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Introduction: Robotics is concerned with the connection of perception to action; in this to each other but serve very different purposes.AI is a branch of computer science which involves developing computer programs to complete tasks that would otherwise require human intelligence. To assess the knowledge and attitude of dentists the role of robotics (R) and artificial intelligence (AI) in oral health and preventive dentistry. Materials And Methods: A cross-sectional study in which data was collected from dentist population. A total of 600 participants answered 15 closed-ended questions. The questionnaire's validity and reliability were evaluated for vetting and remarks. The questionnaire collected demographic data of participants and their knowledge and attitude about Robotics and Artificial intelligence. Descriptive statistical analysis was performed using chi-squared testwith statistical significance set at p < 0.05. Results: The majority of the participants (n = 600; 57.5%/42.5%) were males and females. Dental students, dentist school graduates/ interns, and postgraduate dentists comprised of 56.6%, 23.3%%, and 20% respectively. Most of the respondents gave affirmative answers for knowledge and attitude of R and AI (56.6%,and 75%).These were significantly above the overall affirmative answers, as the corresponding point lies above 95% UCL (upper confidence limit). Conclusion: Most dentists were unacquainted with R and AI. Dentists had a positive attitude towards R/AI, but due to inadequate knowledge and understanding, its use and applications were very limited. There is significant need in the near future to increase awareness of this concept, as it may increase treatment efficiency and effectiveness

Introduction: The Vision 2015 of Medical Council of India states that the Indian medical graduate (IMG) should have the necessary competencies (Knowledge, Skills and Attitude) to assume his or her role as a health care provider to the people of India and the World. Early Clinical Exposure (ECE) is one of the measures taken by MCI to enact its vision. Objectives: This study was aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of ECE in learning clinical examination skills among preclinical students and to explore the perspectives of ECE among the students and faculty. Materials and Methods: Present study was conducted in the department of Physiology, Govt. Thiruvarur Medical College, Thiruvarur on 99 medical students. After obtaining informed, written consent pretest questionnaire was given to the study participants. After obtaining informed, written consent pre-test questionnaire was given to the study participants. After that students were allocated into Group 1 (n=49) and Group 2 (n=50) by simple random technique by lottery method. Group 1 students were trained on clinical examination of anemia in medicine ward (Early Clinical Exposure) and Group 2 students were trained on clinical examination of anemia in clinical physiology laboratory (Control). At the end of the session both groups were assessed by Post-test questionnaire and Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). Crossing over of the batches was done in the next session for training of clinical examination of jaundice. Feedback was obtained from the students (n=99) and faculty members involved in this (n=7). Results: There was a statistically significant difference present between the post test scores of Group 1 and Group 2 in anemia and jaundice (p Conclusion: Results of the present study justify the need of Early Clinical Exposure to teach clinical examination skills to first year medical students when compared to the traditional teaching method. Keywords: Early clinical exposure, First year medical stu

Background: Turnaround time (TAT) is one of the key indicators of performance of a laboratory. Laboratories define it as the time from the receipt of sample/ specimen to the reporting. A fast TAT helps clinicians in making early diagnosis. Aim: To determine the turnaround time (TAT) of the biochemistry laboratory with evaluation of the contribution of pre-analytical and analytical phase to the total TAT. Results: A total of 399 samples were analysed from three outpatient departments. Average pre-analytical turnaround time contribution was found to be higher as compared to the analytical time. Excess workload and delay in pneumatic shoot were the main causes of delay in pre-analytical phase. Conclusion: Improved turnaround time is the key to clinicians’ and patients’ better satisfaction with the laboratory. It can be attained by minimising the bottlenecks within the process.

Ecosystems comprise biological communities and their ambient physico-chemical parameters within a specific habitat. Tropical coastal ecosystems are diverse, with each characterized by unique features, biotic community, and ecological processes. The coexistence of these ecosystems within a given locale promotes heterogeneity, and interactions between their respective communities enhance species diversity. These ecosystems, in terms of their products and services, are comparable to tropical forests. The near-shore coastal waters of Goa, along the central west coast of India, include coral reefs, estuaries, mangrove wetlands, sandy shores and rocky substrates within a radius of about 11 km. The uniqueness of this environment is well sustained coupling among these ecosystems that support better interactions among biotic communities. These processes are of great importance in the functioning of one of the biologically richest entities in the Indian Ocean region. In this region of the west coast of India, coral reefs occur in thick patches (31% coral cover) surrounding Grande Island, Goa. Moreover, the occurrences of reef fishes in trawl catches suggest the existence of patchy reefs in the region. The occurrence and distribution of reef patches in this region enhance the species composition and their representation in these areas to support highly diverse biological communities. Further, the occurrence of reef patches also supports associated fauna. The present coastal region is dissected by 237 km of estuaries, whose lower stretches are fringed by mangrove vegetation covering a total area of approximately 20 km2. The mangrove vegetation, represented by 13 species, is dense in the Mandovi–Zuari estuarine complex. These ecosystems harbour numerous species of vertebrates, including migratory birds, and serve as nursery grounds for commercially important fishes and invertebrates. Sandy beaches and mud flats extend along most of the 105 km shoreline. Mud flats rich in organic matter support a detritus-based food chain, and in shallow water there is coupling between pelagic and demersal food chains. This coupling among food chains plays an important role in enhancing the productivity of the system as long as it occurs within the mixed layer depths. Several burrowing invertebrates inhabit the sandy substratum. Moreover, this region is also a popular tourist destination and serves as a major source of livelihood of the coastal population. Rocky substrates are sporadically spread along lower reaches and mouths of the major Goan estuaries and off the cape regions. These are important habitats for several demersal and reef-associated fishes and invertebrates. Rocky shores in tropical regions exhibit a distinct zonation pattern mainly mediated by physical and biological factors. Tidal inundation also plays an important role in the distribution and abundance of rocky shore communities. The disposal of untreated sewage, mining wastes, and industrial effluents represent potential threats to the resident biota, with lasting effects on their biological processes that have implications for the commercially exploitable fish and invertebrate stocks in the region. On the other hand, altered monsoon systems could affect coastal productivity. The persistence of such a scenario is perilous to both the existence of coastal ecosystems as well as the socio-economic structure of the indigenous coastal populations. These ecosystems require adequate management strategies for their conservation because they are subjected to intensive exploitation for timber and nutrition (fisheries and aquaculture). Rapid changes in land-use patterns to meet the ever-increasing demands of the burgeoning coastal and tourist populations are exerting immense pressures on these fragile ecosystems. Furthermore, the ecosystems are largely being used as dumping sites for different sources of waste material from continuously changing land-use patterns. In view of the foregoing discussion, it is imperative that the coastal ecosystems be managed in a sustainable manner. It is proposed that the management strategy should basically involve a three-tier approach. The primary stage should involve the creation of a baseline inventory. The second stage should involve dissemination of scientific knowledge on ecosystem products and services and information regarding the legal aspects of coastal regulations through training and awareness programmes. The final stage should focus on the enforcement of coastal zone regulations including the closure of certain sensitive ecosystems to minimize human interference.

Students entering medical college generally show vast diversity in their school education. It becomes the responsibility of teachers to motivate students and meet the needs of all diversities. One such measure is teaching students in their own preferred learning style. The present study was aimed to incorporate a learning style-based teaching-learning program for medical students and to reveal its significance and utility. Learning styles of students were assessed online using the visual-auditory-kinesthetic (VAK) learning style self-assessment questionnaire. When respiratory physiology was taught, students were divided into three groups, namely, visual ( n = 34), auditory ( n = 44), and kinesthetic ( n = 28), based on their learning style. A fourth group (the traditional group; n = 40) was formed by choosing students randomly from the above three groups. Visual, auditory, and kinesthetic groups were taught following the appropriate teaching-learning strategies. The traditional group was taught via the routine didactic lecture method. The effectiveness of this intervention was evaluated by a pretest and two posttests, posttest 1 immediately after the intervention and posttest 2 after a month. In posttest 1, one-way ANOVA showed a significant statistical difference ( P=0.005). Post hoc analysis showed significance between the kinesthetic group and traditional group ( P=0.002). One-way ANOVA showed a significant difference in posttest 2 scores ( P < 0.0001). Post hoc analysis showed significance between the three learning style-based groups compared with the traditional group [visual vs. traditional groups (p=0.002), auditory vs. traditional groups (p=0.03), and Kinesthetic vs. traditional groups (p=0.001)]. This study emphasizes that teaching methods tailored to students' style of learning definitely improve their understanding, performance, and retrieval of the subject.

Almost all organs systems in the body are under the influence of autonomic nervous system (ANS) for maintaining homeostatic regulatory functions. Many of the present lifestyle related disorders like hypertension and obesity have their primary pathology in the homeostatic derangements. Childhood overweight and high blood pressure increase the risk of subsequent obesity and hypertension in adulthood. To the best of our knowledge there is no sufficient qualitative and quantitative data in childhood which restricts the use of this tool in scientific medical practice and in understanding the occurrence of these systemic diseases in near future. The plan of our study is to assess the classical cardiovascular autonomic functions tests in school children and to generate normative data to validate the subtle variations present in childhood for an earlier intervention.

The present hypothesis on reproductive migration pattern between two species of sciaenids is based on the data collected with the help of the single-day commercial trawl with a fishing effort of 181 h along the fishing grounds of Goa, west coast of India. The observations on abundance revealed that between the two species ( Johnius borneensis and Otolithes ruber ) that formed bulk of the catch, a significant inverse trend in catch was observed. The pattern of migration based on the examination of female gonadal status suggested J. borneensis to be a continuous spawner and was evidenced by continuous occurrence of gravid and spent females and their juveniles. On the other hand, the rare occurrences of gravid females of O. ruber from the study area suggest that the species spawns away from the coast or might migrate to some potential spawning grounds. Further, an assessment of fecundity and the ova distribution pattern propounded higher fecundity in O. ruber compared to J. borneensis with multiple spawning in both the species.

Background: Regular practice of slow breathing technique shows improvement in the cardiorespiratory functions. The previous studies have reported that it is well known to decrease the effect of stress which, in turn, improves the physical and mental health of an individual. Aims and Objectives: This study aims to assess the effect of 12 weeks of slow breathing exercise practice on anthropometric parameters in healthy volunteers. Materials and Methods: A total of 59 young, healthy volunteers of both genders participated in this study. The subjects were allocated to the study group (n = 29) and control group (n = 30) based on simple random technique. Slow breathing exercise training was given to the study group for 20 minutes daily in two sessions for 12 weeks. Height, weight, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, hip circumference, and waist/hip ratio were recorded at the start of the study and after 12 weeks in both the groups. Longitudinal changes in both the groups were compared by Student’s paired t-test. Comparison between the study group and control group was done by Student’s unpaired t-test. The statistical analysis was carried out at 5% level of significance and P < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results: The average age of the study group and control group participants was 19.9 ± 1.8 years and 19.2 ± 1.9 years, respectively. BMI was significantly decreased in the study group from 21.75 ± 4.14 to 19.51 ± 3.95 (P 0.05) which was not statistically significant. Conclusion: Results of our study indicate that 12 weeks of slow breathing exercise training improve the anthropometric parameters in the study group. This indicates that regular, long-term slow breathing exercise training helps in weight reduction among the obese population.