We report GPS measurements of postseismic deformation from 22 campaign‐mode and one continuous GPS sites in the Andaman‐Nicobar region following the great Sumatra‐Andaman earthquake of 26 December ...2004. Large horizontal displacements toward west to southwest, varying in magnitude from 10 to 40 cm, and with uplift reaching 16 cm, occurred in the region in the first year after the earthquake. The observed motion decreased logarithmically in the subsequent year. We suggest that in the Andaman region, frictional afterslip occurred farther downdip of the coseismic rupture, while in the Little Andaman and Nicobar regions, the coseismic rupture and afterslip patch partly overlapped. The afterslip was mostly aseismic and did not contribute to the aftershocks. The aftershocks and postseismic displacements appear to follow a similar relationship, although with different decay times. The temporal dependence of the two differs only by a term linear in time. Thus the temporal evolution of the afterslip seems to be consistent with a mechanism governed by frictional afterslip. Available rates of interseismic and postseismic deformation and coseismic static offsets allow us to approximately estimate a return period of about 400 years for great earthquakes in the Andaman region.
We undertook cost analysis for diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) using present algorithm under Revised National Tuberculosis Control programme and using Xpert MTB/RIF (Xpert) as frontline ...test or in conjunction with smear microscopy and/or chest radiography.
Costs were estimated for different strategies: (A) present algorithm involving sputum smear examination followed by antibiotic trial in smear negative patients, repeat smear examination (RE) if symptoms continue and chest radiography if RE negative; (B) direct Xpert; (C) smear microscopy followed by Xpert in smear negative patients; (D) radiography followed by Xpert in those having abnormal pulmonary shadows; and (E) smear examination followed by radiography among smear negative patients and Xpert in presence of abnormal pulmonary shadow.
Cost to program was estimated lowest with Strategy A and highest with Strategy B. Compared to the latter, program cost reduces by 7%, 4.5%, and 17.4% by strategies C, D, and E, respectively. Cost to the group of individuals with presumptive PTB and their attendants is significantly higher for Strategy A compared to other four strategies. Among the latter, the patients' cost was minimum with Strategy B and maximum with Strategy C. Program cost per case diagnosed was lowest by Strategy A and highest by Strategy B. Patient cost per case diagnosed was highest by Strategy A and lowest by Strategy B. Using Xpert, Strategy E had the lowest program as well as overall cost per case diagnosed.
Strategy E may be chosen for diagnosis of PTB. When resources would no longer be a constraint, direct Xpert would reduce costs incurred by the patients.
SETTING: Bangalore city slums, India.OBJECTIVES: To ascertain 1) health-seeking behaviour patterns in persons with pulmonary symptoms; 2) pathways followed by pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) cases until ...diagnosis and treatment; and 3) their knowledge about TB-symptoms, cause,
mode of transmission, diagnosis and treatment.METHODS: In selected slums, persons with pulmonary symptoms identified during house visits and residents with PTB were interviewed using pre-tested, semi-structured questionnaires. Visits to relevant health centres were made to obtain information
regarding their treatment.RESULTS: About 50% of the 124 persons with pulmonary symptoms interviewed had taken action for relief; of these, three quarters had first approached private health facilities. About 19% had undergone sputum microscopy and 27% chest X-ray. Of 47 PTB cases interviewed,
72% first approached private health facilities; about 50% visited two health facilities before diagnosis and 87% visited two or more facilities before initiating treatment; 42 initiated treatment at government health facilities and five who initiated treatment at private health facilities
were later referred to government health facilities. The majority of persons with pulmonary symptoms and PTB cases had poor knowledge about TB, and most of those with pulmonary symptoms were not aware of the availability of free anti-tuberculosis services at government health facilities.CONCLUSION:
Educational interventions targeted at slum dwellers and their health providers are needed.
Estimates of the prevalence of tuberculous infection among children 1-9 years of age were available for four defined zones of India from a recently concluded tuberculin survey. These were pooled ...together and the average annual risk of infection in the country was computed as 1.5%.
It was higher in urban areas, at 2.2%, than in rural areas, at 1.3%. The results call for further intensification of tuberculosis control activities, especially in urban areas, greater involvement of private practitioners and information, education and communication (IEC) for high-risk groups,
to reduce the diagnostic and treatment delay thereby reducing the transmission of infection in all settings.
We analyze GPS data from 26 sites located on the Indian plate and along its boundary. The large spatial coverage of the Indian plate by these sites and longer data duration helped us in refining the ...earlier estimates of the Euler pole for the Indian plate rotation. Our analysis suggests that the internal deformation of the Indian plate is very low (<1–2mm/year) and the entire plate interior region largely behaves as a rigid plate. Specifically, we did not infer any significant difference in motion on sites located north and south of the Narmada Son failed rift region, the most prominent tectonic feature within the Indian plate and a major source of earthquakes. Our analysis also constrains the motion across the Indo-Burmese wedge, Himalayan arc, and Shillong Plateau and Kopili fault in the NE India.
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► Indian plate motion is constrained from GPS data from 26 sites on Indian plate. ► Euler pole of rotation for Indian plate is at 51.4°N, 8.9°E with ω as 0.539°/Myr. ► The Indian plate is rigid as the internal deformation is very small.
The paper reports densities, speeds of sound of binary 2-pyrrolidinone (2) + 2-, 3-, 4- picoline (3) and ternary piperidine, 1-methylpiperidine (1) + 2-pyrrolidinone (2) + 2-, 3-, 4-picoline (3) ...mixtures over full composition of x1; x1 and x2 within range 293.15–308.15 K with 5 K footstep at atmospheric pressure. The molar heat capacities of the same set of binary mixtures have also been measured at the above said temperatures. Excess molar volumes, VE, V123E; excess isentropic compressibilities, κSE, (κSE)123 and excess heat capacities, CPE for the current mixtures have been determined from the measured data and derived properties have been correlated to composition using Redlich–Kister equation. VE, V123E, κSE, (κSE)123, CPE; IR spectral studies and estimated internuclear distances among interacted atoms (using quantum concepts) have been used to characterize interactions in mixtures taking into consideration effect of composition and temperature.
•The ρ, u, CP; ρ123,u123 of studied binary and ternary mixtures have been measured.•The VE, (κSE), CPE and V123E, (κSE)123 of the examined binary and ternary mixtures have been determined from the measured data.•The derived data have been tested in terms of Graph theory.•The VE, (κSE), CPE and V123E, (κSE)123 data calculated by Graph theory are in well agreement with their corresponding experimental values.
SETTING: Selected villages in three defined zones of India.OBJECTIVES: To compare the estimated prevalence of tuberculous infection among children with and without bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) ...scar.STUDY DESIGN: During a nationwide tuberculin survey, 1-9-year-old
children were tuberculin tested using 1TU-PPD RT23 with Tween 80.RESULTS: In the 5-9 year age group, subgroups of tuberculous infected children could be seen as distinct humps among those with or without BCG scar, but not in those aged 1-4 years. In children aged 1-4
years, the estimated prevalence of infection was respectively 3.5%, 3.8% and 3.6% among children without BCG scar, and 4.8%, 4.7% and 4.5% among children with BCG scar in the western, northern and eastern zones. In those aged 5-9 years, the estimated prevalence was respectively 10.4%,
11.0% and 9.1% among children without BCG scar and 11%, 11.9% and 8.7% among children with BCG scar in the three zones. Thus, in children aged 1-4 years, the estimated prevalence among those with BCG scar was considerably higher than in those without BCG scar. This difference was small
in those aged 5-9 years.CONCLUSION: Tuberculin surveys may be conducted irrespective of BCG scar status among children aged 5-9 years, when BCG vaccination is given using Danish 1331 strain during infancy under the Expanded Program of Immunization.
Competitive sports training causes structural and conductive system changes manifesting by various electrocardiographic alterations. We undertook this study to assess the prevalence of abnormal ECG ...in trained Indian athletes and correlate it with the nature of sports training, that is endurance or strength training.
We evaluated a standard resting, lying 12 lead Electrocardiogram (ECG) in 66 actively training Indian athletes. Standard diagnostic criteria were used to define various morphological ECG abnormalities.
33/66 (50%) of the athletes were undertaking endurance training while the other 33 (50%) were involved in a strength-training regimen. Overall 54/66 (81%) sportsmen had significant ECG changes. 68% of these changes were considered as normal training related features, while the remaining 32% were considered abnormal. There were seven common training related ECG changes–Sinus Bradycardia (21%), Sinus Arrhythmia (16%), 1st degree Atrioventricular Heart Block (6%), Type 1 2nd-degree Atrioventicular Heart Block (3%), Incomplete Right bundle branch block (RBBB) (24%), Early Repolarization (42%), Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (LVH) (14%); while three abnormal ECG changes--T-wave inversion (13%), RBBB(4%), Right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH) with strain (29%) were noted. Early repolarization (commonest change), sinus bradycardia, and incomplete RBBB were the commoner features noticed, with a significantly higher presence in the endurance trained athletes.
A high proportion of athletes undergoing competitive level sports training are likely to have abnormal ECG recordings. Majority of these are benign, and related to the physiological adaptation to the extreme levels of exertion. These changes are commoner during endurance training (running) than strength training (weightlifting).
To estimate the annual risk of infection with tubercle bacilli in the northern zone of India.
A community-based cross-sectional tuberculin survey was conducted among children aged 1-9 years who lived ...in a sample of villages and urban blocks of six selected districts in a defined north zone of India. A two-stage cluster sampling method was used to select rural and urban clusters. A total of 48 624 children in 598 clusters were subjected to tuberculin testing with one tuberculin unit (1 TU) of PPD RT23 stabilized with Tween 80. The maximum transverse diameter of induration was measured about 72 hours after the test.
Among the 48 624 test-read children, 22 064 (45.4%) had a bacille Calmette-Gu rin (BCG) scar. On the basis of the frequency distribution of tuberculin reaction size among 25 816 children without a BCG scar, the prevalence of infection with tubercle bacilli was estimated as 10.3%. The annual risk of infection was computed as 1.9%. The proportion of infected children was significantly higher in urban than rural areas.
The high rate of tuberculous infection in the north zone of India suggests the need for further intensification of tuberculosis control efforts on a sustained and long-term basis.
Static offsets due to the 26 December 2004 Sumatra‐Andaman earthquake have been reported from the campaign mode GPS measurements in the Andaman‐Nicobar region. However, these measurements contain ...contributions from postseismic deformation that must have occurred in the 16–25 days period between the earthquake and the measurements. We analyse these and tide gauge measurements of coseismic deformation, a longer time series of postseismic deformation from GPS measurements at Port Blair in the South Andaman and aftershocks, to suggest that postseismic displacement not larger than 7 cm occurred in the 16–25 days following the earthquake in the South Andaman and probably elsewhere in the Andaman Nicobar region. Earlier, this contribution was estimated to be as large as 1 m in the Andaman region, which implied that the magnitude of the earthquake based on these campaign mode measurements should be decreased. We suggest an Mw for this earthquake as 9.23.
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