RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Myopia is one of the most common causes of visual impairment worldwide.It is proved in earlier studies that the eye shape is different in myopic and nonmyopic children even at a very young age, with the former manifesting asymmetric axial globe elongation and the latter global expansion but limited information is available regarding hypermetropia. AIM: To find out the variations of axial ocular dimensions in relation to age, sex, height and to demonstrate any possible correlation of body mass index (BMI) in myopic hypermetropic and emmetropic patients. SETTINGS: It is a cross-sectional observational study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All the patients attending eye OPD in the Regional Institute of Ophthalmology (R.I.O.), Medical College, Kolkata, West Bengal, India from June2010 to May 2011.Axial dimensions were measured by B-mode USG. Refractive status was measured.Age, gender, height and BMI were also observed. After collecting all the data,all the variables were summarised by descriptive statistics followed by correlation testing by Pearson's Correlation Coefficient r. RESULTS: Height was positively correlated with axial length, anterior chamber depth, vitreous chamber depth ;age was positively correlated with axial length, vitreous chamber depth and negatively correlated with anterior chamber depth. Subjects with higher BMI tended to had refractions that were more hypermetropic. CONCLUSION: The findings of the present study can highlight not only the normal range of the different ocular parameters namely axial length, anterior chamber depth, vitreous chamber depth and lens thickness but their variation with age, gender, height and weight.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Bancroftian filariasis is the second most common mosquito-borne disease in India. Government of India adopted mass-drug-administration (MDA) since 2004 for its elimination by 2015 AD. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to assess the coverage, compliance, factors-related to noncompliance to MDA. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional survey of 1 week was conducted within 2 weeks after completion of MDA for 2012 in three villages and two municipal wards of North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, India selected as clusters by multistage random sampling. Information was collected via interview of inhabitants of the clusters selected by systematic random sampling and drug administrators of the selected clusters along with verifying left over medicines, if any. RESULTS: Both appropriate medicine distribution (83.4%) and 61.28% of people who received drug reported consumption and effective consumption rate (48.01%) fell short of the target. The lowest consumption (38.15%) was noted in one of the rural cluster (villages), followed by municipal wards (43.14%). Consumption was significantly higher among rural residents and Hindu community. Fear of the adverse reaction was the commonest (63.02%) cause of noncompliance. Contrary to the requirement, almost all consumptions were unsupervised by drug administrators. Only 10.71% of the respondents reportedly were paid house to house campaign of forthcoming MDA. About 64% participants had heard about filariasis out of which 71% & 47% mentioned swelling of legs as symptoms and mosquito bite as mode of spread, respectively. About one-third opined mosquito control and MDA each as means of prevention. Approximately, 60% participants had heard about MDA. Information education and communication related to MDA program was conspicuously inadequate in the last round. CONCLUSION: Mass mobilization as in intensive pulse polio immunization with effective monitoring and supervision is the need of the hour for universal coverage of MDA with supervised on the spot consumption of tablets.