Perceptions and practices regarding use of personal listening devices among medical students in coastal south India.

UNLABELLED: Today's generation enjoys having music at their fingertips. This has led to an increase in the usage of personal listening devices (PLDs) over the past decade. There are significant concerns regarding harmful effects of PLD use. To find out the perception and practice of medical students regarding use of PLDs. Cross-sectional study was carried out in Mangalore, Coastal south India. Data were collected using a 31 item semi structured questionnaire that was distributed among 570 medical students, of which 485 completed questionnaire were received giving an overall response rate of 86.14%. The study was approved by the departmental review board. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: data were analyzed using SPSS Version 11.5, Chi-square test for association was used and P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Of the total study participants, 83.1% of them used PLDs regularly, of whom 77.7% used it for more than 1 h a day. Overall, 18.0% of the study population was aware that prolonged use of PLDs could be harmful to their health. Majority of the study subjects (72.4%) felt that the safe duration of listening to PLDs is 3 to 5 h. Among the subjects using PLDs ≥ 1 h, 60.1% preferred ear phones and among those using PLDs <1 h, 44.1% preferred earphones. Overall, 12.4% experienced temporary hearing loss on usage of PLDs. The use of PLDs among the medical students is on the rise, and they should be made more aware of the harmful effects associated with its use.

Study of finger print patterns in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a malignant disease of an unknown origin. The present case control study was intended to compare the finger print patterns between the children diagnosed with ALL and a control group. A total of 24 children with established ALL were included in the study. Fingerprints of the affected children were analyzed in both hands and compared with the finger print patterns of 24 age and sex matched controls. The study indicated an increase in frequency of whorls and a decreased frequency of loops in children suffering from ALL. Radial loops, double loops, central pocket loops and tented arches are found to be proportionately less frequent in cases than controls. On quantitative analysis of patterns, mean pattern intensity index (PII) was found to be higher in cases than controls; however, a significant overlapping was evident. Most of the cases (n = 10, 41.7%) had a PII of 16-20, while a PII of 11-15 is reported among most children in the control group (n = 16, 66.7%). The findings of the study are suggestive of a possible trend and an association of finger print patterns with children suffering from ALL. The present research emphasizes the significance of the application of forensic science in medicine and pathology.

Rare case of acute dengue encephalitis with correlated MRI findings.

Dengue encephalitis is extremely rare, with most patients showing no significant abnormality on neuroimaging (CT/MRI). We report one of the very few documented cases of dengue encephalitis, with abnormal signal intensities on all major sequences on brain MRI.

Association between bipolar affective disorder and thyroid dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: Bipolar affective disorder may be associated with alterations in thyroid function. A comprehensive thyroid assessment is important for assessing clinical and sub-clinical imbalances linked to a variety of mood disorders like bipolar affective disorder. AIM: To find out the association between bipolar affective disorder and thyroid dysfunction. MATERIALS AND METHOD: The present cross-sectional study was conducted at Government District Wenlock Hospital, Mangalore (GDWH), India. A total of 50 newly diagnosed bipolar affective disorder patients and 50 age and sex matched controls without bipolar affective disorder as confirmed by the application of Bipolar Spectrum Diagnostic Scale were included in the study. Thyroid function was assessed among the patients and control group to study the association between bipolar affective disorder and thyroid dysfunction. Odds ratio was calculated to find out the strength of association between thyroid gland dysfunction and bipolar affective disorder. RESULTS: The mean Bipolar Spectrum Diagnostic Scale score among patients diagnosed with bipolar affective disorder was 20.84 and that of the control group was 1.98. The proportion of thyroid dysfunction among bipolar affective disorder patients and among control group was 14% and 6% respectively. The odds ratio was calculated to be 2.55. Mean T3 values were higher in the bipolar affective disorder patients than the control group and this association was found to be statistically significant (p=0.031). Mean T4 and TSH values were higher among the bipolar affective disorder patients but did not show any significant differences when compared with the control group. CONCLUSION: The present study concludes that a statistically significant association exists between elevated T3 hormone and bipolar affective disorder and observes that the patients with bipolar affective disorder are 2.55 times more commonly associated with thyroid dysfunction.

Palmar dermatoglyphics in children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia--a preliminary investigation.

BACKGROUND: Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is a malignant disease of as yet an unknown origin. Researchers in the past have studied the association between dermatoglyphic features in the hand and congenital diseases and diseases with genetic influences. OBJECTIVE: The present research is intended to study the association between acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and palmar dermatoglyphic characteristics to assess the value of dermatoglyphics as a screening tool to detect leukemia in high risk groups. METHODS: Case-control study conducted at the department of Pediatrics, KMC Attavara, a tertiary care teaching hospital of Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore (Manipal University), India during 2006. Twenty-four children suffering from acute lymphoblastic leukemia were included in the study. The dermatoglyhic features (ab- ridge count, atd, tda and dat angles) of their palm prints were compared with the age and sex matched controls. RESULTS: The present research indicates an association between dermatoglyphic features and ALL. The mean ab-ridge count, and the mean atd - angle were observed to be higher in cases while the mean tda - angle was found to be lower in cases than controls. CONCLUSIONS: The findings of the present research are suggestive of a possible trend and an association of dermatoglyphic features with children suffering from ALL. Similar studies can be useful in rare forensic case work where the association of dermatoglyphic features with certain diseases is to be explored.

Toxicoepidemiology of fatal poisonings in Southern India.

An autopsy based retrospective study was conducted from January 2000 to December 2006 at Manipal in Southern India, and a profile of the victims of poisoning was prepared. The study was done to understand the magnitude and pattern of all poisoning fatalities in relation to the manner of death in Manipal region of Southern India. The study included a total of 198 cases of fatal poisoning. Self-poisoning was reported in 92.9% cases. Fatal accidental poisoning was seen in 6.1% cases. Homicide by poisoning was not reported during the study period. Uncertainty regarding the manner of death due to poisoning was observed only in two cases. Males were predominantly affected (71.2%). The majority of the victims were in the 3rd decade (28.3%) of life. The age of the victims ranged from 2 to 82 years with a mean age of 38.4 years. While majority of the victims consumed poison during daytime, most of the poisoning fatalities were reported during summer months. Organophosphate compounds were implicated in 68.7% of the total poisoning related fatalities. Males in the 3rd to 5th decades were prone to self-poisoning with organophosphate compounds. Accidental poisoning deaths were uncommon and poisoning was not a preferred method of homicide in this region. Our approach to the study reveals that quantitative chemical (toxicological) analysis is required to further strengthen and improve the databases of epidemiology of poisoning in our region.