters at baseline, at six weeks, and at 12 weeks after the intervention was tested by Friedman's test. Result The age (years) (p = 0.07), height (cm) (p = 0.98), and weight (kg) (p = 0.26) of participants among groups were similar. Anxiety, depression, and anger significantly decreased after six weeks in all three intervention groups. A further decrement was seen after 12 weeks of meditation, pranayama, and yoga. The maximum effect was seen in the yoga group. A sense of well-being was improved after practicing all types of interventions. However, meditation was found to increase a sense of well-being to the highest level compared to pranayama and yoga. Conclusion Introduction and sustainment of meditation, pranayama, and yoga programs for first-year female undergraduate medical students may help reduce anxiety, depression, and anger and promote a sense of well-being. Although a six-week program helps to improve mental health, a 12-week program helps in further improvement. A yoga program is more effective for improving the mental health of the students in comparison with pranayama and meditation.

Twitter Poll as a Medium for Questionnaire-Based Health Survey: An Experience of a Pilot Study on the Preference of Systems of Medicine for Various Health Conditions.

Background The easy accessibility of smartphones and internet connections enables people to stay virtually connected to communities via social media. However, social media is also being explored for health care education and dissemination of health-related information. Twitter (Twitter, Inc., San Francisco, California) is one of the popular social media used for spreading health-related information. Twitter enables users to create polls to get opinions from their users. The Twitter poll is a less-explored avenue for health surveys. Objective In this pilot study, we aimed to explore the feasibility of conducting a questionnaire-based health survey (on the preference of different systems of medicine for the treatment of various health problems) as a Twitter poll. Methods This observational study was conducted on Twitter for five consecutive days starting from May 31, 2021. We posted five Twitter polls, one poll each day, for five days in a #INPST unique Twitter campaign. Preferences on the use of modern medicine, traditional medicine, a combination of these two systems, and self-medication were collected on five health conditions. We collected the data from the landing poll page and Tweet Analytics (insight about the engagement of tweets provided free by Twitter). The Chi-square test, binomial test, and one-way Analysis of Variance were used to compare data, and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was used to find a correlation between categorical variables. Results We had a mean 4358.6±590.3 poll reach with the engagement of 108.2±36.87 Twitter users and 67.6±28.06 votes. Most of the responses were received on the first day of posting the poll. The participation then gradually decreased. Modern medicine was the first choice for emergency medical care (85.1%, P <0.0001), treatment of cancer (43.6%, P <0.0001), and sexual disorder or transmitted diseases (48.9%, P <0.0001). Traditional medicine was the first choice (37.5%, P = 0.63) for the treatment of common illnesses, and a combination of modern and traditional medicine was the first choice (37.5%, P = 0.01) for the treatment of chronic diseases. Conclusion A medical survey with short questions with a maximum of four response options can be conducted on Twitter. Survey results can be obtained without any third-party analytic service. The response rate is highest on the first day and participation may decrease when multiple polls are posted within a Twitter campaign. Preference for systems of medicine found in this study can be used for designing large-scale surveys in the future.

Bone Mineral Density, Serum Calcium, and Vitamin D Levels in Adult Thalassemia Major Patients: Experience From a Single Center in Eastern India.

Background and objective Patients suffering from thalassemia major are at higher risk of osteoporosis. Due to their decreased life expectancy, the number of adult patients is low. However, their bone health is rarely checked in developing countries like India. There is no data available in the literature on the bone mineral density (BMD) of adult (aged ≥18 years) thalassemia major patients in eastern India. In this study, we aimed to measure the BMD and serum calcium and vitamin D levels in adult thalassemia major patients and to compare them with healthy controls. Materials and methods We conducted this cross-sectional observational study at a tertiary care hospital in eastern India. We recruited adult thalassemia major patients who were not on calcium or vitamin D supplements. Their BMD was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) on the lumbar spine (L1-L4). Venous blood was tested for serum calcium and vitamin D levels. We compared the parameters between the cases and controls by using the Mann-Whitney U test. Results A total of 31 (male = 19, female = 12) patients with a median age of 28 years comprised the case group. Age- and sex-matched controls showed similar height but higher weight and BMI. The serum calcium level was similar (p = 0.43) in the case and control groups but T-score (p = 0.0003) and vitamin D levels (p: <0.0001) were significantly lower in thalassemia major patients. Conclusion Based on our findings, adult thalassemia major patients have lower BMD and vitamin D levels. Although the serum calcium may be normal in these patients, they should still be screened both for BMD and vitamin D for prompt and early detection of risks and complications so that a proper management strategy can be implemented.