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BACKGROUND: Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is one of the most serious public health exigencies across the globe. However, equally brawny is the global commitment to halt new HIV infections from occurring and ensure that everyone with the disease has access to HIV treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional analytical study was carried out at an antiretroviral therapy (ART) center in Ranchi, Jharkhand, India, in 2023. Since most patients across the state were registered for ART treatment there, it was selected as the study site. From this center, 30 tribal and 30 non-tribal people were chosen by a random number table. A Microsoft Excel spreadsheet (Microsoft Corp., Redmond, WA) was used to enter the data, and a template was generated. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics software for Windows, version 25 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). Chi-square and t-test were used to find an association, and a p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The majority of the patients, i.e., 40%, were from the 40-50 age category with a mean age of 35.25 years, mean weight was 49.41 kg, and mean per capita income was Rs. 2,215.72. We found the prevalence of ART medication adherence among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLHIV) to be 88.3%, the degree of nonadherence was 21.7%, and the causes of the nonadherence were long commutes, high travel costs, and wage loss while visiting an ART center. CONCLUSION: Despite the best support system by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), which encompasses free drugs, counseling, and reminders, a fifth of patients still were not consistent with their treatments. We need to focus on travel costs and distance to improve this, as these were the main causes of nonadherence to ART.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The government of India is committed to eliminating tuberculosis (TB) by 2025 under the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme which provides free investigations and treatment as well as incentives for nutritional support during their treatment course. Many TB patients prefer to seek treatment from the private sector which sometimes leads to financial constraints for the patients. Our study aims to find the burden of TB patients in the private sector and the expenses borne by them for their treatment. METHODOLOGY: Sales data of rifampicin-containing formulation drug consumption in the private sector of six districts of Jharkhand was collected from Clearing and Forwarding agencies. Based on the drug sales data, the total incurring costs of the drugs, total number of patients, and cost per patient seeking treatment from the private sector were calculated for the year 2015-2021. ANOVA and the post hoc test (Tukey honestly significant difference (HSD)) were applied for analysis. RESULTS: There was a marked difference amongst all the districts in relation to all the variables namely total costs, cost per patient, and total private patients seeking treatment from the private sector which was statistically significant (p < 0.001). East Singhbhum had the highest out-of-pocket expense and private patients as compared to all six districts. Lohardaga showed the sharpest decline in total private patients from 2015 to 2021. The average cost borne by private patients in 2015 was INR 1821 (95% CI 1086 - 2556) which decreased to INR 1033 (95% CI 507 - 1559) in 2021. CONCLUSION: From the study, it was concluded that the purchase of medicines for TB treatment from the private sector is one of the essential elements in out-of-pocket expenditure (OOPE) borne by TB patients. Hence, newer initiatives should be explored to foresee the future OOPE borne by the patients and decrease OOPE-induced poverty.
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Aim: To evaluate the effect of different add-ons on the flexural strength (FS) of glass ionomer cement (GIC). Materials and methods: Around 72 samples were fabricated and divided among the following six different groups: group I-control (conventional GIC-nonmodified), group II-GIC powder modified with 3% titanium dioxide (TiO2) and liquid is unmodified, group III-powder modified with 10% nanohydroxyapatite (nHA) and liquid is unmodified, group IV-powder is unmodified and Liquid is modified with 10% chitosan (CH), group V-powder is modified with 3% TiO2 and liquid is modified with 10% CH, and group VI-powder is modified with 10% nHA and liquid is modified with 10% CH. The samples were then subjected to a three-point bending test on a universal testing machine for the evaluation of FS. The results obtained were analyzed statistically using the analysis of variance (ANOVA) test. Result: The mean FS value of group V depicts significantly high FS among all groups (29.42 ± 3.35). A significant difference was present in FS amongst all the groups that is groups V>II>IV>VI>III>I. Conclusion: Glass ionomer cement (GIC) powder can be modified with nHA, nanotitanium, and GIC liquid can be modified with CH to improve its FS. Clinical significance: Glass ionomer cement (GIC) supplemented with additives like nanoparticles (NPs) and CH can be used as an enhanced filling material due to its potential antibacterial properties and in areas with a high masticatory load. How to cite this article: Showkat I, Chaudhary S, Sinha AA, et al. Comparative Evaluation of Flexural Strength of Conventional Glass Ionomer Cement and Glass Ionomer Cement Modified with Chitosan, Titanium Dioxide Nanopowder and Nanohydroxyapatite: An In Vitro Study. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2023;16(S-1):S72-S76.
ABSTRACT
Terpenoids are naturally occurring secondary metabolites that consist of isoprene units (i.e., 2-methyl-1,3-butadiene). Terpenoids became recognized because of their diverse pharmacological benefits, such as anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, analgesic, antibacterial, antifungal, hepatoprotective, antiviral, and antiparasitic activities. But most of these compounds have limited lipophilicity, dissolution rate, aqueous solubility, and drug permeability, so they are not used effectively. The low bioavailability significantly interferes with the performance of terpenoids to cure diseases, and the absorption process of terpenoids also becomes disrupted; therefore, their bioavailability in the blood becomes insufficient to achieve optimal treatment activity. Thus, to overcome this limitation, some strategies are used, such as nanotechnology (nanoparticles, carrier complexation), cocrystal, and glycosylation. Thus, this review summarizes the chemistry of terpenoids, factors that limit the bioavailability of terpenoids, and strategies employed to date with their design principles and outcomes possibly increasing their bioactivity.