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Biomedical subjects

K Vijayakumar

Publications and source records attributed to K Vijayakumar.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Eosinophilic meningitis due to Angiostrongylus cantonensis.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is a nematode parasite that inhabits the pulmonary arteries and heart of rodents. It is one of the causative agents of fatal eosinophilic meningoencephalitis in man. We present five cases of eosinophilic meningitis presumably due to infection with Angiostrongylus cantonensis . All the five patients gave history of ingestion of monitor lizard within ten days of onset of symptoms.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Splenic abscess in a boy with isolated levocardia.

Levocardia with situs inversus is a rare condition. We present the case of a fourteen-year-old boy with congenital cyanotic heart disease, isolated levocardia and splenic abscess. It is the first report of both these conditions occurring in the same person.

Abdominal Abscess↗
PubMed2002

Intestinal helminthic infestations among tribal populations of Kottoor and Achankovil areas in Kerala (India).

The present study was undertaken among 258 subjects belonging to 152 houses of two tribal communities (Kani and Malampandaram) settled in Kottoor and Achankovil areas, respectively of Thiruvananthapuram and Kollam districts in Kerala, South India. The survey covered people of all age groups and both the sexes from the study population. Out of the total 258 stool samples examined, 60 showed ova of one or more intestinal helminthes, showing the overall prevalence of 23.3% with a confidence interval of 18.5-28.45. Among the tribal populations of two areas studied, Achankovil area showed an increased overall prevalence rate (26.15%) as compared to Kottoor area (22.27%). The difference in prevalence rates of the two areas is found to be statistically significant (p-value 0.01). Hookworm infestation was found to be predominant (58.82%) in Achankovil and the remaining (41.1%) was due to only roundworm. Whereas in Kottoor area, roundworm infestation predominated (74.41%) followed by hookworm (18.6%) and other types (6.97%). Analysis of haemoglobin (Hb) level of the 190 study population showed that 66.32% were anaemic (<11 gm/dl) from both the areas. The proportions of subjects either moderately anaemic (7 gm/dl-11 gm/dl) or severely anaemic (<7 gm/dl) were almost same in the two study groups, showing a similar pattern in both the areas with no statistically significant difference. Haemoglobin level in relation to helminthic infestation revealed that in the worm infested group, 81.1% (43/53) was anaemic, as compared to only 60% (83/137) of non-worm infested group, showing significant difference (p value=0.01). Hb level in relation to helminthic infestation also seemed to differ in both the areas. Among the environmental factors studied in relation to helminthic infestation, the practice of hand wash alone was found out to be statistically significant, showing that habit of proper hand wash considerably reduces the risk of helminthic infestation.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Sociobiology and HLA genetic polymorphism in hill tribes, the Irula of the Nilgiri hills and the Malayali of the Shevroy hills, south India.

Two endogamous tribes of Tamil Nadu, South India, the Irula of the Nilgiri hills and the Malayali of the Shevroy hills, were studied for their sociobiology and HLA polymorphism. For sociobiological studies 166 marriages in the Irula and 368 marriages in the Malayali were recorded. The number and spatial distribution of patrilineal clans and their marriageable range (number of clans from which the brides came) were studied. Eight clans in the Irula and 16 clans in the Malayali were identified. Of these the Kuppar of the Irula and the Malayan of Malayali were the largest clans, and both of them had the greatest marriageable range. The numerical strength and the resultant spatial distribution correlated well with the marriageable range. HLA-A, B, and DR polymorphism was studied on 191 Irula and 42 Malayali following standard procedures. HLA typing revealed high frequencies (> 10%) of alleles HLA-A2, A9, A11, B17, B35, B40, DR2, and DR7 in both tribes, but the Irula had elevated HLA-A10, B8, and DR8 frequencies and the Malayali had elevated HLA-A31, B7, DR4, and DR5 frequencies. Two-locus haplotypes A10-B8 and A2-B5 were identified in both tribes, but A11-B40 and A2-B53 were present only in the Irula and A33-B44 and B15-DR6 were present only in the Malayali. The sociobiology of the Irula was correlated to the HLA genetic profile. The Irula sample was stratified based on clan and HLA data; The Kuppar clan was closer to the Kalkatti, the second largest clan, than to the Pungar and the Sambar clans. Thus the numerical strength and spatial distribution of various exogamous clans, presumably a result of migration during different periods of history, is reflected in the marriageable range and thus in the genetic distance. In studying HLA or any other genetic polymorphism of an endogamous tribe or caste, one needs to consider the social structure, spatial distribution, and marriageable range.

Emigration and Immigration↗
PubMed1991

High morbidity and low mortality--the experience of urban preschool children in Kerala.

This study was undertaken to estimate the morbidity pattern in children under 3 years in urban Kerala. Two cohorts of 111 and 74 children were selected from contrasting areas in Trivandrum city, capital of Kerala, by systematic sampling. Morbidity information on each child was gathered for one year through weekly visits and recording of symptoms by trained investigators. The results showed: 1. very high incidence rates of all illness groups studied, with peak incidence being observed in the first 6 months and the lowest in the third year; 2. up to six times greater risk for many disease groups in the more environmentally deprived area; 3. no significant differences in risk between sexes; 4. no seasonal variation. We conclude that despite low infant and child mortality levels, morbidity load in Kerala, for 0-3-year-old children is very high and this is directly related to the quality of the environment.

Cause of Death↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Type 2 diabetes in southern Kerala: variation in prevalence among geographic divisions within a region.

BACKGROUND: Numerous surveys carried out in India report the high prevalence of type 2 diabetes. Such studies have not included the population of Kerala. We estimated the prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus in Neyyattinkara taluk, Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala state. METHODS: All panchayat wards in the taluk were grouped into urban, highland, midland or coastal, and one ward from each stratum was randomly selected for the study. All households were listed and adults, 20 years or older, screened for high (> 110 mg/dl) random blood sugar (RBS) by a glucometer test. Those with high RBS were reassessed by a fasting oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), consisting of initial examination of venous blood for fasting plasma glucose (FPG) values, administration of 75 g of glucose dissolved in distilled water, and examination of venous blood for postprandial plasma glucose (PPPG) exactly 2 hours after the administration of glucose. Diabetes was diagnosed according to the World Health Organization criteria as either FPG > 139 mg/dl, or PPPG > 199 mg/dl, or both. Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) was diagnosed if PPPG was 140-199 mg/dl. RESULTS: Out of 4988 eligible subjects, 3899 were available for the study, a response rate of 78.2%. Response was highest in the highland area (86.2%), and lowest in the coastal area (73.6%). The overall crude prevalence rate of type 2 diabetes was 5.9%. It was highest in the urban (12.4%), followed by midland (8.1%), highland (5.8%), and coastal (2.5%) regions. Ageing was associated with greater prevalence of type 2 diabetes in all regions and both sexes. Women showed a higher prevalence in the highland and coastal areas and men in the urban and midland areas. When compared to a population with standard age structure suggested by the World Health Organization for international comparisons, prevalence in the age group 30-64 years was found to be 16.9% in the urban, 10.1% in the midland, 6.8% in the highland and 3.6% in the coastal regions, respectively. Overall age-adjusted prevalence of type 2 diabetes in 30-64-year-olds in Neyyattinkara was 9.2% among men, 7.4% among women, and 8.2% for all persons. There was not much difference in prevalence if the American Diabetes Association criteria for diagnosis were used. The prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance was fairly low in this population. Out of 229 diabetics in the sample, 175 (76.5%) were already diagnosed and under treatment, while our survey identified 54 new diabetics (23.5%). CONCLUSION: Though prevalence of type 2 diabetes is high in this population, the detection rate is also high. However, impaired fasting glucose and impaired glucose tolerance are low. The reasons for this need to be elucidated.

Adult↗