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Three new earthworm species of the genus Drawida Michaelsen, 1900, namely D. jatinderi Narayanan, sp. nov., D. paliwali Narayanan, sp. nov. and D. proboscidea Narayanan, sp. nov., are described from materials collected from the Kerala state of south-western India. D. jatinderi Narayanan, sp. nov., belongs to D. travancorensis Michaelsen, 1910 species group, characterized by spermathecal pores at C setal line, male pores at mid bc setal lines, glandular prostate, spermathecal atrium present, dorsal pores, and genital markings absent. Whereas D. paliwali Narayanan, sp. nov., and D. proboscidea Narayanan, sp. nov. belong to the D. robusta robusta (Bourne, 1886) group, characterized by glandular prostates and bilobed spermathecal atria. D. jatinderi Narayanan, sp. nov., and D. proboscidea Narayanan, sp. nov. were collected from the midlands of Ernakulam district, and D. paliwali Narayanan, sp. nov., was collected from the higher altitude evergreen forest of the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve of Palakkad district. Here we provide a detailed description of the external and internal characteristics of the new species, along with illustrations of the key characters. With the new findings, a total of 52 Drawida species are known from the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot.

Purpose: The sleep disturbance scale for children (SDSC) is a well-regarded tool for assessing pediatric sleep disorders, covering areas such as sleep initiation, breathing issues, and arousal disorders. The SDSC, known for its reliability and validity, has been adapted for various age groups and languages and aligns with the Association of Sleep Disorders Centers classification system. This study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the SDSC into Malayalam language for use in Kerala, conducting a test with parents from the Trivandrum district., Materials and Methods: The SDSC was translated from English to Malayalam language through a systematic process involving bilingual experts, synthesis, back-translation, and expert review. Cognitive interviews refined the translation, which was then tested for reliability with 103 parents. Internal consistency was assessed using Cronbach's alpha, while test-retest reliability was evaluated with Cohen's kappa, utilizing the SPSS version 20 for data analysis., Results: The translated SDSC showed strong internal consistency, with an overall Cronbach's alpha of 0.827 and domain-specific values between 0.7 and 0.8. Test-retest reliability was high, with correctness above 90% for all items and a Kappa statistics ranging from 0.66 to 0.88., Conclusion: The SDSC was successfully translated and culturally adapted into Malayalam language, demonstrating strong internal consistency and high test-retest reliability. This indicates that the Malayalam language version of the SDSC is a reliable tool for assessing pediatric sleep disorders among children in Kerala, making it applicable for use in this specific cultural context., (Copyright © 2025 Journal of Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry.)

Introduction: Central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR) is a disease with a multifactorial aetiology., Objectives: To evaluate the role of psychological stress and choroidal thickness in patients with CSCR., Materials and Methods: This was a hospital-based, analytical cross-sectional study, conducted at Christian Medical College, Vellore, India, from 2018 February to 2019 September, after the approval of the Institutional Review Board and Ethics Committee. Patients who satisfied the eligibility criteria of the study, were selected from the outpatient clinics of the Department of Ophthalmology. Twenty-five patients with unilateral CSCR (Group 1 - cases), and 50 age and gender-matched patients without CSCR (Group 2 - controls), randomly selected in a 1:2 ratio, were enrolled after obtaining informed consent. Psychological stress was assessed using Cohen Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). All patients had a Swept Source optical coherence tomography scan of the macula. Subfoveal choroidal thickness (SFCT) of both eyes of all participants was measured using a standard protocol. The data were collated and analysed, using Independent samples t-test and Chi-square/ Fisher's exact test, as appropriate, with IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, version 21 (IBM Corp., Armonk, N.Y., USA)., Results: There was a significant difference between the two groups in mean stress scores (p <0.01), as well as stress categories (p <0.01). Although there was no significant difference in the prevalence of hypertension between the two groups (p = 0.33), there was a significant difference both in the mean systolic (p <0.01) and diastolic (p <0.01) blood pressure between the two groups. We found a significant difference between mean SFCT of CSCR eyes (421+/- 78.34 μm) and control eyes (314.24 +/- 52.48 μm, p <0.01), as well as between fellow eyes (396.20 +/- 68.79 μm) and control eyes (314.24 +/- 52.48 μm, p <0.01). However, there was no significant difference in the mean SFCT of CSCR eyes and fellow eyes (p =0.24)., Conclusion: The findings reiterate the concept that the underlying pathophysiological changes leading to CSCR involve both the eyes of the patient. Psychological stress and hypertension may be factors that play an important role in the etiopathogenesis of the pachychoroid-related changes leading to CSCR. Stress relief measures, with a holistic approach to management, should be an integral part of the therapeutic strategies for CSCR., (© NEPjOPH.)

Background: COVISHIELD, ChAdOx1 nCoV- 19 Corona Virus Vaccine was granted emergency use authorization (EUA) as the first vaccine in India in January 2021. Knowing what to anticipate after vaccination will reduce vaccine hesitancy in the public. This study aimed to identify and measure the adverse events following COVID-19 vaccination., Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted at Goa Medical College, starting on February 21 till May 23, 2021. A total of 418 people were enrolled. We collected the data using the Microsoft Form and analyzed using Microsoft Excel and R-program., Results: Of the 418 vaccine recipients, the incidence rate of AEFI (Adverse Events Following Immunization) was 54.31%. Fever, fatigue, and headache were the most commonly reported systemic AEFIs. Among these, 54.7% of AEFI were mild, 42.38% were of the moderate category, and only 2.96% were of grade 3 severity. None of the AEFIs were severe enough for hospitalization. Most of them developed symptoms within 24 hours of the first dose. Complete recovery from AEFIs took a median time of 24 hours., Conclusion: Most of our study findings were consistent with the phase 1, 2/3 trials findings of Oxford-AstraZeneca's ChAdOx1 vaccine. The AEFI symptoms were considered immune reactions to the vaccine. The AEFIs were more common among younger individuals and females. The chance of missing a serious adverse event like a thromboembolic phenomenon cannot be ruled out. We observed low AEFI rates with COVISHIELD in the Indian population compared to Oxford- AstraZeneca's ChAdOx1 vaccine in the UK-based population, which can be explained by preexisting immunity against adenovirus in the Indian population. However, based on the study findings, we may interpret that the COVISHIELD, Serum Institute of India, carries a good safety profile overall., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Background: Identifying patient perspectives about recovery may help the service providers to enhance active participation of patients in their recovery., Aim: This study aimed to explore patients' perspectives about factors affecting recovery from schizophrenia., Methods: A semi-structured interview schedule was used to explore the perceptions of 18 patients diagnosed with schizophrenia. The interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed. Codes were identified and similar codes were grouped together and main themes were identified., Results: Nine main themes on facilitators and barriers of recovery from schizophrenia were derived., Conclusion: Deeper understanding of patients' perspectives of recovery from schizophrenia can help mental health professionals to plan appropriate recovery-oriented services.

Background: We sought to examine the endophenotype pattern of neuro-hemodynamic substrates of emotion counting Stroop (ecStroop) paradigm in patients with OCD, their unaffected siblings [first degree relatives-FDR] and healthy controls (HC)., Methods: OCD patients (medication naïve)[N = 16], their unaffected siblings(FDR)[N = 16] and HC [N = 24] were compared using an established ecStroop paradigm in a 3-Tesla fMRI. The relative BOLD signals corresponding to the three types of conditions (neural words-N, words with negative emotional salience-E and words with salience for OCD-O) were examined in the apriori hypothesized brain regions., Results: Both in O minus N contrast and O minus E contrast, the groups demonstrated significant differential activation of right insula (BA 13). The post-hoc analyses showed in patients and FDRs relative to HC the following: significant hyperactivation of insula in O minus E contrast; significant hyperactivation of right insula and right DLPFC (BA 9) in O minus N contrast., Conclusions: The neuro-hemodynamic responses corresponding to the obsessive words in insula and DLPFC could be potential endophenotypes. "Threat relatedness" might thus have a vulnerability meaning in the pathogenesis and neurobiological basis of OCD., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Despite experimental evidences of the influence of the aging suppressor gene Klotho, on the modulation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activity and nitric oxide (NO) production, the contribution of its variants to the phenotypic variance of plasma nitrite and nitrate (NO(x)) has not been addressed to date. In the present study, we aimed to determine the influence of two exonic variants, KL-VS and C1818T of Klotho, on circulating NO(x) levels in South Indian population., Materials and Methods: We genotyped the two Klotho KL-VS and C1818T variants in 429 healthy South Indians and measured their plasma NO(x) concentrations by the Griess method., Results: Genotype frequencies were compared in subjects with low and high NO(x) levels. An age-specific association of the Klotho C1818T variant was found with plasma NO(x) levels in subjects aged >40 years (p=0.027); the CC homozygotes were more prevalent in the low compared to the high plasma NO(x) group. However, the variant was not associated with plasma NO(x) levels in subjects aged≤40 years (p=0.799). The KL-VS variant did not have any influence on plasma NO(x) status (p=0.260)., Conclusions: Our results suggest that the effect of Klotho C1818T variant on levels of plasma NO(x) becomes pronounced with age probably implying the adaptive capability of Klotho alleles to meet the age-related increasing physiological load., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)