Background: Substance abuse in various forms has been a social problem in various forms for many centuries. Kerala shows a high prevalence in alcoholism and is ranked top in India. This study is aimed at finding the prevalence and determinants of substance abuse among youth in central part of Kerala in South India.Methods: A community based study was done with 402 college student participants using a self- administered pretested semi structured questionnaire. Data was entered into microsoft excel and analysed using Epiinfo3.5.3.Results: Out of 402 students, 31.8% used or abused any one of the substances (alcohol, smoking, pan chewing) irrespective of time and frequency in lifetime. Age, gender, place of residence, attitude towards ban were significantly associated with substance abuse.Conclusions: The alarming trend of substance abuse among the youth reveals the urgent need to curb the menace. Adolescent counselling sessions might ensure preventing such behaviour from being inculcated in early adolescence.

Background: India started Covid-19 vaccination from January 16, 2021 after the approval of two candidate vaccines namely Covishield TM and Covaxin TM .We report antibody responses among healthcare workers following two doses of CovishieldTM vaccination in a tertiary care setting. Methods: This prospective serosurveillance study was done among healthcare workers of JMMC&RI ,vaccinated during January to March 2021. Blood samples were drawn from 170 participants after their 1st dose and from 156 participants after their 2nd dose of COVID vaccine to measure the specific antibodies against the recombinant S1 subunit of the S protein of SARS CoV 2 Results: The median level of anti SARS CoV-2 Ig G antibody 28 days after the first dose vaccination is 3.64 S/C (IQR=5.91) and 11.6 S/C (IQR= 5.97) after 14 days of second dose vaccination. Protective levels of anti SARS CoV-2 Ig G antibodies is developed by 25 participants (14.7%) after 28 days of first dose of vaccination and by 109 participants (69.9%) after 14 days of second dose. 18-44 years age group (p=0.027) and absence of comorbidities (p=0.079) are associated with protective IgG levels. Conclusions: Rise in specific Ig G is observed after vaccination. Higher antibody response is observed with younger age group and absence of comorbidities, though statistically not significant. The influence of BMI is also not significant.

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A 30-year-old male working in an abattoir in UAE returned home to Kerala, South India, after getting diagnosed with Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever infection. He was admitted to a tertiary care center on the day of arrival and was placed under isolation. Due to the risk of spread of infection among health-care workers, contact-tracing and symptom-monitoring activities were undertaken. As strict standard contact precautions, isolation, contact identification and listing, quarantine, and sensitization of health-care workers were implemented, no secondary cases occurred.

Background: The reports on adverse experiences following vaccination are scanty from India. It is important to know the real-world post-vaccination experience outside of clinical trial conditions Objectives: To estimate the incidence of adverse events following immunization with ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 coronavirus vaccine and to identify the predictors for development of vaccine adverse events Materials and Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted among health care workers who received the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 coronavirus vaccine. Study participants were monitored at the site for 30 min following vaccination and were followed up for 7 days after receiving the second dose, with a purpose-specific designed online surveillance form to enquire about any adverse events following vaccination. We used the Chi-squared test for categorical variables and multivariate regression analysis to identify predictors for the development of vaccine adverse effects. Results: Of 411 participants, the mean age was 30.77 ± 12.5 years and 76.2% were females. Overall, 207 (50.4%) respondents reported at least one post-vaccination symptom receiving either dose of coronavirus vaccination. Fever (34.8%), local pain at the injection site (28.0%), tiredness (25.5%), chills (20%), myalgia (18.7%), headache (17.8%), injection site stiffness (5.4%), joint pain (4.6%) and nausea-vomiting (3.8%) were the most prevalent symptoms following the first dose. Adverse reactions reported after the second dose were milder and less frequent. Post-vaccination symptoms were more likely in the younger age group, those with comorbidity particularly, bronchial asthma and who had a history of allergy to food/drugs. Conclusion: All the adverse reactions were of a minor type and non-serious. Side effects were less common in older adults (>60 years). Reactions to the second dose were lesser in intensity and frequency. Younger age, history of allergy, and comorbidities, particularly asthma were found to be major predictors for the development of adverse events and require more watchful vaccine administration