Pemphigus vulgaris (PV) is an autoimmune blistering condition affecting 0.1 to 0.5 per 100,000 people worldwide. 1 Before the advent of corticosteroids, PV was invariably fatal and even when treated, mortality rates are as high as 15%. 2 PV is characterised by painful flaccid bullae with mucosal or mucocutaneous distribution and commonly manifests orally. 3,4 Histologically, intraepithelial splitting of

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This paper analyses the Annual Surveys on International Trade in Banking Services of the Reserve Bank of India for the period 2013-19. It compares performance across three different categories of banks namely, Indian Banks' Branches Operating Abroad, Indian Banks' Subsidiaries Operating Abroad and Foreign Banks' Branches Operating in India. Using trend and percentage analysis, the paper portrays various parameters graphically. The analysis demonstrates that the Foreign Banks in India perform better than the Indian banks abroad. The paper suggests compliance with BASEL-III norms and prudential regulations along with better technological compliance for more competitive performance by the Indian counterparts in future.

Introduction: Aspergillus is one of the most ubiquitous airborne saprophytic fungi. Humans constantly inhale numerous conidia of this fungus. The conidia are normally eliminated in the immunocompetent host by innate immune mechanisms. With increase in the number of immunocompromised patients, there has been a dramatic increase in severe and fatal invasive aspergillosis (IA). The present study was aimed to know the clinico-mycological profile of suspected pulmonary aspergillosis cases. Methods: The present study was a prospective study conducted over a period of 1 year in the department of microbiology in admitted cases with clinical suspicion of pulmonary aspergillosis. Samples such as sputum, bronchoalveolar lavage, endotracheal secretions, fine-needle aspiration or biopsy and blood (for serological analysis) were collected and processed as per standard protocol. Results: Over a period of 1 year, 89 cases were included in the study. Their mean age was 58.7 years. Majority were male (60.6%). The most common presentation was cough (89.9%), followed by chest pain (57.3%) and fever (56.2% most common chest X-ray finding was homogeneous haziness (40.4%). Fungal smear was positive in 55.1% and 61.8% showed fungal growth. Galactomannan (GM) and (1-3)-β-D glucan positivity were 56% and 83.3%, respectively. The mortality was observed in 21.4% of patients. Conclusions: The study demonstrated that GM assay and (1-3)-β-D glucan assay are useful diagnostic modalities with a high sensitivity and specificity for the detection of pulmonary aspergillosis in high-risk patients along with positive fungal culture. Thus, these tests are early markers for IA.