No abstract

Background Non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is commonly diagnosed in patients presenting with metabolic syndrome (MetS) and has been associated with single nucleotide polymorphisms of rs738409 in the patatin‐like phospholipase domain containing 3 (PNPLA3) gene. This association remains to be investigated in the South Indian population. We aimed to determine the association of the PNPLA3 rs738409 gene polymorphism with MetS and NAFLD among a Chennai‐based population. Methods The study comprised 105 NAFLD cases and 102 controls. All subjects were genotyped for the PNPLA3 rs738409 variant and MetS was defined according to the National Cholesterol Education Program – Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. Our case–control study showed the association of the variant with NAFLD and MetS. Results The PNPLA3 rs738409 variant was associated with NAFLD and the genotype frequencies (CC/CG/GG) were 19 (18.1%), 50 (47.6%) and 36 (34.3%) in the NAFLD group and 59 (57.8%), 29 (28.4%) and 14 (13.7%) in the control group respectively. We also confirmed the interaction between the PNPLA3 rs738409 polymorphism and MetS with respect tto elevated triglyceride levels. However, an association with elevated waist circumference, fasting glucose, blood pressure and decreased high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol was not observed in the present study. Conclusions The PNPLA3 rs738409 gene polymorphism increases the risk of NAFLD by up to four‐fold in subjects with an elevated level of triglyceride independent of other features of MetS.

BACKGROUNDLeprosy is a chronic infectious disease with neural, skin and upper airway mucosal involvement caused by Mycobacterium leprae. The magnitude of deformity in new leprosy patients measures indirectly the disease transmission in the community and rapidity of case detection. Occurrences of grade 2 deformity in new leprosy cases have been included as one of the indicators for a good control of the disease.The aim of this study is to find out the incidence of grade 2 deformities among new leprosy cases in a tertiary care hospital.

Background and Aims Liver enzyme abnormalities in coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) are being addressed in the literature. The predictive risk of elevated liver enzymes has not been established for COVID-19 mortality. In this study, we hypothesized that elevated liver enzymes at admission can predict the outcome of COVID-19 disease with other known indicators, such as comorbidities. Methods This retrospective study included all the consecutive hospitalized patients with confirmed COVID-19 disease from March 4 th to May 31 st , 2020. The study was conducted in Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. We assessed demography, clinical variables, COVID-19 severity, laboratory parameters, and outcome. Results We included 1,512 patients, and median age was 47 years (interquartile range: 34–60) with 36.9% being female. Liver enzyme level (aspartate aminotransferase and/or alanine aminotransferase) was elevated in 450/1,512 (29.76%) patients. Comorbidity was present in 713/1,512 (47.16%) patients. Patients with liver enzymes’ elevation and presence of comorbidity were older, more frequently hospitalized in ICU and had more severe symptoms of COVID-19 at the time of admission. Presence of liver enzymes’ elevation with comorbidity was a high risk factor for death (OR: 5.314, 95% CI: 2.278–12.393), as compared to patients with presence of comorbidity (OR: 4.096, 95% CI: 1.833–9.157). Conclusions Comorbidity combined with liver enzymes’ elevation at presentation independently increased the risk of death in COVID-19 by at least 5-fold.