Australasian Medical Journal
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Condoms no Laughing Matter
Get PDFThis multimedia project mimics a beer commercial, a lad’s night in, an environment that can be used to target the relevant audience. The goal was to deploy familiar atmosphere and recognisable characters whilst delivering a serious message with humour in a very short space of time
Abdominal Scar Endometriosis after Caesarean Section: A Rare Entity
Get PDFScar endometriosis is an uncommon entity. It is often misdiagnosed leading to unnecessary referrals. Gynecologists and general surgeons must be aware of this entity to avoid discomfort to the patient due to delay in diagnosis. We are presenting a case of scar endometriosis which was misdiagnosed initially. Detailed history of cyclic pain and swelling was the key point for the final diagnosis of scar endometriosis. Medical therapy was ineffective. Surgical excision of mass was the treatment for endometriotic lesion. This article is an attempt to create awareness of this condition among gynaecologists and general surgeons
Neonatal Varicella: A Rare Case Report
Get PDFChicken pox is an infectious disease of childhood. It is rare in infants and newborns due to passive immunity received from the mother. The characteristic skin eruptions are vesicular with erythematous base and accompanied with pruritus. Skin of palms and soles is typically spared. We report a case of neonatal varicella where the mother was having skin eruptions at the time of delivery and the neonate contracted it during the perinatal period and developed clinical disease on the day five of life. Specific anti viral therapy was given to mother and the baby and the recovery was uneventful
Efficient Scheduling For Chemotherapy
No full textThis study was undertaken to improve the performance of a Chemotherapy Treatment Unit by increasing the throughput and reducing the average patient’s waiting time. In order to achieve this objective, a scheduling template has been built. The scheduling template is a simple tool that can be used to schedule patients’ arrival to the clinic. A simulation model of this system was built and several scenarios, that target match the arrival pattern of the patients and resources availability, were designed and evaluated. After performing detailed analysis, one scenario provide the best system’s performance. A scheduling template has been developed based on this scenario. After implementing the new scheduling template, 22.5% more patients can be served
Tubercular Neuritis
Get PDFA 25-year-old housewife presented with burning sensation over both legs since the past 15 months, and fever with weight loss since the past six months. She had noticed a lump in her left breast since the past one month. Examination revealed hyperaesthesia and allodynia over the lower limbs. Nerve conduction studies confirmed the presence of sensory neuropathy. Nerve biopsy was suggestive of a chronic axonopathy. Subsequently sputum as well as aspirate from the breast lump tested positive for acid fast bacilli. Treatment with anti-tubercular therapy resulted in full recovery. Peripheral neuropathy is a unique and unusual presentation of tuberculosis
Letter to the Editor
No full textOccupational exposure to pathogenic microbes as a result of needles stick injury is associated with significant risk to health care professional’s career, health, families and also the patients. OBJECTIVES: To establish the incidence of needle stick injury (NSI) among health care workers (HCW) of a tertiary care centre. To study risk factors for getting NSI and to determine barriers in seeking care after NSI in above mentioned setting. To assess awareness, acceptability and availability of post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) in the tertiary care centre. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross- sectional study was conducted among HCWs of MM Institute of Medical sciences and Research, Mullana. A total of 300 health care workers were selected for the study by simple random sampling method. A self designed, semi- structured interview schedule was used to collect data from the participants by interview method. RESULTS: 80.5% of HCWs reported having had one or more NSI in their career, maximum among the nursing staff (94.2%). The average number of NSIs was found to be 1.85 per HCW per year (±2.29 SD). 17.8% of HCWs had a NSI involving a high-risk patient. (61%) of the NSI were from a hollow-bore type of needle. Most of NSIs were while recapping a needle after use (27%) or bending the needle for breaking it before disposal (20%). Majority of the NSI were not reported to the hospital administration. 72% of the respondents had heard about PEP and less than 10 % of them knew about the availability of PEP services in the hospital. CONCLUSION: Training of HCWs regarding safety practices needed to avoid NSI should be an indispensable ongoing activity at the hospital . Besides health promotion, there should be setting up of an adequate surveillance mechanism in every large hospital and also of facilities for prompt response and treatment of NSI
Profile of Blood Donors In Coastal South India
No full textBackgroundA blood transfusion is a life-saving procedure in many instances. An adequate supply of safe blood is ensured by exercising donor deferral criteria and screening for Transfusion Transmitted Infections (TTI). The aim of this paper is to study the profile of blood donors and reasons for donor deferral in coastal South India.Method The study was conducted at a tertiary care hospital in Mangalore. All those who donated between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2008 were included in the study. Data was collected using a pre-tested semi-structured proforma and analysed using SPSS version 11.5.ResultsMost of the donors were under the age of 25 (42.92%). Donors were predominantly male (95.20%). In terms of occupation, most subjects were students (28.01%) followed by businessmen (18.61%). Slightly more than three-quarters of the donors (77.20%) were replacement donors. The main reasons for deferral were consumption of medication in the past 72 hours (15.15%), hypertension (13.18%), a low haemoglobin level (12.34%) and alcohol intake in the past 72 hours (12.20%). Among the TTIs identified, most samples were positive for Hepatitis B surface Antigen – HBsAg (0.87%) or tested positive for Anti-Hepatitis C (HCV antibodies (0.36%).ConclusionFrom the study it was concluded that the majority of the donor population was young and educated. The reason for donation was mainly replacement rather than voluntary. This issue needs to be addressed by exercising proactive measures to increase the number of voluntary, non-remunerated, low-risk donors