Bioresearch Communications - (BRC)

Comparative assessment of birth preparedness and complication readiness among women in rural and urban areas of Bangladesh

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Background: Birth preparedness and complication readiness is an imperative intervention which has proven to reduce delays in care seeking behavior in case of obstetric emergencies. Although, many pregnant women and their families do not take the suggested steps to prepare for childbirth, despite of being known of them. Additionally, marked disparities often have been observed between rural and urban areas, with more maternal and neonatal deaths occurring in the rural areas owing to the unpreparedness. This study thus set out to assess and compare the knowledge, practice and factors associated with birth preparedness and complication readiness among women from rural and urban areas in Bangladesh. Methodology: A cross-sectional comparative study design have been undertaken among 250 rural and 240 urban women in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh and Shaheed Sayed Nazrul Islam Medical College and Hospital, Kishoreganj, Dhaka over a period of 6 months from 1st October 2020 to 30th March 2021. All pregnant women who attended in the antenatal clinic of SSNIMCH and SSMCH for the first time during the study period was include in the study. Quantitative data was collected by the use of semi structured questionnaires adapted from the safe motherhood questionnaire, developed by maternal and neonatal Programme of Johns Hopkins Programme for International Education in Gynaecology and Obstetrics (JHPIEGO) an affiliate of John Hopkins University. Result: Birth preparedness and complication readiness was evident in 34.17% of the urban and 30.4% of the rural respondents. Urban women were statistically significantly more aware of the danger signs of pregnancy, labour and postpartum period (p<0.001). Selection of place of delivery, arrangement of transportation, emergency fund and blood donor was the most important actions taken as part of birth preparedness both in rural and urban respondents. Null birth preparedness was observed among 28.0% of the rural respondents compared to 2.50% of the urban respondents. The decision regarding the place of delivery was taken mostly by their husband both in urban and rural sub sets. Thus, this study findings showed low practice of BPACR both among urban and rural community while rural people showed more inaction than urban people.

Drug-resistant, biofilm-producing uropathogens isolated and characterized from urinary tract infected patients in Chattogram, Bangladesh

Sweety Majumdar, Sohana Akter Mina, Yasmin Akter, Lolo Wal Marzan — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Urinary tract infections are a major public health concern. The formation of biofilm is the prime cause of antibiotic resistance by uropathogens. This study was conducted for the determination and biochemical characterization of uropathogens with drug resistance and biofilm formation capacity among Urinary Tract infected patients in Chattogram, Bangladesh. The samples (n=109) had been collected from the patients of Chattogram Medical College and Meghna diagnostic center, Chattogram, Bangladesh. Pathogens were biochemically identified from 109 urine samples, and their antibiotic susceptibility was determined using a disk diffusion test. Biofilm formation capacity was observed and confirmed using the Congo red agar (CRA) method and sequence analysis of the esp and cup A genes. Among 109 urine samples, 50 (45.87%) patients were tested positive in culture with gram-negative bacteria, where the most predominant genus was Escherichia coli (54%), Klebsiella spp. (30%) and Pseudomonas spp. (16%), which also showed sensitivity against the antibiotic Imipenem and Netilmicin. Besides, almost 82% of isolates showed resistance to Ampicillin. An epidemiological study showed that females (60%) are more susceptible to UTI compared to children and males; where it also showed that the people (68%) of greater Chattogram in summer are mostly infected with uropathogens along with diabetes (32%). In the biofilm formation test, it was found that 36% of uropathogens were exopolysaccharide producers. But no isolate was detected in PCR analysis. The present study showed that Imipenem can be used as a suitable antibiotic to treat UTI.

Green Tea Augments Cognitive Function: An In Silico Model

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Recent scientific advancements have sparked an increasing trend of returning to nature. Scientists worldwide prefer natural medical derivatives over synthetic ones due to fewer side effects. Green tea is abundant in bioactive components and vitamins. Although most components of green tea were thought to be absorbed inadequately by oral administration, they are essential for better health. In the present study, an in silico approach was taken to evaluate the effect or correlation of bioactive components of tea on memory retention, cognitive performance, and prevention of neurodegenerative diseases that result in memory alterations, dementia, and cognitive dysfunction. Furthermore, binding of bioactive components with brain-specific proteins and possible alterations in those proteins due to tea components were illustrated. Four critical brain-specific proteins were evaluated in the present molecular analysis. Cyclooxygenase 1 (COX1), Acetylcholinesterase (AChE), Amyloid-β Precursor Protein (APP1), and Cytochrome P4502D6 (Cyp2D6) were the proteins involved. Their interaction with the bioactive components of green tea was evaluated using computational molecular docking analysis (CMDA). The bioactive molecules were Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), L-Theanine, Kaemferol, Coumarin, and Myricetin. The beneficial effect of green tea on memory was prioritized in this study. CMDA has shown possible inhibition of acetylcholinesterase, amyloid-β protein, cyclooxygenase 1, and Cytochrome P4502D6 (Cyp2D6). Bioactive components of green tea passed the blood-brain barrier and influenced short-term memory at low concentrations. Significant dosage or concentration in capsulated form might result in long-term effects since both bioavailability, and concentration of essential components of green tea are scarce.

Antagonistic potentiality of six wheat rhizosphere fungi against leaf blight pathogen Bipolaris sorokiniana (Sacc.) Shoemaker

Mst. Selina Momtaz, Shamim Shamsi, Tapan Kumar Dey — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Six wheat rhizosphere fungi (Aspergillus flavus, A. fumigatus, A. niger, Penicillium sp., Trichoderma harzianum and T. viride) were evaluated for their antagonistic potentiality towards sixteen isolates of Bipolaris sorokiniana (Sacc.) Shoemaker under different cultural groups. Colony interaction using duel culture technique, inhibition owing to volatile and non-volatile substances in different concentrations were performed. Among them Trichoderma harzianum showed the best performance (colony interaction 61.69-79.02%, volatile substances 44.14-61.34% and non-volatile culture filtrate 47.28-68.14% at 20% concentration) to control Bipolaris sorokiniana followed by Trichoderma viride, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus, A. fumigatus and Penicillium sp..

The presence of hydroquinone, and mercury in skin toning creams, as well as lead in turmeric powder, pose potential health risks to Bangladeshi women

Urmi Sarkar, Ar-Rafi Md. Faisal, Hossain Uddin Shekhar — Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Skin toning creams and turmeric powders are widely used among Bangladeshi fashion and beauty concerned women and young girls in general. However, it has been reported that excessive use of skin toning cream and turmeric powder can cause various dermatological problems, including skin cancer. These creams and turmeric powder contain a wide variety of active ingredients, including Hydroquinone (HQ), Mercury (Hg), and Lead (Pb), that are toxic, and hazardous to health, especially after prolonged application. As a result, in the current study, we tried to assess HQ and Hg level in commonly used skin toning creams and Pb in turmeric powder in the context of Bangladeshi women collected from the local markets in Dhaka city. HQ, Hg, and Pb levels were analyzed for 40 different Bangladeshi skin toning cream products and 40 different turmeric powder samples. The HQ level was determined by the high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method, the Hg level was determined by Cold Vapor Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (CV-AAS) using an automatic mercury analyzer, and Pb was measured by the flame atomic absorption spectrometry method. Among the 40 samples, 23 samples (57.5%) did not contain HQ, whereas 17 samples (42.5%) contained a high level of HQ compared to the standard limit. In the case of Hg analysis, we found that 28 (70%) out of 40 samples complied with the standard level of Hg, whereas 12 samples (30%) contained a higher level of Hg compared to the standard limit. Among the 40 samples of turmeric powder, 20 samples (50%) complied with the standard level of Pb, whereas 20 samples (50%) contained a high level of Pb compared to the standard limit. After three and six months of storage, we had similar results in all the samples for the three cases. After combining HQ and Hg data sets, we found that 14 (35%) out of the 40 samples had HQ and Hg levels within the standard limit, and 3 samples (7.5%) had higher quantities of both HQ and Hg levels and did not comply with the standard limit. 14 samples (35%) in the data set had higher HQ levels but complied only with the standard Hg level, whereas 9 samples (22.5%) had higher Hg levels and thus complied only with the standard HQ level. So, in 65% of the samples, we found the presence of excess level of either both HQ and Hg at the same time or any one of the measured chemical parameters. The use of these creams and turmeric powders, which did not comply with the standard limit, may pose a serious health risk to consumers. So, consumers should be aware of the risks associated with using these creams and turmeric powders, and policymakers should take appropriate measures to prevent the manufacturing and marketing of skin toning creams containing high levels of HQ and Hg and turmeric powder with high levels of Pb.

Effect of Consultant Couple Interactive (CCI) session on fertility outcome among couples attending a primary Infertility Care Centre in Bangladesh

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Background: Consultant Couple Interactive (CCI) session is an interactive session held weekly between service provider and the infertile couple. Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of CCI sessions on fertility outcome. Methodology: This mixed method study was conducted from May 2009 to August 2012. The samples were collected from a primary care center at Bheramara upazila of district of Kushtia on couples attending during that period. The qualitative part was performed on couples by asking open-ended questions as well as the focus group discussion (FGD). For quantitative part, a preformed data collection sheet (questionnaire) was used to collect data through face to face interview. Results: A total number of 275 couples were studied. For qualitative study, 55(20%) couples were selected, of them 41 participated. In a single focused group up to 6 (12 persons) couples were included. Among the 41 couples, 61% had primary and in 39% had secondary infertility. All the respondents were exposed to CCI sessions but 186 (67.6%) were treated with only with CCI. Out of the remaining 53 (19.3%), needed ovulation inducing oral drugs, 5 (1.8%) were treated with metformin and the others required medical and surgical treatments in different combination according to need. Out of 275 respondents, 112 (40.7%) conceived and among the conceived group, 72 (64.3%) conceived only following CCI. From the seven FGDs, it was revealed that most of the couples followed the advices provided during CCI session, majority were able to improve the relationship among partners and two third of the respondents could relieve 75% of environmental pressure exerted on them. Conclusion: The consultant couple interactive session has significant effect on fertility outcome among infertile couples.

Detection of Multi-Drug-Resistance (MDR) Mycobacterium tuberculosis among Suspected Tuberculosis Patients in Bangladesh using Line Probe Assay

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Background: Multi-drug resistant (MDR) Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the most significant concerns in tuberculosis control. Genotyping of Mycobacterium tuberculosis helps study evolutionary relationships, its transmission, and molecular epidemiology. The collaborative data from genotyping along with demographic data allows the observation of the current trends of the disease within a population. The molecular tools developed in the past two decades to detect this disease were found to be expensive. Using the Line Probe Assay (LPA) molecular method, it has become simpler to diagnose M. tuberculosis. This study aimed to detect the prevalence of MDR-TB in Bangladesh using LPA. Methods: LPA was used to identify sensitivity or resistance to the antibiotics Isoniazid (INH) and Rifampicin (RIF) (two out of the five first-line TB drugs.). Results: Out of 500 acid-fast smear-positive and LPA-positive sputum samples, the percentages of only RIF, only INH resistant, and resistant to both RIF and INH were 2.2%, 7.6%, and 12.6%, respectively. The majority of the detected MDR-TB cases were from patients within the age range of 21-40 years. This study found the highest number of MDR-TB in the relapse category of patients. Conclusion: LPA can be used successfully to identify MDR-TB prevalence in Bangladesh.

Chronic Recurrent Mastitis: Bangladesh Perspective-10 Years Study in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Sun, 03 Jul 2022 00:00:00 -0500

Introduction: Granulomatous mastitis is a very significant chronic breast infection poses a lot of challenge for diagnosis and management. Treatment options are ranging from various medical management to different surgical procedure. However, none of the treatment strategy is considered as standard so far. In this study, we showed some investigations and management options for chronic breast infections. Materials and methods: It is a randomized clinical trial done in BIRDEM (Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation of Diabetic Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders) Hospital and Ibrahim Medical College from July 2013 to June 2020. We enrolled patients on basis of histopathological report of chronic breast infected patients. Gene X-pert for tuberculosis, MT (Montoux Test) and bacterial culture was done in all enrolled patients. Results: A total of 165 female patients were enrolled in this study. Patient’s age was between 13-68 years with mean age 31.5 years. Maximum 44.85% (76) cases were found in 20-30 yeas age group. Most common clinical presentation non healing discharging ulcer 51.52% (85) followed by mass with abscess 26.02% (43) and mass with sinus 22.42% (37). Diagnosis was confirmed by histopathologically. Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis was found in 58.79 %( 97) patients and Tubercular Mastitis in 41.21% (68) patients. Tubercular Mastitis was treated by standard Anti tubercular drugs in 23.72% (37) patients and by additional oral methyl prednisolone in 18.79% (31). 21.82% (36) Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis was treated with oral methyl prednisolone and sensitive antibiotic, whereas 36.97% (61) patients needed additional oral methotrexate. Different type of surgical procedures needed in both infections to achieve the goal. Conclusion: We want to share our experience regarding diagnosis and management of different chronic breast infections and final outcome of management