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Introduction Traumatic cervical spine injuries (CSIs) have an incidence of 1.7 to 8% among traumatic brain injury (TBI) patients and should be a pivotal part of its neurological examination. Prognosis of cervical spine insult in TBI depends on several epidemiological and clinical factors which need to be considered during the management of these injuries. This study aims to analyze the outcomes of patients with CSI and its associated predictors. Materials and Methods A prospective observational study was conducted among 63 patients of traumatic CSI admitted at a tertiary care center of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India. All patients underwent a clinical assessment using the American Spinal Injury Association, Functional Independence Measure (FIM), and Barthel Index scoring and grading at admission, 1, and 4 months, respectively. All patients at the facility underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Midsagittal T1- and T2-weighted sequences were used to measure the degree of spinal cord injury (SCI) impairment. Patients were followed for outcome assessment. Results There was a significant difference in the median values of Barthel Index and mean values of FIM preoperatively and at 4 months' follow-up. There was a significant improvement in the neurological outcome of the patients after admission, at 1, and 4 months' follow-up. Out of the 30 patients who had improvement in the neurological outcome, majority (26) had edema present in less than equal to 2 segments and this was statistically significant. The overall FIM score was significantly higher among those with ≤ 2 segment edema as compared with those with > 2 segments. Conclusion The study concludes that incomplete injury, edema on MRI imaging less than equal to 2 segments, and no listhesis are predictors of neurological and functional improvement in patients with traumatic cervical spinal injuries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Intestinal infections with Helicobacter pylori mainly occur during childhood. If contracted, these infections may cause chronic gastritis, frequently leading to peptic ulcer disease in later life. This study aims to detect the prevalence of H. pylori infections in patients with active gastritis. Methods: The study included 150 participants who were consuming daily anti-gastritis drugs to reduce the gas and were considered active gastritis patients and were recruited from Pokhara metropolitan-30, from May 2018 to March 2019. They were screened for H. pylori antibodies for detection of infection by the immunochromatographic rapid detection kit, and the data were analyzed using SPSS 2016. Results: Serum anti-Helicobacter pylori antibodies were used to detect the presence of H. pylori in these participants. Among the 150 participants, 54 were males (36%) and 96 were females (64%). The results showed that 47(31.3%) of the patients were positive for anti-H. pylori test. The age group 30 to 40 had the highest prevalence of 21(14.0%). Using public water as a source of drinking water showed the highest prevalence of H. pylori with a P value of 0.04. Conclusion: There should be an additional aspect required for the diagnosis and treatment of gastritis, which is the healthcare providers' and patients' awareness of the cause and most efficient treatments for this medical condition. Using only anti-gastritis drugs is not sufficient; treatment against H. pylori requires the right pathway of treatment by the use of several antibiotics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Biofilms are often found in communities of microorganisms in chronic and persistent infections, exhibiting high resistance against antimicrobial agents. Biofilm serves as a barrier, impeding the penetration of drugs and constraining their effectiveness. Multiple methods, such as the Tissue Culture Plate method, Congo Red Agar method, Tube method, bioluminescent assay, and fluorescent microscopic examination, can be used to evaluate biofilm production. Methods: The study included a total of 300 clinical isolates representing a range of bacterial species, including Acinetobacter baumannii (n=9), Coagulase Negative Staphylococcus (n=7), Enterobacter aerogenes (n=7), Enterococcus faecalis (n=15), Escherichia coli (n=137), Klebsiella pneumoniae (n=23), Proteus mirabilis (n=4), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (n=16), Salmonella typhi (n=11), and Staphylococcus aureus (n=68). Associations among isolates capable and incapable of biofilm formation and their multidrug resistance phenotypes were evaluated. Results: Among the 300 clinical isolates tested, 289 isolates (96.3%) exhibited biofilm formation. The most prevalent biofilm-forming organisms were A. baumannii (n=9), Citrobacter koseri (n=1), Coagulase Negative Staphylococcus (CONS) (n=7), E. aerogenes (n=7), E. faecalis (n=15), E. coli (n=137), Klebsiella oxytoca (n=1), K. pneumoniae (n=23), P. mirabilis (n=4), P. aeruginosa (n=16), S. typhi (n=11), S. aureus (n=68), and Streptococcus pneumoniae (n=1). The biofilm-forming isolates demonstrated increased resistance compared to isolates that did not form biofilms. Conclusion: Antimicrobial resistance represents a critical characteristic of infections involving biofilms. The study identified biofilm production in 92.7% of the isolates tested via TCP and in 72.3% of the isolates using the CRA. Furthermore, it was observed that pathogens with multidrug resistance (MDR) exhibited a higher biofilm production tendency than non-producing pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: HIV is a chronic viral infection documented worldwide. It infects and destroys helper T cells (CD4), leading to a number of immunological deficiencies. The main objective of this study was to examine the rheumatoid factor (Rf) to recognize the rheumatoid arthritis prevalence rate in HIV-infected patients. Material and methods: This hospital-based cross-sectional study was carried out among 150 HIVpositive individuals visiting ART center of Western Regional Hospital. Patients were counseled, and samples were taken. Samples were processed by MISPA-i2 and analyzed using SPSS. Rf was measured for all participants. Results: Out of the 150 participants, 35 (23.3%) were Rf-positive for rheumatoid arthritis. In multivariable analysis, these levels were higher in 20-40 years age group, females, married, illiterate, and unknown about their HIV transmission. The prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis was observed in 23.3% of participants. Similarly, the association of sex and other variables significant values were found in education, mode of transmission, and age categories, as 0.004, 0.001, and 0.001, respectively. Conclusions: The results of our research suggest the need for regular screening for Rf among HIVpositive patients in order to reduce mortality and pain in these individuals due to rheumatoid arthritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]