bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ergonomics analysis of gunner station of armoured combat vehicle (ACV)- Tank T 90S with special reference to seat, visual sighting system and musculoskeletal discomfort: A pilot study
Authors: Sinha Pankaj Kumar , Pal Madhusudan , Chandel Sunil
Published: January 2021

Background: A combat vehicle is a tracked/wheeled land or amphibious vehicle, with or without armour or armament, designed for specific functions in combat or battle. It is an integrated mobile weapon platform comprising of multiple workstations having many equipment, switches, control and displays.Effectiveness of Combat vehicle and efficiency of crewin battle field depends upon the optimum design and placement of control and displays and workstation. Till date ergonomics studies on combat vehicle are limited and less reported.
Aims and Objective: Present study was undertaken to investigate the gunner station of the combat vehicle (Tank T90 S) with special reference to seat and sighting system with respect to anthropometric dimensions of the crew members, to find out constraints, design limitations and mismatch in the existing vehicles; and the biomechanical responses (force and angles), comfort and discomfort during the vehicle operation.
Materials and Methods: Ninety (90) healthy male gunner with mean age 35.2±8.5 years, stature 172.6±7.5 cm and weight 72.4±7.2 kg volunteered for the study. Anthropometric details of gunner crew, gunner seat dimension, sighting system, biomechanical response during operation, comfort and discomfort analysis were studied.
Results: Gunner station sighting control handle is located below the recommended optimum vortex angle of ±15° from normal line of sight in vertical and horizontal plane. Hand grip strength decreased with increasing operation time.  Reduction in grip strength of the gunner may tend to produce lag and delay of movement of barrel and swiftness of gunner may get compromised. Seat was not designed as per anthropometric dimensions of crew members.
Conclusion: Present study clearly stated that non-accessibility and difficulty in operating the handle of Gun Control Equipment during operation. Sighting system and seat of existing tank is poorly ergonomically designed.  Hand grip strength gradually decrease with increasing operation time.
Study of patient profile of children with poor/delayed speech in a tertiary care centre in Western Uttar Pradesh, India
Authors: Sen Moumita , Chatterji Probal
Published: January 2021

Background: Humans convey their emotions and information to one another through language. Delayed or poor speech can have a profound effect on the social and professional life of a person.
Aim and Objectives: A study of children with poor/delayed speech in a tertiary care centre in western U.P. Objectives were as follows • To study the risk factors for congenital hearing loss in children with poor/no speech. • To screen them regarding their hearing status. • To analyze results in detail and compare with available literature.
Materials and Methods: A hospital based prospective observational study was done from Jan - Dec 2019. One-hundred fifteen children were identified. Hearing screening was done in all of them by OAE testing followed by tympanometry and BERA wherever applicable.
Results: Out of 115 children, 9 (7.8%) had normal hearing, 9 (7.8%) had central cause of deafness and 97 (84.4%) had congenital SNHL. 64% of subjects were male (p value- <0.001). 79% of them had an association with some risk factor during birth (p value- <0.001). 40.8% of them were first order in birth with a typical age group presentation of 2-3 yrs. 60.1% of the study population with SNHL had history of normal delivery at home.
Conclusion: Improvement in the quality of antenatal care, obstetric services and postnatal care will reduce the number of cases of congenital sensorineural deafness significantly by reducing the number of high-risk babies. Moreover, the introduction of practice of universal hearing screening of newborns will help in identifying them early for proper rehabilitation.
Study of cord blood lipid profile at birth and its relation to gestational maturity and birth weight
Authors: Gupta Rashmi , Goyal Alpana , Gupta Madhuri
Published: January 2021

Background: Dyslipidemia is attributed for coronary artery diseases. Early detection of dyslipidemia in neonatal cord blood could help to identify possible future risk factors of coronary artery diseases in new born.
Aims and Objectives: This study was undertaken to compare lipid profile of small for gestational age (SGA) or preterm and appropriate for gestational age (AGA) or near-term neonates.
Material and Methods: A total of 60 neonates were included; of which 33 were AGA and 27 SGA neonates. 2 ml of blood was obtained from the umbilical vein immediately after cord clamping at delivery from each subject and kept in a plain vial, after the serum separation analyzed for biochemical parameters.
Results: In SGA neonates, mean TC (total cholesterol), TG (triglycerides) LDL (low density lipoprotein cholesterol), HDL (high density lipoprotein cholesterol) and triglycerides were 66.60±17.76 mg/dl,57.32±23.7 mg/dl, 54.06±20.11 mg/dl, 19.06±17.03mg/dl respectively. SGA neonates had more TC, TG and LDL than AGA neonates (P<0.05). There was significant difference in mean lipid profile between preterm andnear-term neonates. Thus, lipid profiles in SGA neonates in thisstudy are higher than that of AGAneonates.
Conclusion: It can be concluded that preterm babies are exposed to more hypercholesterolemia and potentially more atherogenic environment than their term counterparts.
Assessment of facial nerve injury using Deep Subfascial approach to Temporo-mandibular joint
Authors: Kumar Ankit , Kumar Sourav , Khan Musaab , Nayak Dipti , Sharma Ashish , Tripathi Siddhi
Published: January 2021

Background: Surgical access to the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) and zygomatic arch is a challenge even to the experienced maxillofacial surgeon. The conventional subfascial approach to these structures carries the potential risk of transient paralysis of the frontalis and orbicularis oculi muscles. The deep subfascial approach provides an additional layer of protection (the deep layer of the temporalis fascia and the superficial temporal fat pad) to the temporal and zygomatic branches of the facial nerve and thus, is the safest method to avoid facial nerve injury.
Aims and Objective: To assess facial nerve injury (FN) following TMJ surgery using deep Subfascial approach and measuring it on House and Brackman facial nerve grading system (HBFNGS).
Materials and Methods: A randomized study was performed from August 2013 to March 2017 on 24 patients with unilateral and bilateral TMJ ankylosis. All patients were evaluated objectively for facial nerve injury using with house and brackmann facial nerve injury grading system post-operatively and subjectively inthe various time periods, i.e. 24 hours, 1 week, 1month, 3 months and 6 months.
Results: Brackmann facial nerve grading system at 24 hours post operatively– in the deep subfascial approach group, 91.7% of patients (23 cases) had Grade 1 injury and 8.3% (1case) had Grade 3 injury. The condition improved with time with full recovery of facial nerve injury (FN) at all surgical sites at 6 months.
Conclusion: The deep subfascial approach has a distinct advantage over the conventional approaches when dissecting the temporal region and is thesafest method to avoid injury to facial nerve injury (FN).
Appraisal of caesarean section incidence and indications at manipal teaching hospital, Pokhara, Nepal
Authors: Shrestha Aashika , Shrestha Junu , Gurung Sangeeta Devi
Published: January 2021

Background: Worldwide lower segment caesarean section (LSCS) is the most commonly performed obstetric operation. Though it’s a lifesaving procedure it is sometime associated with both short and long term risk which can extend many years beyond current delivery and affect health of mother, fetus and future pregnancy.
Aims and Objective: The study aims to examine the incidence and indication of caesarean section at Manipal teaching hospital.
Materials and Methods: A retrospective descriptive study of 2140 cases was carried out at a teaching hospital in Pokhara, Nepal. Data regarding total number of vaginal delivery and caesarean section performed in 1 year duration from August 2019 to July 2020 was obtained from the operation record book and medical record section of hospital. Other information regarding age, parity, gestational period and indication of cesarean section were obtained and depicted in tabulated form. The collected secondary data has been analyzed employing frequencies and percentage.
Results: During the one year study period, 2140 deliveries were made out of which 1170 (54.7%) cases underwent caesarean section. Out of those cases 78.8% of women underwent emergency LSCS. Most of the women were in the age group of 21-30 years (69.2%). In 81.2% cases caesarean was done between 38-42 weeks gestation. 52.3% of cases were multigravida, 43.8% were primigravida and only 3.1% were grand multigravida. Most common indication of caesarean were fetal distress (23.7%), previous LSCS (23%), cephalopelvic disproportion (15.6%), oligohydramnios (11%) followed by breech, preeclampsia, eclampsia and non-progress of labour.
Conclusion: This study revealed that the incidence of caesarean section was high in the hospital and majority of the patients who underwent caesarean section had an emergency caesarean section. The commonest indications were fetal distress and repeat cesarean section. The issue requires further investigation to identify reasons for high CS rate and raises necessity of policy guidelines and intervention in order to prevent possible unjustified use of surgical delivery.
Pre-Operative MRI in evaluation of Perianal fistulas
Authors: Sawant Milind , Singh Giriraj , S Harish , Roy Kaushik
Published: January 2021

Background: Perianal fistula is a common and often an extremely distressing disorder. MRI is a preferred modality for the preoperative assessment of perianal fistulas.
Aims and Objective: To evaluate the accuracy and predictive values of pre-operative MRI in diagnosing severity of perianal fistulas and the conditions associated with it like internal anal opening, secondary tract, abscess and supralevator extension.
Materials and Methods: In this study, 44 patients with clinically suspected perianal fistulas underwent MRI for the evaluation of severity and presence of the associated conditions. St James’s University Hospital Classification was used to grade the perianal fistula. Pre-operative MRI grading was compared with the surgical findings in the 26 operated patients.
Results: Out of 44 clinically suspected perianal fistulas, 41 (93%) were diagnosed as perianal fistulas by MRI. The most common type was grade 1 seen in 12(27.3%) patients followed by grade 4 fistula seen in 10(22.7%) patients. All 26 patients evaluated by surgical findings for severity of perianal fistulas were found to be graded in identical grades by pre-operative MRI. MRI was 100% sensitive in picking up all five grades.
Conclusion: MRI helps in the accurate delineation of fistulous tract, identification of secondary tract and abscess.
A study to evaluate behavior of society with Covid-19 Frontline health workers
Authors: Golhar Mayuri , Yadav Tarun , Walia Harsimran Singh , Johar Sanjay
Published: January 2021

Background: Health care workers caring for Covid-19 patients go through mental stress, physical exertion, stigma from society and the fear of losing patients’ and colleagues.
Aims and Objective: To evaluate frontline health care workers perspective about the society’s behavior towards them.
Materials and Methods: This questionnaire-based study included a total of 648 participants and included 20 questions about demography, Covid duty, health related issues and behavioral aspect of society during Covid duty. Behavioral related responses were scaled on the basis of response score.
Results: Suggested that the overall population behavior was satisfactory but behavioral biases were existent. Major health issue of concern that surfaced during duties was stress.
Conclusion: Behavioral prejudices are existent due to the stigma attached to this pandemic and hence needs to be addressed with great concern. Health related issues should be dealt promptly and psychological counseling should be made mandatory.
Management of Distal Femoral fractures with Locking Compression Plate- A Prospective study
Authors: Kadam Abhijit Maruti , Mahadik Sujay K , Rampure Sagar , Jiwani Rahil B
Published: January 2021

Background: Distal femoral fractures are one of the common type of fractures seen after motor vehicular accidents. The optimal management of these fractures requires open reduction and internal fixation by plates and screws. Various studies have shown that open reduction and internal fixation by plates and screws result in early post-operative knee mobilization which is essential for good union and better functional outcome.
Aims and Objective: The current study was conducted to evaluate the results of fracture lower end of femur treated by open reduction and internal fixation using locking compression plate.
Materials and Methods: This was a prospective clinical study in which the cases with fracture lower end of femur were included on the basis of a predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Fractures were categorised by Mullers classification. All patients were treated by distal femoral locking compression plates and screws. The cases were followed up for radiological union and functional outcome (Neer’s scoring). The statistical analysis was done using SSPS 21.0 software. P value less than 0.05 was taken as statistically significant.
Results: Out of the 20 studied cases there were 13 (65%) males and 7 (35%) females with a M:F ratio of 1:0.53. Road traffic accidents were the most common cause (75%) of distal femoral fractures. The most common type of fracture seen in studied cases was found to be Mullers C2 type of fracture (45%) followed by Mullers C3 (20%) and Mullers C1 (15%). All patients were treated by open reduction and internal fixation. Mean Injury to surgery interval was found to be 4.25 days in studied cases. Postoperatively desirable knee flexion (1100) was achieved in 10 (50%) cases whereas in 8 patients 910-1090knee flexion was achieved. In 2 (10%) patients less than 900 knee flexion could be achieved. The functional outcome (as assessed by Neer’s score) showed that Good and fair results were seen in 13 (65 %) and 6 (30 %) patients. Poor functional outcome was seen in only 1 (5 %) patient.
Conclusion: Locking compression plate is found to have good results in patients with traumatic distal femoral fractures in terms of early mobilization and functional outcome. Particularly in intra-articular fractures it provides good angular stability by its triangular reconstruction principle.
Effects of 469 E/K polymorphism of ICAM1 gene in ischemic stroke and its association with stroke severity and outcome
Authors: Pethusamy Karthikeyan , Seethy Ashikh A , Kulandhasamy Maheshwari , Garg Pinki , Chowdhury Debashish , Agarwal Sarita , Kumar Arun , Dhar Ruby , Karmakar Subhradip
Published: January 2021

Background: Stroke is the second leading cause of death globally and it is a major cause of long-term, physical, psychological, and social disability among the elderly. Increasing evidence shows that ischemic injury and inflammation account for its pathogenic progression. So, we studied the association of Intercellular Adhesion Molecule 1 (ICAM1) polymorphism with ischemic stroke, stroke severity, and outcome.
Aims and Objectives: To compare ICAM1 469 E/K polymorphism in ischemic stroke patients with healthy controls, and to study its association with stroke severity and outcome.
Materials and Methods: Fifty patients of ischemic stroke and hundred healthy individuals were included. The stroke severity was assessed clinically and radiologically. Outcome was measured at three and six months of stroke onset. Genomic DNA was used for Allele-Specific PCR to detect ICAM1 469 E/K polymorphism. The subjects were categorized into EE, EK, and KK genotypes.
Results: The odds of EK genotype to develop stroke was 0.41 (95 % CI; 0.17 - 0.92) (p = 0.07) and of KK genotype was 0.41 (95 % CI; 0.11 - 0.87) (p = 0.04) compared to EE genotype. Subjects with ICAM1K allele had significantly reduced risk of stroke compared with those with E allele. (RR: 0.55; 95% CI: 0.35-0.87) (p=0.03).
Conclusion: Subjects with ICAM1K allele had significantly reduced the risk of developing stroke. 469 E/K polymorphism of the ICAM1 gene does not significantly affect stroke severity, mortality, and outcome.
Serum uric acid level as a marker of cardiovascular disease in diabetic individuals
Authors: Nair Sandhya Pillai , Patel Sarthak
Published: January 2021

Background: Serum Uric acid (SUA) had always been thought of as a metabolically inert end product of purine metabolism without physiological significance except gouty diathesis. However, it has been recently associated with insulin resistance and also considered as a risk marker for the development of diseases like diabetes, coronary heart disease.
Aims and Objective: In this study we aim to determine the incidence of hyperuricemia in diabetic individuals and also study the relation of SUA with the other established risk factor of cardiovascular diseases, as it is one of the long term complications of Diabetes.
Materials and Methods: The study enrolled 120 subjects. Group I (test group) comprised of 60 known cases of type II DM on oral anti-diabetic drugs. The control group comprised of 60 subjects who were non diabetic and not suffering from any major illness. The protocol of the study was approved by ethical committee of the institute. Total cholesterol, HDL, TG, glucose, SUA was estimated while parameters like LDL and VLDL were calculated.
Results: A highly significant increased SUA, total cholesterol, HDL, TG, glucose, LDL and VLDL was seen in type II DM (p<0.0001) when compared with control while a significant (p<0.05) positive correlation was observed between SUA and total cholesterol and TG. In study group a negative correlation though not statistically significant was observed between SUA and fasting blood sugar level.
Conclusion: SUA is definitely associated with development of complications of diabetes in the form of cardiovascular disease. This may be due to its influence on the deranged lipid metabolism and hyperglycemia.
‘Hemophagocytosis’ a small yet relevant bone marrow aspirate finding: experience of a tertiary care pediatric centre in India
Authors: Radhakrishnan Nita , Tiwari Neema , Singh Savitri , Madan Jyotsna , Nath Devajit , Bindal Usha , Shankar Ravi
Published: January 2021

Backgrond: Hemophagocytosis (HS) is an interesting finding that is observed in bone marrow, lymph nodes, CSF other reticuloendothelial systems but at times is overlooked or is not incorporated in reports. Demonstration of hemophagocytosis is one criterion in the diagnosis of Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH).
Aims and Objective: Hemophagocytosis as an important finding evaluated in pediatric bone marrows having different clinical diagnosis.
Materials and Methods: A retrospective descriptive analysis of bone marrow aspirates of 73 patients showing any degree of hemophagocytosis [out of 440 bone marrow aspirates] retrieved from the archives of Department of Pathology during the period from May 2017 to May 2020 were included in the study. Only those cases where microscopic examination revealed hemophagocytosis(73 cases) were included in the study.
Results: On analysing the data of 73 bone marrow aspirate 11 (1 Primary,10 secondary) cases were confirmed clinicopathologically as Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, 9 cases (2 metastasis, 4 infective, 1 acute leukemia, ,1 nutritional deficiency and 1 Hypocellular marrow with degenerative changes) were not suspected to have HLH clinically however showed features of increased serum ferritin >500mg/dl and bone marrow aspirate hemophagocytosis, favouring a diagnosis of secondary HLH (WHO 2004).
Conclusion: We present a spectrum of differential diagnosis presenting with hemophagocytosis in pediatric population and its clinico-biochemical correlation assessing progression to HLH.
Fundus changes in high myopic Kashmiri population
Authors: Anjum Nazia , Muqsit Numrah , Wani Junaid S
Published: January 2021

Background: High myopia (defined as myopia of -6D or more) is one of the main causes of visual impairment worldwide. High myopia is always accompanied by pathological structural changes such as axial elongation, posterior staphyloma, lacquer crack formation, thinning of the retina and choroid, and choroidal neovascularization.
Aims and Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the fundus changes in eyes with high myopia.
Materials and Methods: All study participants underwent dilated fundus examination and fundus photography. Myopia-related macular (posterior staphyloma, lacquer cracks, Fuchs spot, myopic chorioretinal atrophy, and myopic choroidal neovascularization)and optic disc (optic nerve head tilt,optic disc dimensions, and peripapillary atrophy) changes were evaluated.
Results: Statistical analysis was performed to evaluate fundus changes in eyes with high myopia. Data analysis included 107 eyes of 57 patients.Mean ± SE was 12.07 ± 3.184D in eyes with high myopia. Mean ± AL was 26.68± 1.577mm in eyes with high myopia. The mean age was 28.54 ± 9.44 years(14-50 years). Fundus changes were: Temporal crescent in 56 (52.33%) eyes, tessellated fundus appearance in 52(48.59%) eyes, lacquer cracks in 40 (37.38%) eyes, tilted disc in 30 (28%) eyes, lattice degeneration in 20(18.69%) eyes, posterior staphyloma in 20(18.69%) eyes, focal chorioretinal atrophy in 3 (2.8%) eyes. CNV in 2 (1.86%)eyes and retinal hole in 1(1%) eye.
Conclusions: Tessellated fundus and temporal crescent were the most common fundus findings among Kashmiri population with high myopia. In this population, lacquer cracks and tilted disc were also common, while CNV and retinal holes were rare.
From the Desk of Editor
Authors: Kumar Arun
Published: January 2021

Dear All Associated Users of AJMS:
It gives us immense pleasure to publish the current issue of AJMS Vol 12 No 1 (2021). We started our journey from 2010 with an online edition of AJMS. Slowly we progressed with the support of our committed and strong team of Editorial board members and launched the printed edition in the year 2015 and we further expanded our publication frequency from quarterly issue to bimonthly issue.
With the overwhelming response and support from our users, we now take a leap to publish monthly issue from this year (2021) onwards.  With the current expansion of edition, we make it clear that we have not made any compromise in the quality of articles which we publish in AJMS. We have been striving hard to serve the potential authors who has entrusted on us and chosen our journal to publish their manuscripts, making our journal as their journal of choice!
On submission, the manuscripts are assigned to editor and section editor for initial review process, followed by assigning the manuscript to three reviewers of which two are internal reviewers and one outside the editorial board (external reviewer). The blind review process in our journal takes six to eight weeks’, sometimes even earlier depending on the reviewers and the decision is made once the review report is submitted to the editor.
Sometimes the delay in turnaround time happens which is unavoidable due to late response from reviewers and from the authors. We insist the authors to communicate with the editor soon the review reports are sent to them for revisions. This would further shrink the time of publication from submission. The reviewers and the editorial board members are solely responsible for taking initial decision of the article but the final decision is based on the Editor. The best part of our journal is we respond to each and every author promptly and do not ignore any queries. 
The details of the journal can be viewed by clicking the links of particular sections- Focus and Scope, Peer Review Process, Open Access Policy, Publication Frequency, Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement of Asian Journal of Medical Sciences, Duties of Reviewers, Duties of Authors, Indexing of Asian Journal of Medical Sciences can be viewed by this link-https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/AJMS/about
Submission Preparation Checklist, Author Guidelines, Plagiarism Policy can be viewed by following this link-https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/AJMS/about/submissions
Authors are advised to go through the guidelines and then submit their manuscripts
We look forward to further enhance the quality of article in AJMS and we will strive hard to ensure this journal goes global, in the future.
Thank you all for your support and entrusting on us.
Prof. Dr. Arun Kumar
Editor-in-Chief, Asian Journal of Medical Sciences
Dengue fever complicated with acute ST elevation myocardial infarction - a therapeutic conundrum: our experience from two cases
Authors: Wijayabandara Maheshi , Wijesundara Devasmitha , Gamakaranage Champika , Karunanayake Panduka , Fernando Shyam , Jayasinghe Saroj
Published: January 2021

Dengue fever has a wide range of clinical manifestations from asymptomatic disease to complicated dengue haemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome. Bleeding manifestations in dengue is well known but thrombotic events complicating dengue is uncommon. ST elevation myocardial infarction during dengue is rare and poses important management dilemma. At present, there is no consensus on how to manage this situation. We present two patients with dengue fever developing ST elevation myocardial infarction and our experience in the management. We suggest case-based management of acute coronary syndrome in dengue, guided by the degree of thrombocytopaenia and bleeding risk. Further studies are needed to include this into existing dengue management guidelines.
A clinico-pathological study of patients with thyroid swelling and their management in a tertiary care centre in western Uttar Pradesh
Authors: Tyagi Mohini , Chatterjee Probal
Published: January 2021

Background: Thyroid diseases are common worldwide and in India too there is a significant burden of thyroid disease. Thyroid disease has a reported prevalence of 4-7% in the general population on neck palpation and in autopsy series it may be as high as 50% if subclinical nodules are included. The clinical presentation of thyroid swellings can be very misleading and a definitive diagnosis cannot be done without proper investigations.
Aims: To conduct a clinic-pathological study of thyroid swellings along with their management in a tertiary care center.
Objectives: 1. To study the various clinical presentations of thyroid swellings 2. To record the FNAC findings in each case. 3. To perform histopathological examination of all operative specimens and compare the results with preoperative diagnosis.
Materials and Methods: A one-year prospective study was done in which 50 patients with thyroid swelling were identified. Detailed information regarding all relevant parameters was recorded and treatment was done as per standard protocol.
Results: Female preponderance of cases was seen (3.16:1). Maximum cases were in 36-45 year age group and 70% cases were premenopausal females. Multinodular goiter was commonest clinical presentation and colloid goiter was most common FNAC finding. Hemithyroidectomy was the most frequently performed operation. Final results showed that colloid goiter was the most commonly diagnosed benign condition while papillary carcinoma was the commonest malignancy.
Conclusion: Most studies show female preponderance of cases. Multinodular goiter is the commonest clinical presentation world-wide. Colloid goiter is the most commonly diagnosed cause of thyroid swelling. Though FNAC is not 100% accurate, it has an important role in the initial evaluation of these patients. Histopathogical examination of specimen is the gold-standard investigation for final diagnosis. Due to the risk of an underlying malignancy, a proper evaluation of thyroid swellings is a must as they have excellent cure rate if treated early.
Prevalence and Factors associated with sickness absenteeism among Pharmaceutical Industrial workers of Hyderabad, India
Authors: Bala Sudha , B Rajiv Kumar , Pandve Harshal
Published: January 2021

Background: Sickness absenteeism is a potential epidemiological issue leading to loss of productivity in addition to increasing the cost of health care and provides a major tool in enhancing occupational health care preventive strategies.
Aim and Objectives: To determine the prevalence of sickness absenteeism and their associated factors among Industrial Workers of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing industries in Hyderabad.
Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study was taken up among 160 Workers at two Pharmaceutical Manufacturing companies in Hyderabad using simple random sampling technique. Data included Individual, Occupational and Organizational factors influencing their sickness absenteeism and general health conditions in the past six months through camp based approach. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and multinomial logistic regression analysis to predict the variables associated with the outcome.
Results: The prevalence of sickness absenteeism was found among 19% of the workers. Common causes were due to sickness among 25(84%) and social responsibilities among 5(16%). On multinomial logistic regression analysis- poor superior relationships, poor co-workers relationship and high mental stress were found to be significant.
Conclusion: Sickness absenteeism was found to be high which can be reduced by improving relationships with superiors and co-workers and also by reducing mental stress among the workers.
Dentists’ knowledge and attitude in immediate implant loading protocol of dental implants- A cross-sectional survey
Authors: Shrestha Suraksha , Yadav Santosh Kumar
Published: January 2021

Background: Dental implant therapy is still considered an evolving field in Nepal, with most dentists favoring implant placement following the delayed loading protocol (>3 months) even in the rehabilitation of missing anterior teeth. There is need to understand the clinical difference between immediate and delayed loading protocols of the dental implants. With advent of immediate loading protocol of dental implants, instant rehabilitation in addition to better esthetics and self-confidence can be obtained.
Aims and Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the knowledge and attitude of general dentist towards immediate loading protocol of dental implants.
Materials and Methods: A descriptive, cross sectional survey was conducted among Nepalese general dentists who have entered their clinical practice in private or government hospital regardless of their years of experience. A self-administered questionnaire adapted from some previous studies was framed and distributed with the primary objective to determine their knowledge and attitude towards immediate loading protocols of dental implants. Data collected were analyzed using the Statistical Packages for the Social Sciences version 22 (IBM Corp, Armonk, NY, USA).
Results: Among the 250 participants included in this study, 94.8% of the respondents completely filled the questionnaire. Nearly 46.4% of participants had good knowledge on the procedure and advantages offered by the immediately loaded dental implants with provisional restorations, whereas 83.1% had negative reservations toward implant placement using the protocol. In addition, this study found a statistically significant association (p<0.05) between the knowledge and attitude of dental practitioners regarding the protocol.
Conclusion: Although dental implants have changed the outlook of dentistry in the past few decades, there is slightly poor knowledge and significant negative attitude of dentists toward the immediate implant loading protocol. The general dentist are expected to increase their awareness about immediate loading with subsequent training on its use and viability so that proper information can be disseminated to the patients. This will help to increase the practice of immediate implant in indicated cases by implantologist with further benefit to patient’s time and esthetics.
Phonon dynamics of Zr67Ni33 AND Fe80B20 binary glassy alloys
Authors: Vora Aditya M , Gandhi Alkesh L
Published: January 2021

Binary amorphous alloys are the primary bulk metallic glasses (BMGs). Two binary BMGs Zr67Ni33 and Fe80B20 have been studied in the present work using the pseudo- alloy-atom (PAA) model based on the pseudopotential theory. Some important thermodynamic properties like Debye temperature and elastic properties like elasticity moduli and Poisson’s ratio at room temperature are theoretically computed with the help of pseudopotential theory from the elastic limit of the phonon dispersion curves (PDCs). The collective dynamics of longitudinal and transverse phonon modes are investigated in terms of eigenfrequencies of the localized collective modes. The presently computed results are compared with the other such data including theoretically generated results from the molecular dynamics at different temperatures as available in the literature and an acceptable agreement is found.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 33-47
Insight of precursor concentration, particle size and band gap of zirconia nanoparticles synthesized by co-precipitation method
Authors: Bhujel Arun , Sapkota Bibek , Aryal Ram Lochan , Poudel Bhoj Raj , Bhattarai Sitaram , Gautam Surendra K.
Published: January 2021

Zirconia (ZrO2), an inorganic material, is a very fascinating material due to its high mechanical strength and fracture toughness. The synthesis is carried out by using co-precipitation method using optimum content of zirconium oxychloride octahydrate (ZrOCl2.8H2O) with NaOH solution at calcination temperature of 700°C. The synthesized samples were characterized to ensure structural, functional, morphological and chemical composition by several techniques. The monoclinic structure has been confirmed from XRD, SAED and Raman spectra. The Zr-O stretching vibration and Zr-O2-Zr bending vibrations were confirmed through FTIR analysis. The well dispersed particles with spherical morphology were established through SEM and TEM analyses. EDX spectra confirmed the formation of pure zirconium oxide. The band gap was calculated with the help of UV-Vis spectra and particle size was determined form XRD data using Debye Scherrer’s equation. The variation of band gap and particle size compared with different concentrations of precursor solution was studied.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 1-9
Simulated spectra (IR and Raman), NLO, AIM and molecular docking of carisoprodol from DFT approach
Authors: Chaudhary Manoj Kumar , Chaudhary Tarun , Joshi Bhawani Datt
Published: January 2021

The aim of this study to explore the spectroscopic behavior of carisoprodol in terms of simulated spectra (IR and Raman).. The intramolecular H-bond of the molecule has been inspected from the Atoms in Molecule (AIM) approach which infers that there exist partial covalent H-bond in nature. The protein-ligand binding activity of the drug molecule has been analyzed theoretically from the molecular docking approach with the predicted targets in terms of binding energy and conventional H-bond with residue. The molecular docking analysis of the title molecule explores that the binding energy with the protein acetylcholinesterase is more than the protein epoxide hydrolase1. The nonlinear optical (NLO) behavior of title molecule has been scrutinized which motivates that the potent use of the molecule as NLO material.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 48-57
Diffusion of oxytocin in water: a molecular dynamics study
Authors: Acharya Khimananda , Koirala Rajendra Prasad , Pantha Nurapati
Published: January 2021

Classical molecular dynamics simulation is performed to estimate the diffusion coefficient of oxytocin in water at different temperatures, 288 K, 300 K, 313 K, 323 K, using GROningen Machine for Chemical Simulations (GROMOCS). The simulation is carried out using GROMOS43A1 force field and extended simple point charge (SPC/E) water model. The stability of the system is evaluated from energy profile of potential and kinetic energy, which assures well equilibrated molecular system. The self-diffusion coefficient of oxytocin and water is obtained from Einstein’s relation and binary diffusion coefficient is obtained from Darken’s relation. As temperature increases the diffusion coefficient also increases as per expectation. The diffusion coefficients of water from the present calculations agree well with the previously reported values, within the 10% of deviation. Furthermore, the activation energy has been studied using Arrhenius Plot.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 108-117
Modeling and parameter analysis of deflection of a beam
Authors: Pokhrel Puskar Raj , Lamsal Bhabani
Published: January 2021

In this paper, we present the model equation of a beam when it applies compression forces on ends of the beam and carries a load. For the structural point of view, there should be a suitable model to understand the behavior under different conditions of loading of a beam. Mathematical modeling is the simulation of a physical structure or physical phenomenon by constructing suitable analytic and numerical solution.  We analyze the deflections of the beam by taking different structures of beam. The structures of beam depend on the compression forces on beams with different beams with different weights. We observe the deflection by applying various compression forces at the ends of the beam. The influence of the effect of some parameters appeared in mathematical formulations such as area moment of inertia (I), Young’s modulus (E), load (W) and compressive force (P) on deflection variation are investigated in this paper. We analyze the results that how compression forces affect the system. We use finite difference method to solve the model equation numerically. We analyze and compare   the numerical result with analytic solution.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 75-82
Molecular dynamics study of structural properties of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)
Authors: Khanal Shyam P , Koirala Rajendra P , Mishra Esha , Adhikari Narayan Prasad
Published: January 2021

The study of structural conformation of Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) exhibits its biological and chemical activities. The GABA molecule is responsible in neurotransmission from one neuron to another neuron and activates the ion channels to pass the chlorine and sodium ions in nerve cells. Its conformation in solid state and gas state are extremely different and it also shows five different conformations in aqueous solution. The study of its structure in such environment can reveal its activity in cellular environment. We have performed the classical molecular dynamics study of this system of GABA in aqueous medium to deal its structure. Radial distribution function (RDF) has been used to study the structural properties of the system.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 67-74
Analysis of Aerosol Optical Depth and Angstrom Exponents over an AERONET site at Pokhara, Nepal
Authors: Regmi Jeevan , Poudyal Khem N , Pokhrel Amod , Gyawali Madhu , Barinelli Anthony , Aryal Rudra
Published: January 2021

The monthly variability of Aerosol Optical Depth at 0.50 μm (AOD0.50) and Ångström exponents (AE) based on spectral AODs over an Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) site Pokhara, are analyzed by using aerosol data of the year 2017. The AOD0.50 are characterized by low average values (0.21± 0.12) in monsoon, and highest values in pre-monsoon (0.67± 0.14) followed by winter (0.46± 0.28) and post-monsoon (0.33±.02) with an overall mean of 0.43 ± 0.02. The average AE obtained by using AODs at 0.44 μm and 0.87 μm is 1.20± 0.04 in pre-monsoon, 1.37± 0.05 in monsoon, 1.41±.01 in post-monsoon, and 1.37± 0.07 in winter with an annual average value of 1.35 ± 0.08. These overall variations of AE indicate that the majority of aerosol loading during the study period was mixture of fine and coarse mode aerosols and the influence of anthropogenic aerosols. The monthly average AOD suggests low aerosol loading in the months of the monsoon season (June to September) than other months of pre-monsoon season (March to May) and post-monsoon season (October and November).

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 118-127
A spectroscopic study of the low redshift dwarf galaxy SDSS J134326.99+431118.7 to calculate star formation rate
Authors: Chhatkuli Daya Nidhi , Paudel Sanjaya , Aryal Binil
Published: January 2021

We present a spectroscopic study of an interacting emission-line dwarf galaxy SDSS J134326.99+431118.7. We analyzed eight-strong emission lines of wavelength in a range of 3902.1Å to 6619.1Å. Among them, the strongest emission line is OIII, with an intensity of 1043.6 x 10-17 erg/s/cm2/Å. These characteristic lines show a perfect Gaussian fit with a coefficient of regression greater than 98%, where the derived full width half maximum (FWHM) is less than 3.8 Å. The line ratio between Ha  and Hb, (Ha/ Hb), is  2.73. This suggests that the galaxy is a starburst galaxy. Star Formation Rate (SFR) of the galaxy derived from Ha  emission line flux is 0.019  and emission line metallicity derived from flux ratio between NII and Ha is 7.85 dex. These morphological and physical properties of SDSSJ134326.99+431118.7 are very similar to those of a typical Blue Compact Dwarf (BCD) galaxy. We conclude that we have presented another evidence of forming a BCD-type galaxy through a merger.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 100-107
Structural analysis of Cu substituted Ni\Zn in Ni-Zn Ferrite
Authors: Parajuli Deependra , Samatha K
Published: January 2021

Ni-Zn ferrites are soft ferrites basically popular for high-frequency devices. They have low coercivity, low permeability, and higher resistivity. These properties have their own benefits on one hand but on the other hand, we can make them more efficient by doping suitable elements in order for tuning their properties for other applications. It this work, highly conducting Cu is used for substituting Ni in Ni-Zn ferrites and prepared Ni0.5-xCuxZn0.5Fe2O4 (x = 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2) samples using the sol-gel auto-combustion process. We have studied their resulting structural parameter using X-ray Powder Diffraction (XRD) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy method and compared with that of Cu substituted Zn Ni-Zn ferrites. Their structures are found to be single-phase cubic spinel similar to that of Cu substituted Zn. The lattice constant increases with Cu concentration opposite to that at Zn substitution. Likewise, the size of the crystallites was not in monotonic change with the doping concentration in both cases due to internal strain and cation distribution. The difference in the pattern of XRD and FTIR of our samples indicate their different but significant properties. The changes in the structure show the effect of Cu doping and indicate the possible interesting changes in their electric, electronic, and magnetic properties.
BIBECHANA 18  (2021) 128-133
Investigation on thermo-physical properties of liquid In-Tl alloy
Authors: Bhandari I B , Panthi N , Koirala I
Published: January 2021

This research explores mixing behaviour of liquid In – Tl system through thermodynamic and the structural properties on the basis of Complex Formation Model. The properties like surface tension and viscosity have been analyzed through simple statistical model and Moelwyn – Hughes equation. The interaction parameters are found to be positive, concentration independent and temperature dependent. Theoretical results are in a good agreement with the corresponding literature data which support homo-coordinating tendency in the liquid In-Tl alloy.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 149-158
Pyrolyzed human hair: a review on synthesis, characterization and applications
Authors: Bhandari Tika Ram , Lamsal Bidit , Adhikari Rameshwar
Published: January 2021

Human hair, a common biowaste, can be pyrolyzed to prepare many kinds of functional materials. Pyrolyzed hair has been used as in various forms of traditional medicine, sensor, ink, and electrolytes. This review highlights the major structural characteristics of human hair and its pyrolyzed form. It also addresses the characterization techniques used for the structure elucidation of pyrolyzed human hair as well as its potential applications.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 231-239
Degradation of fundamental polymers/plastics used in daily life: a review
Authors: Bhandari Netra Lal , Bhandari Ganesh , Bista Sunita , Pokhrel Basant , Bist Kabita , Dhakal Kedar Nath
Published: January 2021

Polymers are made from the monomers that are used for packaging purposes. The degradation of polymers can take place either abiotic or biotic pathways. Abiotic pathway occurs from thermal, photo-degradation, and catalytic methods whereas, biotic occurs in presence of different types of microorganisms. The degradation of polymers (polyethylene and polylactic acid) was explained by the thermal, catalytic, and biodegradation process. The thermal degradation of polyethylene and polylactic acid was explained by the thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) curve. Catalysts such as zeolites and amorphous silica-alumina are used for the degradation of polyethylene whereas, tin for polylactic acid. Microorganisms such as bacteria, fungus, and actinomycetes help for the degradation of polyethylene and polylactic acid.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 240-253
Thermal properties of normal and sickled hemoglobin protein
Authors: Powrel Jhulan , Adhikari Narayan P
Published: January 2021

Thermodynamic properties of sickled and normal hemoglobin protein are considered within the framework of classical molecular dynamics. Here we have studied the specific heat capacity and RMSD (Root Mean Square Deviation) of both types of hemoglobin protein. Our investigation reveals that the specific heat capacity and RMSD for oxygenated hemoglobin protein is higher than those of de-oxygenated sickle hemoglobin protein. It is also observed that the specific heat capacity and RMSD values of sickle hemoglobin protein decrease with a rise in temperature.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 140-148
Thermodynamic, structural, surface and transport properties of Au-Ni liquid alloy at 1150 K
Authors: Yadav S K , Chaudhary N , Adhikari D
Published: January 2021

Thermodynamic, structural, surface, and transport properties of Au-Ni liquid alloy at 1150 K were computed using different theoretical approaches. The thermodynamic properties, such as excess Gibbs free energy of mixing, enthalpy of mixing, activity and excess entropy of mixing, and structural properties, such as concentration fluctuation in long-wavelength limit and Warren-Cowley short-range order parameter were computed in the framework of Flory’s model. The effect of positive and negative values of the interchange energy parameter on the excess Gibbs free energy of mixing and concentration fluctuation in the long-wavelength limit was also observed. The surface tension and surface concentration of the system were calculated using Butler’s model. In the transport property, the viscosity of the system was calculated using Kaptay and Budai-Benko-Kaptay (BBK) models.

BIBECHANA 18 (2021) 184-192