Indian J Med Res
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Salt plays a critical role in India's past as well as its present, from Dandi March to its role as a vehicle for micronutrient fortification. However, excess salt intake is a risk factor for high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Indians consume double the World Health Organization recommended daily salt (<5 g). ⋯ Further research is required on the effect of LSS substitutes on patients with chronic kidney disease. India needs an integrated approach to sodium reduction that uses evidence based strategies and can be implemented sustainably at scale. This will be possible only through scientific research, governmental leadership and a responsive evidence-to-action approach through a multi-stakeholder coalition.
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Vitamin D plays an important role in bone metabolism, and liver is the intermediary site of vitamin D metabolism. The purpose of this study was to study the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency and bone health in patients with cirrhosis. ⋯ VDD and low-BMD is prevalent in Indian patients with cirrhosis and should be looked for in patients with cirrhosis for its prevention.
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The SARS-CoV-2, a highly infectious positive strand RNA virus first identified in December 2019, has produced multiple genetic variants that have rapidly and sequentially spread worldwide during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Genetic changes in SARS-CoV-2 for greater infectivity, replication and transmission were selected during the early stages of the pandemic. More recently, after widespread infection and vaccination, SARS-CoV-2 variants that evade antigen-specific adaptive immunity, have begun to be selected. This article provides an overview of the molecular immunological and virological factors underlying the origin and global spread of important SARS-CoV-2 variant lineages.
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Verbal autopsy (VA) is the systematic and retrospective inquiry (from relatives) about the symptoms of an illness prior to death. In tribal India, 67-75 per cent of deaths occur at home with an unknown cause of death (CoD). Hence, the aim of this study was to determine the CoD in the 16-60 yr age group utilizing VA. ⋯ The findings of this study suggest that, in Indian tribal areas, infectious diseases are the leading causes of morbidity and one of the major causes of deaths in economically productive age group. Intensified VHW-mediated interventions are required to reduce the premature deaths.