Indian Journal of Community Health
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Performance evaluation of Iodine Deficiency Disorder control Program in Mandya District
Get PDFBackground: Considering the burden of Iodine Deficiency Disorders in our country, Government of India has an exclusive national health program to prevent it from becoming a major public health concern. To attain its objectives, National Iodine Deficiency Disorder Control Program (NIDDCP) undertakes routine evaluation of the Program all over the country. Aim & Objective: To determine the prevalence of Goitre, to estimate Iodine content in salt samples and Iodine excretion in urine samples of schoolchildren aged between 6 to 12 years in Mandya district. Settings and Design: A cross sectional institutions based survey was conducted among schoolchildren from the villages in selected clusters of Mandya district. Materials and Methods: Probability Proportional to Size sampling method was used to select 30 clusters. 90 children aged between 6 to 12 years from each cluster were screened. Salt Iodine content was ascertained by Iodometric titration method and urinary Iodine excretion was estimated by Sandell-Kolthoff method. Statistical analysis used: Frequency, proportions and mean were calculated and inferential statistics were used. Results: Prevalence of Goitre was 4.4%, with higher prevalence among girls. 49.8% salt specimens lack adequate iodine (<15ppm) at household level. Median UIE was 164 Micrograms /litre. Conclusions: As per the impact indicators, IDD is not a public health concern in Mandya district as of now
Sero-prevalence of SARS CoV-2 specific antibody among general population of Tripura, India: A baseline observation
Get PDFBackground: Spectrum of COVID-19 disease ranges from asymptomatic or mild symptomatic to life threatening cases. Population based sero-epidemiological studies are useful for assessing the magnitude of COVID-19 infection in a geographic area and it is helpful for planning control measures. Objectives: To estimate the sero-prevalence of SARS CoV-2 antibody in the general population of Tripura and to study the factors associated with it. Methodology: This community based cross-sectional study was conducted from 15th October to 14th November 2020 among 4800 subjects selected from the whole state of Tripura, India by probability proportionate to size sampling technique using 30 clusters. Electrochemiluminescence (eCLIA) based assay was used to test the serum samples for SARS-CoV-2 specific antibody. Data entry and analysis was performed using SPSS-25 for windows and sero-prevalence was expressed in percentages. Binary logistic regression model was used for predicting sero-positivity by including the significant factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection as found out by univariate analysis. Result: Sero-prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibody was found to be 34% among the general population of Tripura and it varied from 42.4% to 19.7% across different districts. Logistic regression model has identified, urban residency (OR: 1.21, 95% CI: 1.03-1.42), ethnic community (OR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.48-0.64) and literacy (OR: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.13-1.77) as the independent risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 sero-positivity (p<0.05). Conclusion: Approximately one out of three residents of Tripura has already acquired the novel SARS CoV-2 infection. As the threshold required for achieving herd immunity against COVID-19 is not yet known, control measures need to be continued for preventing further spread of disease in the community
A Scoping review of challenges, scope and assessment approaches of teledentistry: an Indian perspective
Get PDFContext: In India, COVID-19 pandemic has limited the utilization and access to dental services owing to the risk of infections transmission. In this context, tele-dentistry could be useful but there is paucity of literature which provides guidance on the scope and challenges for using tele-dentistry in India. Aims: To identify challenges, scope and assessment approaches of tele-dentistry from an Indian perspective. Settings and Design: Scoping Review. Methods and Material: Scoping review was conducted using the Arksey and O’Malley framework. Databases were searched in July from April to August 2020. Studies concerning challenges and scope of tele-dentistry in India were included. Additionally, literature about assessment approaches used for tele-dentistry programs were also reviewed Results: A total of 64 studies were reviewed, out of which 26 articles were included in the final review. Scoping review reveled that tele-dentistry can act as a seamless tool for diagnosing, training and screening. Few studies suggested the relevance of smartphone technology for specialist consultations and proper diagnosis. Majority of studies revealed shortage of basic infrastructure as a major challenge for tele-dentistry in India. Assessment studies were mainly focused on economic perspective and cost-effectiveness of the programs. Conclusions: This review provide guidance for using tele-dentistry in India. It is also reflected that there is a need for further research about the assessment of tele-dentistry in terms of safety, clinical outcomes, and patient perception
Re-evaluating the need for universal iron supplementation in pregnant Indian women in the light of gestational age specific low hemoglobin prevalence
Get PDFBackground: Anemia prevalence among Indian pregnant women in 2015-16 was 50.4% and has not declined from 49.7% in 1998-99 despite the national policies on iron-folic acid supplementation. New gestational age-specific cut-offs (INTERGROWTH cut-off) for risk of low Hemoglobin (Hb) have been identified. Aims and objectives: Compare prevalences of low Hb based on WHO and INTERGROWTH cut-offs Methods: The prevalence of anemia/low Hb among pregnant women in trimesters 2 and 3 from NFHS-4 data were estimated using the current WHO recommendations and the INTERGROWTH cut-offs. Results: Prevalence of low Hb by the INTERGROWTH cut-off was 28.1%(95% CI:26.9-29.4) and 21.7%(95% CI:20.6-22.9) in trimesters 2 and 3. Anemia prevalence by WHO cut-off was much higher at 41.2%(95% CI:39.8-42.5) and 54.8%(95 CI:53.2-56.3) in trimesters 2 and 3. The prevalence of low-Hb was similar between ANC and no-ANC reported groups in both trimesters (26.1% and 28.9% in trimester-2; 20.1% and 22.4% in trimester-3). Conclusion: The prevalence of low-Hb with gestational age specific cut-offs is much lower compared to earlier estimates using WHO cut-off. The universal iron supplementation program for pregnant women in India need to be re-examined in this light and a tragetter Hb testing based supplementation may be more beneficial in reducing anemia prevalence
Project Pre-mortem using Prospective Hindsight: An Unexplored Tool to address Healthcare Projects Implementation barriers.
Get PDFMany Healthcare initiatives & Projects are planned in Healthcare sector and usually after the initial sensitization sessions and Brainstorming among stakeholders the Projects are implemented. Monitoring and Review/Evaluation is done at the end of Project duration or during some specifically decided time interval as per standard practices.
Strength, weakness, opportunities & threat (SWOT) analysis or critical evaluation/analysis is done. If the Project Objectives are not achieved as expected the insights gained by these methods are used as lessons learnt which are to be kept in Mind while planning for next cycle of the project or while planning some new Project if relevant to it. This end of project evaluation is in fact post-mortem of the project
Premature Hair Greying - Magnitude and Associated Factors: A cross-sectional study in a university in Mysuru
Get PDFBackground: Premature hair greying (PHG) refers to the diffuse loss of hair color at an age earlier than that is generally accepted as physiological. Studies have found that it affects self-esteem and social life. Our efforts were to estimate the prevalence among students <25years and understand the associated factors. Design and Methods: A cross-sectional study using a simple random sampling technique was used to survey 358 students at a university in Mysuru. The data were analyzed using SPSS v22. The association and relationship of PHG with attributed risk factors and various socio-clinical factors have been analyzed using Chi-Square Test, Independent sample t-test, and Mann Whitney U-test. A p-value of less than 0.05 has been considered statistically significant. Results: In this study, the prevalence of PHG was 28.2%. We observed that PHG was associated with male gender, obesity, and positive paternal, maternal, and family history of PHG. The relation of PHG with lower dietary iron intake, tobacco smoking amount, and frequency was also found in this study. However, no association between PHG and psychological stress, alcohol consumption, dietary Vitamin B12, and D intake, shampoo, and oil usage frequency was found. Conclusion: We recommend that further studies should be done to check if weight reduction, smoking cessation, and maintenance of dietary iron adequacy can help in preventing PHG
Revisiting Global Health Security Measures in COVID 19 Pandemic
Get PDFAs the world has become a global village with increasing socio-economic interdependence, health, security and stability issues are imposing interrelated global impacts. Thus, activities supporting epidemic and pandemic preparedness are needed to minimize vulnerability to acute public health events. Coordination mechanisms must be pre-established for diagnostics, therapeutics and research as emergencies often lead to competition and shortage of resources. This paper attempts to discuss the available global health security measures at the time of COVID 19 pandemic
The COWIN portal – current update, personal experience and future possibilities
Get PDFIndia began one of the biggest COVID-19 vaccination drives on 16 January 2021, marking the beginning of the mammoth effort to vaccinate more than 1.3 billion people. The vaccination programme to protect people has started globally to combat the pandemic, which has killed more than 3.1 million people globally and infected 149 million people as of 29 April (1).
India started its vaccine drive with two vaccines- Covishield by the Serum Institute of India and Covaxin by Bharat Biotech. Around 12,000 private hospitals, empanelled under PM-JAY (National Health Insurance), and hospitals under the CGHS (Central Government Health Scheme) are the vaccination sites. The monitoring of inoculation drive and to track the listed beneficiaries on a real-time basis, Co-WIN application has been developed for planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the whole drive in India. This software was developed by Union Health Ministry, and their experience with electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN) software has ensured the versatility and utility of this dedicated Co-WIN software(2
Deteriorating human microbiome – An emerging global health challenge
Get PDFThe study of human microbiome and its relationship with health and disease is one of the most exciting areas of research in health all over the world, especially after the failure of human genome project to deliver its expected results.
Our body is composed of 30 trillion human cells. But it is host to close to 100 trillion bacterial and fungal cells. 70 – 90% of all cells in our body are non human. They reside on every inch of our skin, in our nose, mouth, ears, in our oesophagus, stomach and most abundantly in our gut. They are not a random phenomenon but have co-evolved with us humans over millions of years. Collectively these bacteria weigh about 3 pounds. The more we read about research on microbiome or microbiota, the name given to all these friendly symbiotic partners, the more we get interested in their role in health and disease.
According to Martin J. Blaser, director of the Human Microbiome Program, who has also served as the president of Infectious Disease Society of America, in his best seller ‘Missing Microbes\u27 (1), “It is our microbiome that keeps us healthy and parts of it are disappearing. The reason for this disaster is all around us – overuse of antibiotics in humans and animals, caesarean sections and widespread use of sanitizers and antiseptics, to name just a few.
Comparative Study of Prevalence of Early Initiation of Breast Feeding, Its Enablers and Impeders
Get PDFBackground: In India the proportion of early initiation of breastfeeding is hovering around 50% and the proportion of cesarean deliveries is increasing substantially. Objectives: To compare the prevalence of early initiation of breastfeeding (EIBF) among cesarean and vaginally delivered women in hospitals in Pune District, Maharashtra State, India and to measure any association between EIBF and various socio-demographic, maternal and fetal factors. Methods: This was a multi-site study conducted in 13 selected hospitals in Pune District in 2017-18. Pune District by population is the fourth largest in India. All women delivered by cesarean section in these hospitals and an equal number of age and parity matched vaginally delivered women were enrolled. They were interviewed before discharge by obstetricians or nurses under the supervision of obstetricians, using a structured, validated tool. The data were analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Sciences, version 25. Results: In each group, 1,556 women were enrolled. The prevalence of EIBF was 81.5% and 63.6% among vaginally and cesarean delivered women. There was a significant association between EIBF and the place of residence, mode of delivery, gestational period, parity, and presence of some disease. Residence in the rural area was the strongest enabling factor with an adjusted odds ratio of 29.6 (95% C.I.; 18.7-46.9) whereas cesarean section, preterm delivery and first para were impeding factors. Conclusions: Among institutional delivered women EIBF was about 70%. Health care workers need to strongly promote EIBF awareness, especially among women from urban areas, and undergoing cesarean section.