Evaluation of Pertussis Disease in Young Infants in India: A Hospital-Based Multicentric Observational Study

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the incidence of laboratory-confirmed pertussis (LCP) among infants hospitalized with acute respiratory infections (ARIs) and meeting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-recommended clinical case definition.

METHODS

An investigator-initiated active surveillance for clinically suspected cases (CSCs) of pertussis screened infants aged ≤6 mo hospitalized with ARIs during January 2020-April 2022 at seven centers across India. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to detect Bordetella pertussis in nasopharyngeal swabs. Infants were classified as having 'LCP' or 'probable pertussis' (PP).

RESULTS

Among 1102 screened infants, 400 participants met the CDC-2020 clinical case definition for pertussis. Of these, 34/400 (8.5%) had LCP and 46/400 (11.5%) had PP. The proportion of participants with LCP and PP was similar among infants aged 0-3 and 4-6 mo [LCP: 0-3 mo, 21/248 (~9%); 4-6 mo, 13/152 (~9%); PP: 0-3 mo, 30/248 (~12%); 4-6 mo, 16/152 (~11%)]. Cough illness lasted ≥2 wk in 3/34 (~9%) and 34/46 (~74%) participants with LCP and PP, respectively. Notably, 80% CSCs had neither LCP nor PP, and a respiratory pathogen apart from B. pertussis was detected in ~32%. Ventilation was required in 12 participants with LCP/PP.

CONCLUSIONS

In this first study from India based on revised CDC guidelines, the incidence of LCP was 8.5%; cough illness was not a predominant feature. Infants below the age appropriate for vaccination are prone to pertussis-related hospital admissions, ICU care, and ventilation. Maternal immunization may be evaluated for neonatal protection, in addition to other strategies, to decrease disease burden in this highly vulnerable group.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

CTRI/2019/12/022449.

Phase III randomized clinical studies to evaluate the immunogenicity, lot-to-lot consistency, and safety of ROTAVAC® liquid formulations (ROTAVAC 5C & 5D) and non-inferiority comparisons with licensed ROTAVAC® (frozen formulation) in healthy infants

The WHO pre-qualified rotavirus vaccine, ROTAVAC®, is derived naturally from the neonatal 116E rotavirus strain, and stored at -20°C. As refrigerator storage is preferable, immunogenicity and safety of liquid formulations kept at 2-8°C, having excipients to stabilize the rotavirus, with or without buffers, were compared with ROTAVAC® in different clinical studies. Study-1, the pivotal trial for this entire product development work, was a randomized, single-blind trial with two operationally seamless phases: (i) an exploratory phase involving 675 infants in which two formulations, ROTAVAC 5C (LnHRV-1.5 mL and LnHRV-2.0 mL) containing buffer and excipients to stabilize the virus against gastric acidity and temperature, were compared with ROTAVAC®. As the immune response of ROTAVAC 5C (LnHRV-2.0 mL) was non-inferior to ROTAVAC®, it was selected for (ii) confirmatory phase, involving 1,302 infants randomized 1:1:1:1 to receive three lots of LnHRV-2.0 mL, or ROTAVAC®. Primary objectives were the evaluation of non-inferiority and lot-to-lot consistency. The secondary objectives were to assess the safety and interference with the concomitant pentavalent vaccine. As it was separately established that buffers are not required for ROTAVAC®, in Study-2, the safety and immunogenicity of ROTAVAC 5D® (with excipients) were compared with ROTAVAC® and lot-to-lot consistency was assessed in another study. All lots elicited consistent immune responses, did not interfere with UIP vaccines, and had reactogenicity similar to ROTAVAC®. ROTAVAC 5C and ROTAVAC 5D® were immunogenic and well tolerated as ROTAVAC®. ROTAVAC 5D® had comparable immunogenicity and safety profiles with ROTAVAC® and can be stored at 2-8°C, leading to WHO pre-qualification.Clinical Trials Registration: Clinical Trials Registry of India (CTRI): CTRI/2015/02/005577CTRI/2016/11/007481 and CTRI/2019/03/017934.

Antibody Persistence Following Administration of a Hexavalent DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T Vaccine Versus Separate DTwP-HB-PRP~T and IPV Vaccines and Safety and Immunogenicity of a Booster Dose of DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T Administered With an MMR Vaccine in Healthy Infants in India

BACKGROUND

Antibody persistence of a whole-cell pertussis-containing hexavalent vaccine (DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T) and its co- or sequential administration with measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine were evaluated.

METHODS

Phase III, open-label, randomized, multicenter study in India. Healthy toddlers 12-24 months of age who had received DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T or separate DTwP-HB-PRP~T+IPV primary vaccination at 6-8, 10-12 and 14-16 weeks of age received a DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T booster concomitantly with MMR (N = 336) or 28 days before MMR (N = 340). Participants had received a first dose of measles vaccine. Immunogenicity assessment used validated assays and safety was by parental reports. All analyses were descriptive.

RESULTS

All participants had prebooster anti-T ≥0.01 IU/mL and anti-polio 1 and 3 ≥8 1/dil, and ≥96.5% had anti-D ≥0.01 IU/mL, anti-HBs ≥10 mIU/mL, anti-polio 2 ≥8 1/dil and anti-PRP ≥0.15 µg/mL; for pertussis, antibody persistence was similar in each group. Postbooster immunogenicity for DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T was similar for each antigen in each group: ≥99.5% of participants had anti-D ≥0.01 IU/mL, anti-T ≥0.01 IU/mL, anti-polio 1, 2 and 3 >8 1/dil, anti-HBs ≥10 mIU/mL and anti-PRP ≥1 µg/mL; for pertussis, vaccine response was similar in each group [72.0%-75.9% (anti-PT), 80.8%-81.4% (anti-FIM), 77.6%-79.5% (anti-PRN), 78.2%-80.8% (anti-FHA)]. There was no difference in MMR immunogenicity between groups, and no difference in DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T booster immunogenicity based on the primary series. There were no safety concerns.

CONCLUSIONS

DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T antibody persistence was similar to licensed comparators. Booster immunogenicity was robust after DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T with or without MMR, and MMR immunogenicity was not affected by coadministration with DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP~T.

CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRY INDIA NUMBER

CTRI/2020/04/024843.

Unique Properties of Yeast Probiotic Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745: A Narrative Review

Probiotics, both bacterial and yeast, have long been associated with a beneficial health history and human well-being. Among yeasts, Saccharomyces is a genus that is efficacious in rendering better human health, with Saccharomyces boulardii (S. boulardii) CNCM I-745 being classified as a probiotic agent. The present review highlights the unique properties of S. boulardii and its rolein the prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhea (AAD) and pediatric acute gastroenteritis (PAGE) in comparison to bacterial probiotics. Its unique properties,such as viability over a wide pH range, inability to acquire antibiotic resistance genes, and property to achieve a steady state rapidly, have given S. boulardii an edge over bacterial probiotics. In AAD patients, prophylactic use of S. boulardii has shown a significantly lower risk of AAD (in comparison to controls) and restored the diversity of gut microbiota. Among Indian children with PAGE, S. boulardii CNCM I-745 was found superior to Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG and four strains of Bacillus clausii in shortening the duration of diarrhea and reducing the length of hospital stay. S. boulardii CNCM I-745 being considered a safe probiotic for use in children and adults also finds recommendations in several international guidelines for the management of acute diarrhea. The current review discusses evidence for the proven efficacy and safety of S. boulardii CNCM I-745 as a probiotic for preventing gastrointestinal disorders.

The Efficacy and Safety of a Combination of Thiocolchicoside and Etoricoxib in Low Back Pain (ESCoTEL): A Randomized Active-Controlled Trial

Background Low back pain (LBP) is a global health concern. Management of LBP aims at pain relief facilitating improvement of functional ability. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are the first line of therapy. However, the selection of NSAIDs is challenging given the range of underlying etiologies and severity. The current study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of two available fixed-dose combinations (FDCs), namely, a dual FDC (DFC) of etoricoxib (60 mg) and thiocolchicoside (4 mg) versus a triple FDC (TFC) of chlorzoxazone (500 mg), diclofenac (50 mg), and paracetamol (325 mg). Methodology A total of 200 eligible adult subjects aged 18-70 years with a history of LBP and muscle spasm for ≤14 days and Wong-Baker Faces Pain score >4 were enrolled after obtaining written informed consent and randomized in a 1:1 allocation ratio to be treated with either DFC or TFC for 28 days. Efficacy was assessed based on the change in score from baseline (before treatment) to day 28 on the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Scale and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) questionnaire, as well as the proportion of subjects who improved upon treatment. Safety was assessed based on adverse events and clinical laboratory test results. Results A significant decrease in pain intensity (p < 0.001) and significant improvement in functional ability (p < 0.001) was observed after treatment with either DFC or TFC. The decrease in Wong-Baker Faces Pain score and ODI, from baseline, was comparable between the treatment groups. However, more subjects with very severe pain at baseline showed ≥30% improvement upon treatment with DFC than with TFC (~25% versus ~12%; p = 0.172). Also, significantly more crippled subjects with very severe functional disability showed improvement in the DFC group compared to the TFC group (~26% versus ~4%; p = 0.008). No adverse events or clinically relevant laboratory test results were evident. Conclusions Both DFC and TFC were comparable in efficacy and safety for the management of recent-onset LBP. However, significantly more subjects with very severe pain or functional disability showed improvement after 28 days when treated with DFC compared to TFC.

Safety, immunogenicity and non-interference of concomitant Typhoid Vi capsular polysaccharide-tetanus toxoid conjugate vaccine (Typbar-TCV®) and measles or measles-mumps-rubella vaccines in 8-9 months-old Indian children

We evaluated safety, reactogenicity, and immunogenicity when the WHO-prequalified single-dose Typhoid Vi-polysaccharide conjugate vaccine, Typbar-TCV®, was administered concomitantly with measles (MV) or measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccines in 8- or 9-month-old children. We enrolled 493 children who were randomized 2:1:1:1 to four groups to receive either TCV (0.5 mL intramuscularly) and MV (0.5 ml subcutaneously) concomitantly at 9 months of age (Group 1) with two subgroups given TCV booster 28 days (Group 1A) or 180 days (Group 1B) later, or MV on Day 0 and TCV on Day 28 (Group 2); or TCV at 8 months of age and MV 28 days later (Group 3), or MV only at 9 months of age (Group 4). All children received MMR at 15 months of age. We observed no statistically significant differences between group rates of solicited or unsolicited adverse events assessed throughout the study. Seroconversion rates for measles, mumps, and rubella antibodies were unaffected by concomitant administration with TCV, being similar in Groups 1, 2, and 3 and comparable to Group 4 (Control). IgG anti-Vi antibody titers were similar in all groups after primary Typbar-TCV® vaccination and were not increased by a second dose 28 days later. A small response to a booster dose of Typbar-TCV® given at 180 days did not achieve the high titers observed after the first dose, suggesting that booster vaccination may be more effective after a longer interval than 6 months. Typbar-TCV® can be safely co-administered with measles and MMR vaccines in children aged ≥9 months.Clinical trial registration number: CTRI/2014/04/004532.

Safety and immunogenicity of a hexavalent DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP∼T vaccine versus separate DTwP-HB-PRP∼T and IPV vaccines in healthy infants in India

Background

Multivalent vaccines containing whole-cell pertussis (wP) antigens combined with established diphtheria (D), tetanus (T), hepatitis B (HB), Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), and inactivated poliomyelitis (IPV) antigens allow the provision of a high-quality, affordable DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP∼T vaccine.

Methods

Phase I/II, randomized, active-controlled, open-label study in healthy toddlers (Cohort I) and infants (Cohort II). Toddlers in Cohort I who had completed primary series D, T, P, HB, Hib, and polio vaccination received a booster dose of DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP∼T (N = 30) or DTwP-HB-PRP∼T + IPV (N = 15) vaccines at 15–18 months of age. After satisfactory review of safety data in Cohort I, infants in Cohort II received DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP∼T (N = 100) or DTwP-HB-PRP∼T + IPV (N = 50) at 6–8, 10–12, and 14–16 weeks of age. All infants in Cohort II had received previous oral polio and HB vaccines per country recommendations.

Results

Booster and primary series vaccinations were well tolerated with no clinically significant differences between vaccine groups. Most adverse events were mild and resolved spontaneously; there were no vaccine-related serious adverse events and no deaths. In both vaccine groups, anti-D, anti-T, anti-HB, anti-Hib, and anti-polio 1, 2, and 3 seroprotection was 100% post-booster and post-primary series. For the pertussis antigens, booster response rate was > 86% in both groups. For the primary series, vaccine response rate was slightly higher for DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP∼T than DTwP-HB-PRP∼T + IPV for anti-PT (80.2% and 70.8%) and anti-FHA (81.3% and 68.8%), slightly lower for anti-PRN (72.5% and 81.3%), and similar in each group for anti-FIM (95.6% and 97.9%).

Conclusions

This study demonstrated a good safety and immunogenicity profile of the hexavalent DTwP-IPV-HB-PRP∼T vaccine for infant primary series vaccination at 6–8, 10–12, and 14–16 weeks of age and booster vaccination at 15–18 months of age and supported progression to the next development phase.

Role of Lactobacillus reuteri&nbsp;DSM 17938 on Crying Time Reduction in Infantile Colic and Its Impact on Maternal Depression: A Real-Life Clinic-Based Study

BACKGROUND

Infantile colic is characterized by prolonged periods of inconsolable, incessant crying and persistent fussing in an otherwise healthy infant. It is a self-limiting condition, but causes significant stress to mothers.

AIM

To observe the role of Lactobacillus reuteriDSM 17938 in reducing crying time in colicky infants in routine clinical practice.

METHODS

This was a prospective observational multicentric clinic-based study. Each practitioner included approximately 30 infants < 5 months of age with infantile colic who were prescribed L. reuteri DSM 17938 for a period of 21 days. There were four physical consultations and two telephonic consultations. The parents were given a daily diary to record the duration of crying and fussing episodes and a questionnaire was administered during the consultations.

RESULTS

A total of 120 infants with a mean age of 56.9 ± 34.2 days were included in this 28-day study. The mean crying time as reported by the parents in the subject diary reduced from 248.2 ± 101.2 min, 95% CI: 229.45, 266.94 at baseline to 45.6 ± 79.1 min 95% CI: 31.02, 60.31 at study end (P < 0.01). The clinical response (defined as reduction of 50% in crying time) was observed in 85% of subjects at study end. The fussiness and parental perception of colic recorded during the consultations were reduced by 66% and 72%, respectively, at study end. The maternal depression scores were reduced to 63% at study end.

CONCLUSION

L. reuteri DSM 17938 was associated with a significant reduction in crying time in colicky infants, and showed improvement in maternal depression.

Effect of Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM-I 3799 and Bacillus subtilis CU-1 on Acute Watery Diarrhea: A Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Study in Indian Children

PURPOSE

To assess the effect of combination probiotic Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM-I 3799 and Bacillus subtilis CU-1 in outpatient management of acute watery diarrhea in children.

METHODS

A randomized double-blind placebo-controlled study was conducted in 180 participants aged six months to five years with acute mild to moderate diarrhea. All were enrolled from six centers across India and centrally randomized to receive S. boulardii CNCM-I 3799 and B. subtilis CU-1 or a placebo along with oral rehydration salts and zinc supplementation. Each participant was followed up for three months to assess recurrence of diarrhea.

RESULTS

The mean duration of diarrhea in the probiotic and placebo groups were 54.16 hours and 59.48 hours, respectively. The difference in the duration of diarrhea in those administered with probiotic or placebo within 24 hours of diarrhea onset was 25.21 hours. Furthermore, the difference in duration of diarrhea was 13.84 hours (p<0.05) for participants who were administered with probiotics within 48 hours. There were no significant differences in the stool frequencies between the two arms. After three months, 15% in the probiotic group and 18.5% in the placebo group reported episodes of diarrhea. The mean duration of diarrhea was considerably lower in the probiotic group, 31.02 hours versus 48 hours in placebo (p=0.017).

CONCLUSION

S. boulardii CNCM-I 3799 and B. subtilis CU-1 combination was effective in reducing the duration of diarrhea when administered within 48 hours of diarrhea onset. Similarly, it reduced recurrence of diarrhea and its intensity in the subsequent three months.

A phase III randomized, open-label, non-inferiority clinical trial comparing liquid and lyophilized formulations of oral live attenuated human rotavirus vaccine (HRV) in Indian infants

The human rotavirus vaccine (HRV; Rotarix, GSK) is available as liquid (Liq) and lyophilized (Lyo) formulations, but only Lyo HRV is licensed in India. In this phase III, randomized, open-label trial (NCT02141204), healthy Indian infants aged 6–10 weeks received 2 doses (1 month apart) of either Liq HRV or Lyo HRV. Non-inferiority of Liq HRV compared to Lyo HRV was assessed in terms of geometric mean concentrations (GMCs) of anti-RV immunoglobulin A (IgA), 1-month post-second dose (primary objective). Reactogenicity/safety were also evaluated. Seroconversion was defined as anti-RV IgA antibody concentration ≥20 units [U]/mL in initially seronegative infants (anti-RV IgA antibody concentration <20 U/mL) or ≥2-fold increase compared with pre-vaccination concentration in initially seropositive infants. Of the 451 enrolled infants, 381 (189 in Liq HRV and 192 in Lyo HRV group) were included in the per-protocol set. The GMC ratio (Liq HRV/Lyo HRV) was 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.65–1.34), with the lower limit of the 95% CI reaching ≥0.5, the pre-specified statistical margin for non-inferiority. In the Liq HRV and Lyo HRV groups, 42.9% and 44.3% (baseline) and 71.4% and 73.4% (1-month post-second dose) of infants had anti-RV IgA antibody concentration ≥20 U/mL, and overall seroconversion rates were 54.5% and 50.0%. Incidences of solicited and unsolicited adverse events were similar between groups and no vaccine-related serious adverse events were reported. Liq HRV was non-inferior to Lyo HRV in terms of antibody GMCs and showed similar reactogenicity/safety profiles, supporting the use of Liq HRV in Indian infants.

What is the context?

Rotavirus is the most common cause of acute gastronenteritis and contributes to the high number of hospitalizations and deaths in young children worldwide.

Vaccination against rotavirus has led to a significant decrease in rotavirus-related infections.

The human rotavirus vaccine Rotarix (GSK) is currently used as a liquid or lyophilized formulation.

In clinical trials conducted in European and North American infants, the liquid vaccine showed ability to induce immune response and safety comparable to the lyophilized formulation.

Only the lyophilized vaccine is currently marketed in india.

What is new?

We compared the 2-dose liquid and lyophilized human rotavirus vaccines in indian infants in a phase III clinical trial:

The ability to induce immune response for thw liquid formulation was not inferior to that observed for the lyophilized vaccine.

The safety profiles of the 2 formulations were comparable.

Why is this important?

This study shows that the liquid human rotavirus vaccine can be administrated to infants from india.

Multicentric Hospital-Based Surveillance of Pertussis Amongst Infants Admitted in Tertiary Care Facilities in India

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the disease and economic burden of pertussis amongst hospitalised infants in India.

DESIGN

Multicentric hospital-based surveillance study.

PARTICIPANTS

Hospitalised infants with clinical suspicion of pertussis based on predefined criteria.

OUTCOME MEASURES

Proportion of infants with laboratory-confirmed pertussis, economic burden of pertussis amongst hospitalised infants.

RESULTS

693 clinically suspected infants were recruited of which 32 (4.62%) infants had laboratory-confirmed pertussis. Progressive cough with post-tussive emesis (50%) and pneumonia (34%) were the common clinical presentations; apnea in young infants was significantly associated with pertussis. Infants with pertussis were more likely to be younger (median age 102.5 days vs.157 days) and born preterm (42.9% vs 24.5%). Almost 30% infants with pertussis had not received vaccine for pertussis with 50% of these infants aged less than 2 months. Pertussis was associated with higher costs of hospitalisation, pharmacy and loss of working days by caregivers as compared to non-pertussis cases.

CONCLUSIONS

Younger infants, those born preterm and those inadequately immunised against pertussis are at higher risk of pertussis infection. Timely childhood immunisation and introduction of maternal immunisation for pertussis can help in reducing the disease burden.

Specific Probiotics for the Treatment of Pediatric Acute Gastroenteritis in India: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Pediatric acute gastroenteritis (PAGE) is a significant cause of morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs in many countries, but differences in PAGE vary from country-to-country; thus, we limited our analysis to 1 country. Probiotics have been recommended as an adjunct to standard treatment, but the choice of probiotic is unclear. PubMed, Google Scholar, and reviews were searched from inception to May 2020 for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in India using probiotics for a treatment for PAGE. Meta-analyses using subgroups of identical probiotic types (≥2 RCT/type) were conducted for primary outcomes (duration of diarrhea, cured by day 3, rapidity of response, and length of hospital stay). Twenty-two RCTs were included in the systematic review (N = 4059 participants) including 5 single-strained probiotics and 3 multi-strained mixtures. For the meta-analyses, 17 RCT (20 treatment arms) were included. Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745 had the strongest effect on shortening the duration of diarrhea (standardized mean difference, -1.86 d; 95% confidence interval, -2.8 to -0.9), while both Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG and a mixture of 4 Bacillus clausii strains (O/C, SIN, N/R, T) significantly reduced the duration of diarrhea (-1.7 and -1.4 d, respectively). S. boulardii and L. rhamnosus GG significantly reduced hospital stays (-1.8 and -1.1 d, respectively), while B. clausii had no effect. The frequency of stools/day was significantly reduced by day 4 for S. boulardii and by day 5 for L. rhamnosus GG. In India, 2 types of probiotics (S. boulardii CNCM I-745 and L. rhamnosus GG) significantly shortened both the duration of diarrhea and hospitalization stays in pediatric patients with PAGE. While these 2 probiotic strains were safe and effective for children in India, further research is needed to confirm if other probiotic strains or mixtures may be effective.

Efficacy of polyethylene glycol 3350 as compared to lactulose in treatment of ROME IV criteria-defined pediatric functional constipation: A randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Functional constipation is a common childhood problem, with a prevalence of approximately 3% worldwide. The aim of the study was to compare the efficacy of polyethylene glycol (PEG) 3350 and lactulose in the treatment of pediatric functional constipation.

METHODS

A total of 100 subjects with functional constipation were enrolled and centrally randomized to receive PEG 3350 (0.7-1.5 mg/kg/day) or lactulose (0.7-2.0 g/kg/day).

RESULTS

There was a significant increase in median (min, max) stool frequency within 1 week in the PEG 3350 group as compared to the lactulose group (1 [0, 3] to 8 [3, 39] vs. 1 [0, 3] to 7 [1, 17]) (p-value < 0.01). The trend was maintained at week 2, week 3 (p-value < 0.01), and week 4 (p-value = 0.05) with the PEG 3350 group reporting higher weekly median stool frequency than the lactulose group. The PEG group reported significant reduction in painful bowel movements from 68.8% subjects at baseline to 43.8% at the end of first week, whereas the lactulose group reported an increase from 48.9% to 73.3% (p-value = 0.05). Other parameters of constipation, i.e. straining, large diameter stool, and large fecal mass as reported subjectively by parents, significantly decreased from baseline to the end of the study in the PEG 3350 arm compared to those in the lactulose arm. At the end of week 4, there was a statistically significant reduction in all the ROME IV-defined criteria between the two groups.

CONCLUSION

This study proved that the PEG 3350 treatment group had early symptom relief and significant improvement compared to the lactulose group in pediatric functional constipation.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Clinical Trials Registry India (CTRI/2018/01/011061).

Evaluation of immunogenicity, safety and breakthrough following administration of live attenuated varicella vaccine in two doses three months apart regimen in Indian children

Background:

In India, where varicella outbreaks are reported at a younger age, a two-dose vaccine schedule administered at an early age could be highly efficacious in preventing varicella infection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of live attenuated varicella vaccine (VR 795 Oka strain) in a two-dose, 3 months apart regimen.

Methodology:

Healthy children (⩾ 12 months and ⩽12 years; mean age: 4.4 years) of either sex were included. Geometric mean titers (GMT) were measured at baseline and 28 days post first- and second-dose, and seroprotection rates were measured 28 days post first and second dose. The incidence of breakthrough (BT) infections post vaccination was determined from 42 days post first and second dose of vaccine up to 12 months. Adverse events (AEs) were monitored and recorded throughout the study period.

Results:

Of 305 subjects enrolled, 217 were seronegative. The seroconversion rate (a change from a seronegative to a seropositive condition) was 93.3% post first-dose and 100% post two-doses. High levels (9 times) of GMT were reported since post first-dose to post second-dose in children aged 12–18 months, 18–60 months (99.43%); and in and above 60 months (99.02%). The extent of rise of anti-VZV IgG antibody titer post 28 days of first-dose at two-fold, three-fold and four-fold rise was 93.39%, 90.56% and 80.66%, respectively and 100% 4-fold rise post second-dose. A single case, a day after the first-dose of vaccination of mild BT infection, was observed after close contact with a severe case. AEs were mild and none of the serious AEs were related to the study drug.

Conclusion:

The two-dose schedule of varicella vaccine was safe and immunogenic when given 3 months apart. However, further comparative studies and follow up for both dosing schedules are needed to validate the advantage of early dosing.

Long-Term Persistence of Antibody Response with Two Doses of Inactivated Hepatitis A Vaccine in Children

INTRODUCTION

Hepatitis A virus infection is more severe in adults than children. Although vaccination can protect adults, current childhood programs cover a large population more successfully. Childhood vaccination is, therefore, a solution to protecting adults if it induces lasting immunity. Fifteen-year protection has been demonstrated in children, but longer-term data are only available for adults. We aimed to predict long term persistence of antibody in children beyond 15 years and assess if immunological mechanisms triggered by vaccination support longer-term protection.

METHODS

Long-term clinical studies using hepatitis A (HAV) or A/B vaccines (HAB) containing 720 or 1440 Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay Units (EU) of hepatitis A virus antigen were identified. Duration of persistence of antibodies and possible protection was determined by descriptively comparing antibody geometric mean concentration (GMC) kinetics, as well as GMC (95% confidence interval) at 15 years post-vaccination across studies. Immunological mechanism studies describing hepatitis A vaccination were identified.

RESULTS

One study in children 12-15 years (2-dose HAB 720) and four in adults (2-dose HAV 1440 and 3-dose HAB 720) showed comparable GMC kinetics and per year rates of change up to 15 years. At 15 years, the GMC in children [414.7 mEU/ml (336.9; 510.5)] was in the same range as in adults [range 282.6 (217.6; 367.0) to 550.1 (416.0; 727.4)]. Based on these data, mathematical model predictions from adult studies (showing > 85% protected at 50 years) were deemed likely to also apply to children. Studies identified, both humoral and cell-mediated responses are induced following vaccination.

CONCLUSION

Based on comparable antibody data in adults and children up to 15 years, similar longer-term antibody persistence is expected in children with 2-dose inactivated hepatitis A 720 containing vaccine at least up to 50 years. Accordingly, improving routine childhood hepatitis A vaccination coverage could protect against more severe disease in adulthood. Fig. 1 Plain language summary TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov identifiers, NCT00875485, NCT01000324, NCT01037114, NCT00289757, NCT00291876.

Review of long term immunogenicity and tolerability of live hepatitis A vaccine

Hepatitis A represents one of the major public health problems worldwide including India. Vaccination is the most effective way to prevent hepatitis A infection. Two types of hepatitis A vaccines-live attenuated (H2 strain) and inactivated (killed) are available for use in clinical practice in India with former having advantage of a single-dose compared to two-dose killed vaccine. One of the important characteristic of an ideal vaccine includes its ability to provide life-long protection. In this article we reviewed the available long-term (≥10 years follow-up) published data on live attenuated hepatitis A (H2 strain) vaccine. The data from country of origin of the vaccine (China) and India establish the long-term immunogenicity, protection, and tolerability. Based on the results of several clinical trials showing long-term protection, single dose of live attenuated hepatitis vaccine can be widely used to protect high-risk population against hepatitis A virus infection and related complications.

Role of family caregivers regarding sexual and reproductive health for women and girls with intellectual disability: A scoping review

BACKGROUND

While people with intellectual disability (ID) face disparities relating to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, little is known about the role of family caregivers who assist women and girls with ID access SRH services. This scoping review examined the findings of studies to elucidate the role of family caregivers with regard to SRH for women and girls with ID.

METHOD

We used Arksey and O'Malley's six-stage scoping framework, with Levac, Colquhoun and O'Brien's revisions, to evaluate identified sources. We searched three electronic databases, six ID journals and reference lists in full-text articles. Inclusion criteria included (1) primary and secondary source research studies in peer-reviewed journals; (2) published in English; (3) all research methodologies (i.e. qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods and systematic reviews or commentaries); (4) published between 2000 and 2016; and (5) studies from any country.

RESULTS

The search yielded 2062 studies; 57 articles met inclusion criteria. Most studies employed purposive, convenience or criterion sampling. Participants included people with ID, family caregivers, paid caregivers and health-care professionals. Findings were summarised thematically: (1) menstruation and menopause; (2) vaccinations and preventive screenings; (3) supporting sexuality and healthy relationships; (4) coordinating with health-care providers and (5) contraception and sterilisation.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings from this scoping review underscore the need for more and better-quality research, including how family caregivers assist women and girls with ID access perinatal and preventive SRH services and sexual abuse education. Family caregivers, women and girls with ID and health-care providers need increased access to information about SRH.

Increasing Burden of Hepatitis A in Adolescents and Adults and the Need for Long-Term Protection: A Review from the Indian Subcontinent

Hepatitis A, an acute inflammatory liver disease caused by hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection from close contact with infected people, is highly endemic in the Indian subcontinent. Due to poor sanitary conditions, most of the population is exposed to the virus in childhood. At this age, the disease is asymptomatic and provides life-long protection against the disease. Due to rapid socioeconomic development in some areas, however, pockets of the population are reaching adolescence/adulthood without prior exposure to the virus and are thus susceptible to infection. At these ages, infection carries a higher risk of symptomatic disease and complications including mortality. This review of epidemiology and burden of disease studies in the Indian subcontinent, published since 2005, shows increasing evidence of a shift from high to intermediate endemicity in high-income-typically urban-populations. The prevalence of anti-HAV antibodies (previously reported at > 90%) is lower now in adolescents and young adults (e.g., around 80% in Bangladesh and 55% in 5-15 years in India). As a result, HAV is responsible for more acute viral hepatitis predominantly in this age group (e.g., > 15 years: 3.4% in 1999 to 12.3% in 2003 or high socioeconomic status 13-20 years: 27% in 1999 to 62% in 2003), with a greater clinical and economic burden. Numerous outbreaks due to HAV have been reported [e.g., Sri Lanka (2009-2010): > 13,000 affected; Kashmir (2015-2017): 12 outbreaks; Kerala (2012-2016): 84 outbreaks] from water or food contamination. Due to current shifts in endemicity, a growing proportion of the population is no longer exposed in childhood. As the disease remains highly endemic, it also provides a source for more severe disease in susceptible people at an older age and for outbreaks. Well-tolerated and effective vaccines are available and help prevent disease burden and provide long-term protection. These should now be used more widely to protect more patients from the growing disease burden of hepatitis A. FUNDING: GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals SA. Plain language summary available for this article-please see Fig. 1 and the following link: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.9963044.Fig. 1Plain Language Summary. Highlights the context of the article, the endemicity shift and the burden of hepatitis A in adolescents and adults and steps to be taken to address the impact of this disease.

Racial and ethnic disparities in birth outcomes and labour and delivery-related charges among women with intellectual and developmental disabilities

BACKGROUND

Women with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in the USA are bearing children at increasing rates. However, very little is known whether racial and ethnic disparities in birth outcomes and labour and delivery-related charges exist in this population. This study investigated racial and ethnic disparities in birth outcomes and labour and delivery-related charges among women with IDD.

METHODS

The study employed secondary analysis of the 2004-2011 Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project National Inpatient Sample, the largest all-payer, publicly available US inpatient healthcare database. Hierarchical mixed-effect logistic and linear regression models were used to compare the study outcomes.

RESULTS

We identified 2110 delivery-associated hospitalisations among women with IDD including 1275 among non-Hispanic White women, 527 among non-Hispanic Black women and 308 among Hispanic women. We found significant disparities in stillbirth among non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic women with IDD compared with their non-Hispanic White peers [odds ratio = 2.50, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.16-5.28, P < 0.01 and odds ratio = 2.53, 95% CI: 1.08-5.92, P < 0.01, respectively]. There were no racial and ethnic disparities in caesarean delivery, preterm birth and small-for-gestational-age neonates among women with IDD. The average labour and delivery-related charges for non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic Women with IDD ($18 889 and $22 481, respectively) exceeded those for non-Hispanic White women with IDD ($14 886) by $4003 and $7595 or by 27% and 51%, respectively. The significant racial and ethnic differences in charges persisted even after controlling for a range of individual-level and institutional-level characteristics and were 6% (ln(β) = 0.06, 95% CI: 0.01-0.11, P < 0.05) and 9% (ln(β) = 0.09, 95% CI: 0.03-0.14, P < 0.01) higher for non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic Women with IDD compared with non-Hispanic White women with IDD.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings highlight the need for an integrated approach to the delivery of comprehensive perinatal services for racial and ethnic minority women with IDD to reduce their risk of having a stillbirth. Additionally, further research is needed to examine the causes of racial and ethnic disparities in hospital charges for labour and delivery admission among women with IDD and ascertain whether price discrimination exists based on patients' racial or ethnic identities.

Safety and immunogenicity of Bio Pox™, a live varicella vaccine (Oka strain) in Indian children: A comparative multicentric, randomized phase II/III clinical trial

Varicella or chickenpox is a highly contagious disease with a high secondary attack rate. Almost 30% of Indian adolescents lack protective antibodies against varicella, emphasizing the need of routine varicella immunization. The Oka VZV is a well-established, safe and efficacious vaccine strain that is highly immunogenic and produces lifelong protective immunity. The present multicentric, open label, randomized, controlled Phase II/III study, compared the Bio Pox™ (indigenous investigational vaccine) with a licensed vaccine, Varivax™ ^[a][a] Please note that this article refers to the product named VARIVAX as manufactured by Changchun Keygen Biological Products Ltd., China and marketed in India by VHB Life Sciences Limited, Mumbai, and not the product VARIVAX® owned by Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., Rahway, New Jersey, USA. Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. have asked us to make clear that the product manufactured by Changchun Keygen Biological Products Ltd. is unrelated to and is not sponsored, endorsed or otherwise authorised by Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp. , for its safety and immunogenicity profile in 252 healthy subjects in the age group of 1-12 y (cohort I: 6-12 years, II:1-6 years) in 3 tertiary medical institutions. Antibodies were measured by VZV Glycoprotein Enzyme Linked Immunoassay (IgG ELISA) kit. Seroconversion percentage in children having pre-vaccination anti VZV IgG titer <10 mIU/mL (< 5 gp ELISA units/mL) were 80% for Bio Pox™ and 77% for Varivax™ (p = 0.692). The seroconversion rate in the group receiving Bio Pox™ was non-inferior to the group that received Varivax™. There were mild local reactions for both the vaccines; none of the patient had fever or required hospitalization or medication. The Bio Pox™ was found to be safe and immunogenic in children against VZV infection.

Immunogenicity and safety of a novel MMR vaccine (live, freeze-dried) containing the Edmonston-Zagreb measles strain, the Hoshino mumps strain, and the RA 27/3 rubella strain: Results of a randomized, comparative, active controlled phase III clinical trial

This phase III clinical trial was conducted to evaluate the immunogenicity and safety of the single-dose and multi-dose formulations of a novel MMR vaccine (live, freeze-dried) developed by M/s Cadila Healthcare Limited, India (Cadila MMR vaccine), containing the Hoshino mumps strain, compared to that of an existing MMR vaccine (live, freeze-dried) developed by M/s Serum Institute of India Limited, India (Serum MMR vaccine). These two vaccines have similar measles and rubella strains, but different mumps strains (Hoshino in Cadila MMR vaccine, and L-Zagreb in Serum MMR vaccine). Three hundred and twenty-eight subjects of either sex, aged 15–18 months, were randomized in a 2:1 ratio to receive either the Cadila or Serum MMR vaccine. Immunogenicity assessments (IgG antibodies against measles, mumps, and rubella viruses) were done at baseline and 42 d after vaccination. Solicited (local and systemic) and unsolicited adverse events were recorded for up to 42 d following vaccination. The Cadila MMR vaccine was found to be non-inferior to the Serum MMR vaccine in terms of end-of-study proportion of subjects seropositive for anti-measles antibodies (100.0% in both groups), anti-mumps antibodies (94.5% vs. 94.0%), and anti-rubella antibodies (95.5% vs. 91.0%). Both vaccines were well tolerated by all study participants; the most common adverse event reported in both groups was fever, followed by rash. The results of this phase III clinical trial show that the novel Cadila MMR vaccine is non-inferior to the Serum MMR vaccine.

Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle, Intense Electric Field, Heavily Doped Optoelectronic Quantized Structures and the Electron Statistics

In this paper we show that the direct application of Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle (HUP) leads to the expression of the electron statistics (ES) under extreme degeneracy and intense electric field in bulk, quantum wells, nano wires and in the presence of quantizing magnetic field in III–V, ternary and quaternary materials on the basis of a newly formulated electron dispersion laws without using the usual density-of-states (DOS) function approach for finding out the ES under different physical lattice matched to InP conditions. It appears taking HD InSb, InAs, Hg1−xCdxTe, In1−xGaxAsyP1−y as examples that the Fermi energy increases with increasing electron concentration and the surface electric field in all the cases. Besides the Fermi energy decreases with increasing alloy composition and film thickness in different manners which depend totally on the values of the energy band constants. The Fermi energy oscillates with inverse quantizing magnetic field due to SdH effect. We have also shown that under certain limiting conditions all our generalized results lead to the well known formulas as given in the literature.

Efficacy and safety of vi-tetanus toxoid conjugated typhoid vaccine (PedaTyph™) in Indian children: School based cluster randomized study

Vi polysaccharide typhoid vaccines cannot be used in children <2 years owing to poor immunogenic and T cell independent properties. Conjugate vaccine prepared by binding Vi to tetanus toxoids (Vi-TT) induces protective levels even in children <2 years. We evaluated efficacy and safety following vaccination with a Vi-TT vaccine in children 6 months to 12 years of age. Overall, 1765 subjects were recruited from two registered municipal urban slums of southern Kolkata. Most of the children of the slum dwellers attended the schools in the locality which was selected with permission from the school authority. Schools were randomly divided into vaccinated (Test group) and unvaccinated group (Control group). Children and their siblings of test group received 2-doses of PedaTyph™ vaccine at 6 weeks interval. Control group received vaccines as per national guidelines. Adverse events (AEs) were examined after 30 minutes, 1 month and clinical events were observed till 12 months post-vaccination. Incidence of culture positive typhoid fever in the control group was 1.27% vis-a-vis none in vaccine group during 12 months. In subgroup evaluated for immunogenicity, an antibody titer value of 1.8 EU/ml (95% CI: 1.5 EU/ml, 2.2 EU/ml), 32 EU/ml (95% CI: 27.0 EU/ml, 39.0 EU/ml) and 14 EU/ml (95% CI: 12.0 EU/ml, 17.0 EU/ml) at baseline, 6 weeks and 12 months, respectively was observed. Sero-conversion among the sub-group was 100% after 6 weeks of post-vaccination and 83% after 12 months considering 4-fold rise from baseline. The efficacy of vaccine was 100 % (95% CI: 97.6%, 100%) in the first year of follow-up with minimal AEs post vaccination. Vi conjugate typhoid vaccine conferred 100% protection against typhoid fever in 1765 children 6 months to 12 years of age with high immunogenicity in a subgroup from the vaccine arm.

Study of atrial activities for abnormality detection by phase rectified signal averaging technique

Non-invasive detection of Atrial Fibrillation (AF) and Atrial Flutter (AFL) from ECG at the time of their onset can prevent forthcoming dangers for patients. In most of the previous detection algorithms, one of the steps includes filtering of the signal to remove noise and artefacts present in the signal. In this paper, a method of AF and AFL detection is proposed from ECG without the conventional filtering stage. Here Phase Rectified Signal Average (PRSA) technique is used with a novel optimized windowing method to achieve an averaged signal without quasi-periodicities. Both time domain and statistical features are extracted from a novel SQ concatenated section of the signal for non-linear Support Vector Machine (SVM) based classification. The performance of the proposed algorithm is tested with the MIT-BIH Arrhythmia database and good performance parameters are obtained, as indicated in the result section.

A Japanese Encephalitis Vaccine From India Induces Durable and Cross-protective Immunity Against Temporally and Spatially Wide-ranging Global Field Strains

BACKGROUND

Japanese encephalitis (JE) is a vaccine-preventable acute disease. We report the results of a phase 2/3 trial of JENVAC, a Vero cell-derived vaccine developed using an Indian strain of JE virus (JEV).

METHODS

JENVAC was administered in 2 doses 28 days apart, and immunogenicity was compared to that from a single dose of SA-14-14-2, the only approved JE vaccine and regimen at the time in India.

RESULTS

After both the doses, seroconversion and seroprotection were >90% for JENVAC. For SA-14-14-2, seroconversion and seroprotection were 57.69% and 77.56%, respectively, on day 28 and 39.74% and 60.26%, respectively, on day 56. The geometric mean titers at day 28 and day 56 were 145.04 and 460.53, respectively, for JENVAC and 38.56 and 25.29, respectively, for SA-14-14-2. With a single dose of JENVAC, seroprotection titers lasted at least 12 months in >80% of the subjects. Following receipt of 2 doses, 61.17% of subjects retained seroprotection titers at 24 months, and immunogenicity criteria were higher than that for SA-14-14-2 at 12, 18, and 24 months each. Sera from JENVAC subjects neutralized JEV genotypes I, II, III, and IV equally well. Adverse events were not significantly different between the 2 vaccines.

CONCLUSIONS

JENVAC elicits long-lasting, broadly protective immunity.

CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION

CTRI/2011/07/001855.

Long term follow-up study to evaluate immunogenicity and safety of a single dose of live attenuated hepatitis a vaccine in children

Worldwide, viral hepatitis continues to be a cause of considerable morbidity and mortality. Mass immunization with a single dose of live attenuated HAV has been shown to significantly reduce disease burden in the community. This was a phase IV, 5-year follow up study carried out at 4 centers (Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai) across India. The subjects with antibody titer <20 mIU/mL at baseline were evaluated for long term immunogenicity. Of the 503 subjects enrolled, 349 subjects were baseline seronegative with an anti-HAV antibody titer <20 mIU/mL. Overall, 343 subjects could be followed up at some point of time during this 5 y post vaccination period. In the last year (60 months) of follow-up, 108 subjects (97.3%) of 111 subjects (who came for follow-up at the end of 5 y) had a protective antibody titer (anti-HAV antibody titer >20 mIU/mL). The seroconversion rates considering seroprotection levels of anti-HAV antibody titer >20 mIU/mL, following vaccination starting from 6 weeks, 6 months, 12 months, 24 months, 36 months, 48 months and 60 months were 95.1%, 97.9%, 98.3%, 96.2%, 97.8%, 92.6% and 97.3%, respectively. The geometric mean concentration (GMC) over the years increased from 64.9 mIU/mL at 6 weeks to 38.1 mIU/mL and 135.2 mIU/mL at 6 months and 12 months, respectively and was maintained at 127.1 mIU/mL at 60 months. In conclusion, the result of this 5-year follow up study showed that the single dose of live attenuated vaccine is well tolerated and provides long-term immunogenicity in healthy Indian children.

Safety and immunogenicity of single dose live attenuated varicella vaccine (VR 795 Oka strain) in healthy Indian children: a randomized controlled study

Varicella, an acute viral systemic infection that may cause lifelong latent infection with the potential for causing clinical reactivation, may be prevented by immunization. The present study was an open label, randomized, controlled, phase III, multicentre trial, conducted to evaluate and compare the safety, tolerability and immunogenicity of a freeze dried live attenuated Oka strain Varicella Vaccine (VR 795 Oka strain) with Varilrix (Oka-RIT strain) in children. A total of 268 healthy Indian children aged 12 months to 12 y with baseline VZV IgG antibody (<100 mIU/ mL) were enrolled, and 256 children completed the study. The extent of rise of VZV IgG antibody titer assessed as 3-fold and 4-fold rise from baseline was found to be significantly higher (89.1% and 85.2%) in the test group as compared to control group (73.4% and 61.7%). The post-vaccination GMT of the test group was significantly higher (112.5 mIU/mL) as compared with the control group (67.8 mIU/mL) (P < 0.001). The seroconversion rate considering the 5 gp ELISA units/ml equivalent to 10mIU/ml were similar in the control (96.5%) and the test (98.3%) groups. The adverse events were not different in the control and test groups (P > 0.05). The test live attenuated vaccine was found to be highly immunogenic, safe and comparable to Varilrix used in control arm.

A combined application of lossless and lossy compression in ECG processing and transmission via GSM-based SMS

This paper presents a software-based scheme for reliable and robust Electrocardiogram (ECG) data compression and its efficient transmission using Second Generation (2G) Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) based Short Message Service (SMS). To achieve a firm lossless compression in high standard deviating QRS complex regions and an acceptable lossy compression in the rest of the signal, two different algorithms have been used. The combined compression module is such that it outputs only American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) characters and, hence, SMS service is found to be most suitable for transmitting the compressed signal. At the receiving end, the ECG signal is reconstructed using just the reverse algorithm. The module has been tested to all the 12 leads of different types of ECG signals (healthy and abnormal) collected from the PTB Diagnostic ECG Database. The compression algorithm achieves an average compression ratio of ∼22.51, without any major alteration of clinical morphology.

Prevalence of vitamin d deficiency in a pediatric hospital of eastern India

Vitamin D deficiency is highly prevalent in Indian children of northern, western and southern states. Serum 25 hydroxy cholecalferol (ng/ml) was analyzed in 310 children and adolescents of pediatric hospital of Kolkata, India. Serum calcium (mg/dl), phosphorous (mg/dl) and alkaline phosphatase (IU/L) data was obtained. Median 25(OH)D was 19 ng/ml. 19.2 % of population had serum 25(OH)D < 10 ng/ml (severe deficiency), 52.9 % had <20 ng/ml (deficiency), 24.5 % had 20-29 ng/ml (insufficiency) and 22.6 % had >30 ng/ml (optimum). Deficiency was highest in adolescents (86.1 %), followed by school children (61.0 %), lowest in pre-school children (41.6 %). 25(OH)D concentrations was lowest in winters (P = 0.002) and spring (P = 0.03) compared to summer. There was no correlation with calcium (P = 0.99), phosphorous (P = 0.23) and ALP (P = 0.63). There is high prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in children and adolescents of eastern India. Prevalence was lower in younger subjects. 25(OH)D did not correlate with bone mineral markers.

A multicentric double blind randomised controlled trial of atenolol versus losartan as first line drug for mild to moderate essential hypertension

Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring provides a more reliable assessment of actual BP than office BP and is a more sensitive risk predictor of clinical cardiovascular outcomes. Recent international guidelines for hypertension have emphasised the usefulness of ambulatory BP for diagnosis and management of hypertension. We used ambulatory blood pressure monitoring to monitor the effect of the pharmacological treatment in patients with stage 1 or 2 hypertension. This was a multicentric randomised controlled trial having 360 subjects with 180 in each treatment arm. The duration of study was 6 months. The patients were randomly selected to receive atenolol or losartan as initial therapy. The dose of atenolol or losartan was 50 mg once daily at 8 am in the morning. Ambulatory BP assessment was done in a subgroup of subjects using Schiller BR-102 plus machine. One hundred and thirty patients were recruited for the study using ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. There were 66 patients in atenolol arm and 64 patients in the losartan arm. A significant white coat hypertension was noticed in both the arms. Out of 130 subjects in the ambulatory group, 41.53% had a white coat hypertension. Statistically significant reduction of office BP was observed with both atenolol and losartan; however, no significant difference in efficacy of the two drugs was found in reducing office BP. However, when using ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, the reduction with either drug was not significant. The dipper status was better in the atenolol group than the losartan group. Neither of the drugs prevent morning surge of BP when administered once daily in the morning. There was high prevalence of white coat hypertension in patients with stage 1 and stage 2 hypertension. There was similar reduction of systolic blood pressure and diastolic blood pressure by the 2 study drugs. Atenolol scores over losartan in converting non-dipper to dipper but its' impact on clinical outcome is not known. Morning surge of BP was unaffected by either of the study drugs.

Randomised placebo-controlled double blind multicentric trial on efficacy and safety of Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5 and Bifidobacterium BB-12 for prevention of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea

AIMS

To evaluate the effectiveness, safety and tolerability of a probiotic formulation containing Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5 and Bifidobacterium BB-12 in the prevention of antibiotic associated diarrhoea (AAD).

METHODS AND MATERIAL

A double-blind randomised placebo controlled multicentric trial was conducted in adults who were prescribed a seven-day course of oral antibiotic (either cefadroxil or amoxycillin) for a documented indication. The effectiveness of a 14-day therapy (concomitant with antibiotic course and seven days thereafter) of the probiotic formulation in preventing AAD was evaluated. Safety profile was assessed by monitoring of all treatment emergent adverse events and tolerability on a global well being scale.

RESULTS

The incidence of AAD in the probiotic group was 10.8% compared to 15.6% in the placebo group, the difference being statistically non-significant (p = 0.19). The relative risk for AAD was 0.7 with the 95% CI being 0.4 to 1.2. The diarrhoea duration in the probiotic group was two days with an interquartile range of 1- 3 days and was significantly less (p = 0.01) than the placebo group which was four days with an interquartile range of 3 - 5.5 days. Subgroup analysis of subjects with AAD showed that the incidence of severe diarrhoea (watery stools) was 96% in the placebo group (25 out of 26) compared to 31.6% (6 out of 19) in the probiotic group and this difference was significant statistically (p < 0.001). Four mild, non-serious, adverse events were detected (2.0%) in the probiotic group but there were none in the placebo group.

CONCLUSION

This randomised controlled trial shows that prophylactic administration of the probiotic formulation containing Lactobacillus acidophilus LA-5 and Bifidobacterium BB-12, did not effectively lower the incidence of AAD in adults. However, compared to placebo the duration of diarrhoea in the probiotic group was significantly reduced. Its tolerability and safety profile were good.

Using low-energy neutrinos from pion decay at rest to probe the proton strangeness

The study of the neutral current elastic scattering of neutrinos on protons at lower energies can be used as a compelling probe to improve our knowledge of the strangeness of the proton. We consider a neutrino beam generated from pion decay at rest, as provided by a cyclotron or a spallation neutron source and a 1 kton scintillating detector with a potential similar to the Borexino detector. Despite several backgrounds from solar and radioactive sources, it is possible to estimate two optimal energy windows for the analysis, one between 0.65 and 1.1 MeV and another between 1.73 and 2.2 MeV. The expected number of neutral current events in these two regions, for an exposure of 1 yr, is enough to obtain an error on the strange axial charge 10 times smaller than available at present.

Evaluation of sweat production by pilocarpine iontophoresis: a noninvasive screening tool for hypohidrosis in ectodermal dysplasia

Ectodermal dysplasia (ED) is a genetic disorder affecting the skin, hair, nails, teeth and sweat glands. The clinical presentation is heterogenous; however, hypohidrotic (reduced sweat) ectodermal dysplasia (HED) being the commonest. Also known as anhidrotic ED, sweat glands are sparse or rudimentary, leading to dysregulation of body temperature and episodes of uncontrolled hyperthermia due to reduced sweating. Of the many aids to document hypohidrosis in HED, we present here the technique of pilocarpine iontophoresis to induce, collect and measure sweat. Evaluation of sweat generated (against normally obtained values) is a non-invasive alternative to establish hypohidrosis in disorders such as HED. This augments clinical decision levels to plan skin biopsy for confirmation of diagnosis and facilitates patient management and early discharge. We present two cases of HED that were primarily diagnosed with sweat gland dysplasia using pilocarpine iontophoresis, and later confirmed with skin biopsy findings.

Nucleotide Sequencing and SNP Detection of Toll-Like Receptor-4 Gene in Murrah Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis)

Toll-like receptor-4 (TLR-4) has an important pattern recognition receptor that recognizes endotoxins associated with gram negative bacterial infections. The present investigation was carried out to study nucleotide sequencing and SNP detection by PCR-RFLP analysis of the TLR-4 gene in Murrah buffalo. Genomic DNA was isolated from 102 lactating Murrah buffalo from NDRI herd. The amplified PCR fragments of TLR-4 comprised of exon 1, exon 2, exon 3.1, and exon 3.2 were examined to RFLP. PCR products were obtained with sizes of 165, 300, 478, and 409 bp. TLR-4 gene of investigated Murrah buffaloes was highly polymorphic with AA, AB, and BB genotypes as revealed by PCR-RFLP analysis using Dra I, Hae III, and Hinf I REs. Nucleotide sequencing of the amplified fragment of TLR-4 gene of Murrah buffalo was done. Twelve SNPs were identified. Six SNPs were nonsynonymous resulting in change in amino acids. Murrah is an indigenous Buffalo breed and the presence of the nonsynonymous SNP is indicative of its unique genomic architecture. Sequence alignment and homology across species using BLAST analysis revealed 97%, 97%, 99%, 98%, and 80% sequence homology with Bos taurus, Bos indicus, Ovis aries, Capra hircus, and Homo sapiens, respectively.

Efficacy and safety of azithromycin for uncomplicated typhoid fever: an open label non-comparative study

An open-labelled, non-comparative study was conducted in 117 children aged 2-12 years to evaluate the efficacy and safety of azithromycin (20mg/ kg/day for 6 days) for the treatment of uncomplicated typhoid fever. Of the patients enrolled based on a clinical definition of typhoid fever, 109 (93.1%) completed the study.Mean (SD) of duration of fever at presentation was 9.1(4.5) days. Clinical cure was seen in 102 (93.5%) subjects, while 7 were withdrawn from the study because of clinical deterioration. Mean day of response was 3.45±1.97. BACTEC blood culture was positive for Salmonella typhi in 17/109 (15.5%) and all achieved bacteriological cure. No serious adverse event was observed. Global well being assessed by the investigator and subjects was good in 95% cases which was done at the end of the treatment. Azithromycin was found to be safe and efficacious for the management of uncomplicated typhoid fever.