Kasturba Medical College, Manipal and Kasturba Medical College, Mangalore, together known as KMC, are two private medical colleges in coastal Karnataka, India, established in 1953. The colleges were established as a single unit and later became two colleges with their own teaching hospitals. KMC was the first self-financing medical college in India. The colleges are constituent units of Manipal Academy of Higher Education, an Institution of Eminence Deemed to be University.
Objective To explore how professional women undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) experience and manage conflicts between treatment demands and professional identity; and to identify ways healthcare professionals can support them.Methods Following COREQ guidelines, semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 18 professional women undergoing ART in a tertiary care hospital. Reflexive Thematic Analysis bolstered by interdisciplinary investigator triangulation (clinical and basic science) ensured thematic confirmability.Results Analysis revealed Gendered Occupational Asymmetry (female occupational burden regardless of clinical aetiology), the Insider Paradox (the role reversal for healthcare professionals) and the Workplace Panopticon (constant self-surveillance to preserve professional authority). Interestingly, work simultaneously often acted as a Sanctuary of Competence, providing psychological respite. Finally, narratives exposed an Existential Rumination (mourning past personal-professional decisions) and permanent temporal career stalling. These themes were further mapped onto a ‘A Day in the Life’ structural framework to illustrate compounding daily burdens.Conclusions Current clinical lifestyle directives inadequately account for the rigid psycho-socioeconomic structures governing professional women. Based on identified themes, we propose targeted measures for healthcare professionals to deliver patient-centric care by integrating occupational awareness and identity-sensitive counselling into routine ART practice, thereby potentially reducing distress and improving treatment experience.
Purpose: To characterise the microbiological profile of surgical site infections (SSI) following lower extremity amputation in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus and to determine the incidence of SSI and associated perioperative risk factors. Methods: A single-centre, prospective observational cohort study enrolled 76 consecutive diabetic patients undergoing above-knee (AKA) or below-knee amputation (BKA) from May 2024 to December 2025. SSI was defined and classified per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) criteria over a 30-day postoperative period. Wound cultures were obtained from all infected wounds. Preoperative parameters, including HbA1c, serum albumin, total leucocyte count, haematocrit, BMI, Doppler vascular assessment, and sepsis status, were analysed using the Chi-square test and independent-samples t-test. Results: The overall SSI incidence was 39.5% (n = 30). Culture positivity was confirmed in all 30 infected wounds, yielding 30 isolates. Gram-negative organisms predominated, accounting for 66.7% (20/30) of isolates. Escherichia coli was the most prevalent isolate (46.7%, 14/30), followed by Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae (13.3% each, 4/30), Enterobacter species (6.7%, 2/30), and Streptococcus species (6.7%, 2/30), with the remaining 13.3% (4/30) comprising other bacterial species not further speciated in this analysis (none fungal or polymicrobial). Deep SSI (30.9%, 21/68) predominated over superficial SSI (10.3%, 7/68) among BKA patients. SSI was associated with significantly prolonged postoperative stay (11.3 +/- 7.3 vs. 7.09 +/- 3.6 days; p = 0.001) and revision surgery in 56.7% (17/30) of cases. Conclusions: The Gram-negative predominant microbiological profile, with E. coli as the leading isolate, distinguishes this local epidemiological diabetic cohort from Western series and has direct implications for empirical antibiotic selection. Standard first-generation cephalosporin prophylaxis may be inadequate; broader-spectrum coverage should be considered in deep or severe SSI.
Tinnitus is defined as the perception of sound(s) without external stimulation. It causes distress and is associated with psychological conditions like anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbance. It affects a significant proportion of the population in India. However, there are no standard established tinnitus treatment programs. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is proven to effectively reduce tinnitus-related distress and improve quality of life. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) adapted to Indian English for tinnitus management in the Indian population. The study used a pre-post intervention design and included 24 adults with chronic subjective tinnitus. They completed an 8-week ICBT program adapted from Beukes et al. (Internet Interv 6:6–15, 2016, Am J Audiol 29:97–109, 2020). Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI), Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A), and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) were used to assess tinnitus severity, anxiety, and depression pre- and post-intervention. TFI scores were significantly reduced post-intervention. HAM-A and HAM-D scores were also significantly reduced. The post-intervention scores had a large overall effect on tinnitus severity as well as anxiety and depression, with 62
Paediatric pelvic radiography is a frequently performed diagnostic procedure that exposes radiosensitive organs to ionising radiation. Optimisation of imaging parameters is essential to minimise radiation dose while preserving diagnostic image quality. This systematic review aimed to evaluate technical strategies for radiation dose optimisation in paediatric pelvic radiography and assess their impact on radiation dose and image quality. A systematic search of PubMed, Scopus, Embase, and Web of Science was conducted for studies published between 2004 and 2025. Experimental and clinical studies assessing radiation dose and image quality in paediatric pelvic radiography were included. Data on exposure parameters, dose metrics, and image quality assessment methods were extracted and synthesised narratively. Nine studies met the inclusion criteria, predominantly comprising phantom-based experimental designs. Increasing tube potential (kVp), extending source-to-image distance (SID), and applying additional aluminium or copper filtration consistently reduced radiation dose. Dose reductions of up to 60–70
To determine whether 40% dextrose gel with oral feeds reduces NICU admission for asymptomatic hypoglycemia compared with standard care with oral feeds in at-risk neonates within 48 h of life. Secondary objectives were to assess rebound and recurrent hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, and exclusive breastfeeding at discharge and at 6 weeks. Open-label randomized controlled trial conducted at a tertiary hospital in South India between April 2023 and May 2024. Neonates born at ≥ 35 weeks of gestation with asymptomatic hypoglycemia within the first 48 h of life were randomly assigned to receive either 200 mg/kg of oral 40% dextrose gel with oral feeds or standard care with oral feeds alone. The primary outcome was NICU admission for hypoglycemia. A total of 193 neonates were enrolled, with 98 in the standard care group and 95 in the gel group. Baseline characteristics were comparable. NICU admission for hypoglycemia occurred in 4.2% in gel group and 12.2% in standard care group (RR 0.34, 95% CI 0.11-1.03; p = 0.06), with a number needed to treat of 13. Exclusive breastfeeding was higher in gel group at discharge (97% vs 76%; p < 0.001) and at 6 weeks (90% vs 69%; p < 0.001). Rebound hypoglycemia, recurrent hypoglycemia, and hyperglycemia were similar between groups. CONCLUSION:Oral dextrose gel was associated with fewer NICU admissions, but the primary outcome did not reach statistical significance. Improved breastfeeding rates were observed as secondary outcomes. These findings should be interpreted cautiously and confirmed in adequately powered studies. TRIAL REGISTRATION:Clinical Trials Registry of India (CTRI/2023/02/050027). WHAT'S KNOWN:• Oral 40% dextrose gel is an eff ective fi rst-line treatment for neonatal hypoglycemia and has been shown to reduce treatment failure and intravenous glucose use in previous trials. • Existing evidence is predominantly from high-income settings, with limited randomized data from low- and middle-income countries assessing pragmatic outcomes such as NICU admission. WHAT IS NEW:• In this open-label randomized controlled trial, oral dextrose gel was associated with fewer NICU admissions for hypoglycemia (4.2% vs 12.2%) and higher exclusive breastfeeding rates at discharge and 6 weeks compared with standard care. • These fi ndings support the potential utility of dextrose gel as a simple, low-cost intervention for managing neonatal hypoglycemia in resource-limited settings.
