Determinants and Characteristics of the Violent Incidents in a Tertiary-Level Mental Health Care Center.

Background The Mental Health Care Act of India, 2017 has for the first time focused on violence management interventions, especially restraint and seclusion in psychiatric settings, and recommended important guidelines in this aspect. Objective This situation has created a strong need to review the prevalence of violence in inpatient settings, associated clinical and social correlates keeping a preventive model in context. Hence, this study was undertaken to fulfill this need. Methods: A retrospective matched case-control chart review design was employed. All patients who exhibited at least one violent incident during their ward stay were included. For each case, the control was selected by individual matching based on age ± 2 years and gender from patients who were admitted during the study period but did not exhibit any violent incident. The information about the characteristics of violent incidents and management was also collected. Results 8.80% of patients exhibited at least one incident of violence and a total of 186 violent incidents were recorded during the study period. Variables including involuntary admission, history of the previous admission, history of violence, impulsivity, lack of insight, and irritability at the time of admission significantly predicted the likelihood of violent incidents. The use of chemical restraining was the most common method of management of violent incidents. Conclusion Violent incidents in psychiatric inpatient settings are still common. Efforts should be made to understand the risk as well as antecedent factors well in time. Verbal de-escalation should be employed and chemical and physical restraint should be used only as a last resort after exhausting the least restrictive interventions.

Parathyroid Carcinoma: Incidence, Survival Analysis, and Management: A Study from the SEER Database and Insights into Future Therapeutic Perspectives.

Introduction: Parathyroid carcinoma (PC) is an extremely rare entity, with a frequency of 0.005% of all malignancies. Most data related to this rare disease are limited to case series and a few database studies. We present a large database study that aims to investigate the demographic, clinical, and pathological factors, prognosis, and survival of PC. Methods: Data of parathyroid carcinoma were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) diagnosed between 1975 and 2016. Results: PC had a slightly higher incidence in men (52.2%, p < 0.005), the majority of cases affected Caucasians (75.4%, p < 0.005), and the mean age at diagnosis was 62 years. Histologically, 99.7% were adenocarcinomas not otherwise specified (p < 0.005), well-differentiated (p < 0.005), and 2−4 cm (p < 0.001) in size among the patients with available data. In cases with staging provided, most PC were organ-confined (36.8%, p < 0.001). Lymph nodes were positive in 25.2% of cases where lymph node status was reported. The main treatment modality was surgery (97.2%), followed by radiation alone (2%), and very few received chemotherapy alone (0.8%), p < 0.005. Five-year follow-up was available for 82.7% of the cases. Those who underwent surgery only or radiation alone had 5-year survivals of 83.8% and 72.2%, respectively (p < 0.037). Multivariable analysis identified tumor size >4 cm, age > 40 years, male sex, Caucasian race, distant spread, and poorly differentiated grade as independent risk factors for mortality (p < 0.001). Conclusion: PC is a very rare tumor mostly affecting Caucasian individuals in the fifth decade. Older age, poor histologic differentiation, and distant metastasis are associated with a worse prognosis. Surgical resection offers the best survival outcome. To better understand the pathogenesis and factors affecting survival, all PC patients should be enrolled in national and international registries.

Median Nerve Passing below the Ulnar Head of Pronator Teres in Cadavers of a Medical College in Western Nepal: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION: Median nerve passes between two heads of pronator teres muscle while passing through the elbow. Detailed knowledge of these variations in the course of Median Nerve in relation to pronator teres and its neighboring structure is required for diagnosis of pronator syndrome. The aim of the study is to find out the proportion of Median Nerve passing below the ulnar head of pronator teres in cadavers of a medical college in Western Nepal. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at the Department of Anatomy in a medical college of Nepal from 20th July 2021 to 2nd September 2021 after ethical clearance from the same institution (Reference number: UCMS/IRC/079/21). Variations in the course of the median nerve while passing through pronator teres were observed, recorded and photographed. Convenience sampling method was used. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2016. Point estimate at 95% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and percentage. RESULTS: Out of 54 prosected specimens of upper limbs, 4 (7.40%) (0.418-14.38 at 95% Confidence Interval) Median Nerve passed below the ulnar head of pronator teres muscle and in 50 (92.60%) specimens Median Nerve passed between two heads of pronator teres. CONCLUSIONS: Our study shows that the median nerve passed below the ulnar head of pronator teres muscle is higher as compared to other studies done in similar settings. Thus, knowledge of variations in the course of Median Nerve in elbow has immense importance in the academic and clinical arena.

Prognostic Value of Lymph Node Ratio in Cutaneous Melanoma: A Systematic Review.

The prognosis of cutaneous melanoma (CM) is based on the histological characteristics of the primary tumor, such as Breslow depth, ulceration, and mitotic rate. The lymph node ratio (LNR) is the ratio of the involved lymph nodes (LNs) divided by the total number of LNs removed during regional LN dissection. LNR is a prognostic factor for many solid tumors; however, controversies exist regarding CM. This study sought to analyze the role of LNR as a prognostic factor in CM. An extensive literature search was conducted using PubMed, Google Scholar, Medline, and the Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials from January 1966 to July 2015. The keywords included in the search were CM and inclusion of the ratio of positive to the total number of LNs as a prognostic factor. The outcomes analyzed included the number of patients with positive LNs, type of survival analysis, and results from the multivariate analysis. A total of 11 studies involving 12,011 patients with positive LNs were evaluated. No previous randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, or systematic reviews were identified in the Cochrane database on the prognostic value of LNR in CM. The primary electronic database search resulted in 333 full-text articles. The LN location examined was the cervical, axillary, and inguinal regions in all studies except for one that examined only the inguinal region. All studies except three studied the prognostic value of the LNR as a categorical variable rather than a continuous variable. LNR was categorized as A (≤0.1), B (0.11-0.25), and C (>0.25). All studies identified LNR as an independent predictor of overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), or disease-specific survival (DSS). The hazard ratio (HR) and confidence interval (CI) associated with either DFS or OS were available only in a few studies. Moreover, pooled HR for OS was 2.08 (95% CI: 1.48 2.92), for DFS was 1.364 (95% CI: 0.92-2.02), and for DSS was 1.643 (95% CI: 0.89-3.0). The LNR provides superior prognostic stratification among patients with CM. Additional adequately powered prospective studies are needed to further define the role of LNR and be included in the staging system of CM and direct adjuvant therapy.

Perception towards Online Classes during COVID-19 among MBBS and BDS Students in a Medical College of Nepal: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION: Sudden outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has affected the educational system worldwide, forced the medical colleges to close due to lock down, and disrupted the classroom face-to-face teaching process. As a result, medical colleges shifted to an online mode of teaching. The aim of this study is to find out the perception towards online classes during COVID-19 lockdown period among MBBS and BDS students at a medical college of Nepal. METHODS: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out at Universal College of Medical Sciences and Teaching Hospital among first and second year Bachelor in Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery and Bachelor in dental surgery students from 1st June 2020 to 30th August 2020. Ethical approval was taken from Institutional Review Committee of Universal College of Medical Sciences and Teaching Hospital (IRC UCMS, Ref: UCMS/IRC/025/20). Convenient sampling method was used. Semi-structured questionnaire was used. Statistical Package for Social Sciences 22 was used for analysis and frequency and percentage was calculated. RESULTS: One hundred fifty six (73.93%) students were enjoying online learning only to some extent, 135 (63.98%) felt online class not equally effective as face-to-face teaching. The students had disturbance during online classes as internet disturbance 168 (79.60%), and electricity problem 47 (22.3%). Similarly, many students 155 (73.50%) felt external disturbance, headache 26 (12.3%), and eye strain 26 (12.3%). CONCLUSIONS: Most of the students suffered from disturbances during online classes probably because of internet and electricity problem. When compulsory to conduct online classes, students felt that not more than three online classes per day should be conducted to avoid eye strain and headache.

Right External Carotid Artery Originated Right Superior Thyroid Artery in Cadavers of a Medical College in Nepal: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study.

INTRODUCTION: External carotid artery originated superior thyroid artery are frequently documented in classical anatomical, surgical and radiological textbooks. Knowledge of anatomical variations, proper identification of superior thyroid arteries is very important to avoid major complications during and after neck surgeries. The aim of the study is to find out the prevalence of right superior thyroid artery originating from right external carotid artery in cadavers of a Medical College in Nepal. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out at the department of anatomy in Universal College of Medical Sciences, Bhairahawa, Nepal from October 2020 to January 2021 after ethical clearance from the same institution (IRC UCMS, Ref: UCMS/IRC/078/20). Variations in origin of superior thyroid arteries were observed, recorded and photographed. Convenient sampling method was used. Data was analyzed using Microsoft Excel 2016. Point estimate at 90% Confidence Interval was calculated along with frequency and percentage. RESULTS: Out of 30 right superior thyroid arteries of 30 cadavers, 27 (90%) at 90% Confidence Interval (80.22-96.44) originates from right external carotid artery. CONCLUSIONS: In our study we observed that almost nine tenths of right superior thyroid arteries originated from the right external carotid artery which was relatively high in comparison to other studies. Thus, Extensive knowledge of variations in origin of superior thyroid artery is important for surgeons prior to various interventional surgeries.

Perception about Marriage among Caregivers of Patients with Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder.

BACKGROUND: Marriage has a complex relationship with mental illness. The marriage of a person with mental illness (PMI) is a controversial issue with varied opinions. There is a dearth of studies exploring perception about marriage among caregivers of patients with severe mental disorders. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty caregivers were interviewed in depth using a semi-structured interview schedule. Quantitative data were analyzed using MS Excel, while qualitative data were interpreted based on Colaizzi's framework. RESULTS: About half (53%) of the caregivers believed that PMI should marry, and 46% of caregivers believed that marriage could worsen the mental illness of their patient. The qualitative analysis showed that factors that affect the decision among caregivers to get their mentally ill wards married include shovelling off the stigma of keeping the unmarried ward at home and to have somebody to take care of the unmarried ward after their death. Many caregivers believe that marriage and/or sexual intercourse can be a cure/treatment for various mental disorders. CONCLUSION: Caregivers of patients with severe mental illness have many misconceptions about the association of marriage and outcome of mental illnesses.

Prevalence of disability in Chandigarh: Findings of large household screening.

BACKGROUND: The robust and sound national statistics on disability is the cornerstone for empowering the disabled population to have a barrier-free and right-based society for this population. The disability rates in India have marked discrepancies across various surveys. Taking into account the lack of data on disability in Chandigarh in terms of the proportion of disabled not included or counted owing to nonavailability of disability certificate or just lack of awareness as well as lack of data on the degree of utilization of various disability benefits, the present survey was planned. METHODOLOGY: The present study aimed at screening all the households of Chandigarh for different forms of disability using a 12-item screening tool. The survey included 254, 436 households with 925,380 population. A total of 8577 persons were screened positive for disability. The prevalence rates for the whole population were extrapolated by further confirming disability in a random sample chosen from screen-positive cases. RESULTS: The estimated prevalence for disability in Chandigarh ranged between 0.83 and 0.86 after generating the confidence intervals. CONCLUSION: The prevalence rate of disability in Chandigarh is less than the national census data.

Knowledge and Attitude of Nursing Students toward Electroconvulsive Therapy.

BACKGROUND: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is one of the commonly used treatment modalities for patients with severe mental disorders. However, acceptance of ECT by the patient and relatives often depends on how the health-care professionals themselves present the treatment modality to the patients and their relatives. There is a lack of information about the knowledge and attitude toward ECT among health professionals. AIM: This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge about and attitude toward ECT among nursing students. METHODOLOGY: Knowledge of and attitudes toward ECT among nursing students were assessed using ECT knowledge and attitude questionnaires. RESULTS: The study included 183 nursing students. Majority (n = 62; 60.8%) of the participants obtained information about ECT from media (movies, television, print media, etc.). None of the students had full knowledge about ECT. Although a significant proportion of students had knowledge about the ECT procedure and consent procedure, majority of them had poor knowledge about the effectiveness, mechanism of action, indications, and side effects of ECT. Negative attitudes were also highly prevalent, with more than two-thirds of the participants having negative attitudes toward ECT on more than half of the attitude items of the scale. Total knowledge score positively correlated with total attitude score, suggesting that higher knowledge was associated with more positive attitude. CONCLUSIONS: Although nursing students have knowledge about basic ECT procedure and consent, they lack knowledge about the effectiveness, mechanism of action, indications, and side effects of ECT. Negative attitude toward ECT is also highly prevalent among nursing students. Accordingly, there is a need to improve the knowledge and address the negative attitude of nursing students, which may ultimately lead to better acceptance of the treatment.

Impact of post-meal and one-time daily exercise in patient with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a randomized crossover study.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the effectiveness of short-timed post-meal and one-time daily exercise on glycemic control in patients with T2DM. METHODS: Sixty-four T2DM patients were randomised into crossover design. Group A (n = 32) underwent post-meal exercise (moderate-intensity brisk walking covering 1500-1600 steps for 15 min, starting 15 min after each meal) from d1 to d60 followed by one-time daily exercise (45 min pre-breakfast brisk walking at stretch covering 4500-4800 steps) from d61 to d120, while it was vice versa for the group B (n = 32). The five-point blood glucose profile was performed on d1, d30, d60, d90 and d120, and HbA1c on d1, d60 and d120. Fitness wrist band was used for step-counting to ensure the intensity of exercise and compliance to exercise protocol. RESULTS: Group A patients showed a significant improvement in five point blood glucose profile and HbA1c after performing post-meal exercise (p < 0.001), which was mitigated after switchover to one-time daily exercise (p < 0.001). While, group B patients showed improvement in glucose profile and HbA1c (p < 0.001) after performing post-meal exercise, as compared to one-time daily exercise. Further, on pooled analysis (post-meal versus one-time daily exercise group) the beneficial effect of post-meal exercise on glucose profile and HbA1c was consistent as compared to one time daily exercise and the significance persisted on comparison between the two groups. No hypoglycemic events were noted between the groups during the study period. CONCLUSION: Post-meal exercise is more effective than routine one-time daily exercise for glycemic control in T2DM patients.

Correlation and Comparison of Epicardial Adipose Tissue with Sagittal Abdominal Diameter and Other Anthropometric and Biochemical Variables of Metabolic syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: 1) To determine relation of epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) thickness with sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) and other anthropometric measurements in metabolic syndrome (MetS). 2) To determine relation of epicardial adipose tissue with biochemical variables of metabolic syndrome. METHODS: Cases were recruited from the patients attending OPD in New Medical College Hospital, Govt. Medical College, Kota, Rajasthan, India between March 2015 to February 2016. Informed consent was obtained from all participants after taking permission from hospital ethical committee. Patients were categorized as cases and controls according to IDF criteria for MetS. We obtained receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of EAT for determination of cut-off values. RESULTS: Epicardial adipose tissue thickness had significant positive correlation with fasting blood sugar (r = 0.49), sagittal abdominal diameter(r = 0.48), body mass index (r = 0.47), LDL cholesterol(r = 0.34), waist circumference (r = 0.33), waist hip ratio (r = 0.32), triglycerides (r= 0.31) and total cholesterol (r = 0.29). Epicardial adipose tissue thickness had significant negative correlation to HDL cholesterol (r = -0.34). EAT thickness (cm) was greater in metabolic syndrome cases (0.515 ± 0.07 vs 0.338 ± 0.06; p < 0.0001). Optimal cut off of EAT in metabolic syndrome is 0.425 cm according to ROC curve at which test is 96% sensitive and 83 % specific. CONCLUSIONS: EAT has shown good correlation with SAD and other anthropometric measurements as well as biochemical parameters of metabolic syndrome. Optimal cut off value of EAT to predict metabolic syndrome is 0.425 cm. FBS and Triglycerides are more closely associated with EAT. HDL Cholesterol is better correlated to SAD while LDL cholesterol is best correlated to WC.

Acute Scrotal Edema: An Atypical Manifestation of Dengue.

Acute scrotal edema associated with dengue fever is a rare and self limiting condition resolving in a few days without any complication or sequelae. We report two cases of dengue fever in father and son which presented simultaneously with acute scrotal edema.

Living with an alcoholic partner: Problems faced and coping strategies used by wives of alcoholic clients.

BACKGROUND: Alcoholism is considered as a major health as well as a social problem. Often the family members of alcoholics suffer intense psychological, physical and social trauma due to the core drinking problem of the family member. Most deeply affected are the wives of alcoholics. AIM: The present descriptive study aimed to investigate the problems faced and coping strategies used by the wives of alcoholics. METHODOLOGY: A total of 30 wives of alcoholic clients seeking treatment in De-addiction Centre were interviewed for the same. The problems were identified using a non standardized 17 item structured questionnaire while coping in wives of alcoholics was assessed using standardized tool. RESULTS: The findings revealed the problems faced by alcoholics wives were in multiple domains viz. physical, psychological and social. While most highly reported were the emotional problems and least reported were the problems of physical violence. Coping strategies used by wives of alcoholics were reported in three major styles: engaged, tolerant and withdrawal. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The problems faced by alcoholics have often wedged the attention in society yet finding and applying effective interventions to reduce the pain and suffering of being a partner of alcoholic is still a challenge.