Positive serology for dengue and/or scrub typhus infection with/without positive malarial smear (designated as mixed or co-infection) is being increasingly observed during epidemics of acute undifferentiated febrile illnesses (AUFIs). We planned to study the clinical and biochemical spectrum of co-infections with Plasmodium sp., dengue virus and scrub typhus and compare these with mono-infection by the same organisms. During the period from December 2012 to December 2013, all cases presenting with AUFIs to a single medical unit of a referral centre in Garhwal region of the north Indian state of Uttarakhand were retrospectively selected and categorised aetiologically as co-infections, malaria, dengue or scrub typhus. The groups thus created were compared in terms of demographic, clinical, biochemical and outcome parameters. The co-infection group (n = 49) was associated with milder clinical manifestations, fewer, milder and non-progressive organ dysfunction, and lesser need for intensive care, mechanical ventilation and dialysis as compared to mono-infections. When co-infections were sub-grouped and compared with the relevant mono-infections, there were differences in certain haematological and biochemical parameters; however, this difference did not translate into differential outcomes. Scrub typhus mono-infection was associated with severe disease in terms of both morbidity and mortality. Malaria, dengue and scrub typhus should be routinely tested in all patients with AUFIs. Co-infections, whether true or due to serological cross-reactivity, appear to be a separate entity so far as presentation and morbidity is concerned. Further insight is needed into the mechanism and identification of the protective infection.

Microfinance intervention is considered an important component of development strategy to mainstream the poor rural households with the formal financial system in India. However, there is some evidence for the reverse, that microfinance may, in fact, increase informal money lending, if clients need to ‘top up’ micro-loans, or borrow to repay according to the installment schedule. The objective of this paper is to examine the relationship between the level of indebtedness to moneylenders and the type of microfinance model through a case study in Varanasi, U.P. Comparing two microfinance models prevalent in the research area, the authors conclude that the level of indebtedness to moneylenders is higher in the case of clients of Microfinance Institutions (MFI) model and without complete information on the credit-worthiness of borrowers, MFIs may contribute to the over-indebtedness of their clients as well as damage in their performance.

Background: Traditional lectures continue to be one of the common ways of teaching practiced in medical schools across India. However, there are many other effective ways of teaching in large groups and lately e-learning modules, which can be synchronous, asynchronous, or blended, have been used to complement face-to-face interactions. E-assignments have been effectively used to engage students into meaningful learning. Aim: The aim of the study is to compare asynchronous teaching with traditional teaching in terms of student perspectives and learning. Materials and Methods: After taking ethical clearance from the Institutional Ethics Committee, the study was conducted involving 66 student volunteers from MBBS 2 nd year. All the students were subjected to a pretest on the topic – “low backache” prior to the intervention. The students were then divided into two groups: Group A and Group B of 33 students each. Group A was taught by traditional lecture method, while Group B was given an e-assignment on the topic for which no face-to-face interaction was done earlier. The students from both the groups were then subjected to a posttest followed by feedback. Results: Analysis of covariance, considering the pretest score as a covariate, revealed that the two groups were comparable to begin with P = 0.632. After the intervention, posttest mean scores improved significantly ( P < 0.001) within each group, for both the groups, but there was no significant difference in posttest scores on intergroup comparison ( P = 0.507). Student feedback brought to light that 85% of the students felt that the traditional lecture method followed by e-learning would be of a great benefit to them. Conclusion: Although no single method emerged as superior over the other, student feedback revealed that 90% of the students graded e-module as either satisfactory to good. Most felt that lecture followed by e-modules will help them to learn better.