Indian J Med Res
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The vaginal microbiota undergoes subtle changes during pregnancy and may affect several aspects of pregnancy outcomes. There has been no comprehensive study characterizing the gestational vaginal and gut microbiota and the dynamics of the microbiota with oral probiotics among Indian women. Hence, the study was aimed to explore the microbiota of pregnant women with normal microbiota and bacterial vaginosis (BV) environments and the effect of oral probiotics on the microbiota and the BV status in these women. ⋯ This study showed gestational vaginal and gut microbiota differences in normal and BV environments. With probiotic treatment, the dynamics of L. helveticus and P. copri hint towards a possible role of probiotics in modulating the vaginal microbiota.
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Observational Study
Lactate enhanced-quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment 2 (LqSOFA2): A new score for bedside prognostication of patients with sepsis.
Early diagnosis and prompt treatment remain a challenge in sepsis. To study the role of quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (qSOFA), blood lactate levels and a new score Lactate - Enhanced-qSOFA 2 (LqSOFA2) in predicting outcome in patients with sepsis and their association with established severity scores. ⋯ qSOFA, a novel score and lactate can independently predict mortality in patients with sepsis. They correlate with APACHE II and SOFA but fail to equilibrate with either. The combination score LqSOFA2 showed marginal (statistically insignificant) increase in predictive accuracy and specificity when compared to lactate or qSOFA alone. Early diagnosis by LqSOFA2 makes it a good standalone bedside prognostic marker.
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Decorin is a proteoglycan that plays a role in the binding of collagen and has an important role in the pathogenesis of osteoarthritis (OA). This study was aimed to determine serum and synovial fluid decorin levels in patients with knee OA and to investigate whether these levels were associated with OA and the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis (WOMAC) score. ⋯ An increased serum decorin levels may be indicative of changes in extracellular matrix structure. The positive correlation between serum decorin level and WOMAC score supports this result. Increased serum decorin levels and WOMAC score were found to be risk factors associated with OA. However, the decorin level in the joint fluid was not associated with OA.
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B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL) is one of the most common forms of adult leukaemia, with a highly variable clinical course. Specific chromosomal and genetic aberrations are used clinically to predict prognosis, independent from conventional clinical markers. Molecular cytogenetic methods such as fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) detect aberrations in up to 80 per cent B-CLL patients. This study was conducted to score the frequencies of recurrent aberrations, i.e., del(13q14), trisomy 12, del(11q22), del(17p13), del(6q21) and IgH (immunoglobulin heavy chain) translocations and to understand their role in prognostication and risk stratification. ⋯ FISH was found to be a sensitive and efficient technique in detecting the prevalence of recurrent cytogenetic abnormalities. Each of these aberrations is an important independent predictor of disease progression and survival which aids in designing risk-adapted treatment strategies for better disease management.
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Cause of death assignment from verbal autopsy (VA) questionnaires is conventionally accomplished through physician review. However, since recently, computer softwares have been developed to assign the cause of death. The present study evaluated the performance of computer software in assigning the cause of death from the VA, as compared to physician review. ⋯ In comparison to physicians, assignment of causes of death by InterVA- 4 was only 'fair'. Hence, it may be appropriate to continue with physician review as the optimal option available in the current scenario.