Indian Journal of Medical and Health Sciences

Craniosacral therapy (CST) was founded as an ancient manual therapy technique to evaluate and treat altered static and dynamic skull bone mobility in relation to sacrum during respiration. Although neurophysiological basis for pediatric neurodevelopmental disorders (PND) is clear, there is still paucity in evidence on cranial mechanical aspects in these disorders. This critical review was aimed to provide an update on the literature by synthesizing evidence for CST in PND. Limited but convincing evidence suggested the application of CST in children and adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and in few developmentally delayed newborns. There is need for more studies and high quality clinical trials in this area.

Keywords: Craniosacral therapy; Manual therapy; Pediatric neurodevelopmental disorders.

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Like in so many other times in human history, technology in the 20th century was driven by war efforts.During the Second World War, Germans developed advanced cryptography and with their Enigma machines they were able to develop a new type of war that they called the Blitzkrieg strategy. On the other side the allies working at Bletchley Park, England, managed to crack the Enigma code and developed the sophisticated Colossus - the first electronic computer. Scientific discoveries during this period ranged from wireless communications to nuclear fusion and a suite of other technologies that shaped the way we live and interact with each other to the present day and its impact on human lives from public health point of view. 

Keywords: Networking; Packets; Colossus; ARPANET;Public Health; Germany; England.

Background: PubMed is not only the single largest archive of indexed articles’ and abstracts, but also the most widely searched database for use by researchers and professional bodies in all systematic reviews used for framing evidence-based clinical consensus statements and practice guidelines. Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the evidence base provided by PubMed descriptively report the current state of published articles indexed in PubMed. Methods: Descriptive exploratory study through a literature search was done to identify nine time-points in the timeline from 1970-2010, with five-year intervals in order to identify the scientific trend. The number of obtained citations were classified and analyzed under the names of search filters of PubMed namely- text availability, publication date, species, article type, language, gender and subject areas. The numbers for categories and subcategories of search filters were considered for comparison and analysis. Descriptive analysis using frequencies on Microsoft Excel 2010 worksheet was done. Results: There is an exponential increase in number of articles in general over the 40 years. Abstracts and free full text articles were equal in number. Human studies were more than animal studies. Case reports and reviews were more than other article types. More articles were of English language, with equal gender representation. There were more number of articles on cancer than on toxicology and veterinary science. Conclusion: This study found an overall observation that the largest number of articles prevalent in a particular category was also the fastest to increase in number in a 40-year trend. 

Keywords: Evidence-based healthcare; Medical informatics; Medline/PubMed; Literature search. 

PFPS is an anterior knee pain arising in the patellar subcondral bone. Alteration in patellar tracking, increased PFJ forces, or combinations of these biomechanical features is risk factors of PFPS. More recent theory suggests that pain due to “A supra physiological mechanical loading and chemical irritation of the nerve endings denoting loss of tissue homeostasis. This study finds patellar taping technique with drop squat exercises to realign the PFJ and consequently to reduce the pain level in the PFPS. This study evaluates the effectiveness of patellar taping with drop squat training program to reduce pain and improve PFJ function in patients with PFPS. A total number of 20 female athletes with PFPS was selected by purposive random sampling method after due consideration to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The study was conducted for a period of 1 month at physiotherapy department, shanmuga hospital, Salem. Selected 20 subjects before train drop squat exercise patellar movement controlled by patellar taping application. Before treated with taping and drop squat pain and knee function measured by the use of VAS and Lysholm knee function Scale. After completion of treatment program subjects post-test values of pain and knee function level recorded. The results of this study are encouraging the use of patellar taping and drop squat training to correct biomechanical factors controlling patellar tracking. 

Keywords: PFPS; PFJ; Subcondrol; VAS.

The objective of this editorial is to implicate the role of Indian Journal of Medical and Health Sciences (IJMHS) in Evidence-based medicine (EBM) and Evidence-based healthcare (EBHC). Evidence-based healthcare is contemporarily conceived on the view that clinical decisions should be based on the best available scientific evidence but recognizing patient preferences, the context of healthcare and the judgment of the clinician. Evidence-based healthcare is a process that identifies policy or clinical questions and addresses these questions by generating knowledge and evidence to effectively and appropriately deliver healthcare in ways that are effective, feasible, and meaningful to specific populations, cultures, and settings. The IJMHS in this regard welcomes articles on all aspects highlighting the role and implications of EBM and EBHC in developing countries in order to foster a strong platform to develop such models in the region. 

Keywords: Evidence-based medicine; Evidence-based healthcare; Journal’s role; Developing countries.