Reliability of a quantitative clinical posture assessment tool among persons with idiopathic scoliosis

Objective To determine overall, test–retest and inter-rater reliability of posture indices among persons with idiopathic scoliosis. Design A reliability study using two raters and two test sessions. Setting Tertiary care paediatric centre. Participants Seventy participants aged between 10 and 20 years with different types of idiopathic scoliosis (Cobb angle 15 to 60°) were recruited from the scoliosis clinic. Main outcome measures Based on the XY co-ordinates of natural reference points (e.g. eyes) as well as markers placed on several anatomical landmarks, 32 angular and linear posture indices taken from digital photographs in the standing position were calculated from a specially developed software program. Generalisability theory served to estimate the reliability and standard error of measurement (SEM) for the overall, test–retest and inter-rater designs. Bland and Altman's method was also used to document agreement between sessions and raters. Results In the random design, dependability coefficients demonstrated a moderate level of reliability for six posture indices (ϕ = 0.51 to 0.72) and a good level of reliability for 26 posture indices out of 32 (ϕ ≥ 0.79). Error attributable to marker placement was negligible for most indices. Limits of agreement and SEM values were larger for shoulder protraction, trunk list, Q angle, cervical lordosis and scoliosis angles. The most reproducible indices were waist angles and knee valgus and varus. Conclusions Posture can be assessed in a global fashion from photographs in persons with idiopathic scoliosis. Despite the good reliability of marker placement, other studies are needed to minimise measurement errors in order to provide a suitable tool for monitoring change in posture over time.

Multilevel Analysis of Trunk Surface Measurements for Noninvasive Assessment of Scoliosis Deformities.

Study Design. Reliability study. Objectives. To assess between-acquisition reliability of new multilevel trunk cross sections measurements, in order to define what is a real change when comparing 2 trunk surface acquisitions of a same patient, before and after surgery or throughout the clinical monitoring. Summary of Background Data. Several cross-sectional surface measurements have been proposed in the literature for noninvasive assessment of trunk deformity in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS). However, only the maximum values along the trunk are evaluated and used for monitoring progression and assessing treatment outcome. Methods. Back surface rotation (BSR), trunk rotation (TR), and coronal and sagittal trunk deviation are computed on 300 cross sections of the trunk. Each set of 300 measures is represented as a single functional data, using a set of basis functions. To evaluate between-acquisition variability at all trunk levels, a test-retest reliability study is conducted on 35 patients with AIS. A functional correlation analysis is also carried out to evaluate any redundancy between the measurements. Results. Each set of 300 measures was successfully described using only 10 basis functions. The test-retest reliability of the functional measurements is good to very good all over the trunk, except above the shoulders level. The typical errors of measurement are between 1.20° and 2.2° for the rotational measures and between 2 and 6 mm for deviation measures. There is a very strong correlation between BSR and TR all over the trunk, a moderate correlation between coronal trunk deviation and both BSR and TR, and no correlation between sagittal trunk deviation and any other measurement. Conclusion. This novel representation of trunk surface measurements allows for a global assessment of trunk surface deformity. Multilevel trunk measurements provide a broader perspective of the trunk deformity and allow a reliable multilevel monitoring during clinical follow-up of patients with AIS and a reliable assessment of the esthetic outcome after surgery.

Impact of Western Ghats Orography on the Weather and Climate over Southern Peninsular India-A Mesoscale Modelling Study

The thesis gives a general introduction about the topic include India, the spatial and temporal variation of the surface meteorological parameters are dealt in detail. The general pattern of the winds over the region in different seasons and the generation and movements of the thermally and dynamically originated local wind systems of Western Ghats region has been studied. The modification of the prevailing winds over region by the Palghat Gap and its effect on the mouth regions pf the gap is analysed in great depth. The thesis gives the information of climatic elements of the mountain region such as energy budgets, rainfall studies, evaporation and condensation and the variation in the heat fluxes over the region. The impact of orography is studied in a different approach. The type of hypothetical study gives more insight into the control of mountain on the distribution of meteorological parameter over the study region and helps to quantify the impact of the mountain in varying the weather climate of region. The detailed study of the hydro-meteorological aspects of the main river basins of the region also should be included to the climatic studies for the total understanding of the weather and climate over the region.

Biochemical Effect of Dicarboxylic Acids on Oxalate Metabolism in Experimental Rats and Studies on Oxalate Degrading Bacteria

The current study is an attempt to find a means of lowering oxalate concentration in individuals susceptible to recurrent calcium oxalate stone disease.The formation of renal stone composed of calcium oxalate is a complex process that remains poorly understood and treatment of idiopathic recurrent stone formers is quite difficult and this area has attracted lots of research workers. The main objective of this work are to study the effect of certain mono and dicarboxylic acids on calcium oxalate crystal growth in vitro, isolation and characterization of oxalate degrading bacteria, study the biochemical effect of sodium glycollate and dicarboxylic acids on oxalate metabolism in experimental stone forming rats and To investigate the effect of dicarboxylic acids on oxalate metabolism in experimental hyperoxaluric rats. Oxalic acid is one of the most highly oxidized organic compound widely distributed in the diets of man and animals, and ingestion of plants that contain high concentration of oxalate may lead to intoxication. Excessive ingestion of dietary oxalate may lead to hyperoxaluria and calcium oxalate stone disease.The formation of calcium oxalate stone in the urine is dependent on the saturation level of both calcium and oxalate. Thus the management of one or both of these ions in individuals susceptible to urolithiasis appears to be important. The control of endogenous oxalate synthesis from its precursors in hyperoxaluric situation is likely to yield beneficial results and can be a useful approach in the medical management of urinary stones. A variety of compounds have been investigated to curtain endogenous oxalate synthesis which is a crucial factor, most of these compounds have not proved to be effective in the in vivo situation and some of them are not free from the toxic effect. The non-operative management of stone disease has been practiced in ancient India in the three famous indigenous systems of medicine, Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha, and proved to be effective.However the efficiency of most of these substances is still questionable and demands further study. Man as well as other mammals cannot metabolize oxalic acid. Excessive ingestion of oxalic acid can arise from oxalate rich food and from its major metabolic precursors, glycollate, glyoxylate and ascorbic acid can lead to an acute oxalate toxicity. Increasedlevels of circulating oxalate, which can result in a variety of diseases including renal failure and oxalate lithiasis. The ability to enzymatically degrade oxalate to less noxious Isubstances, formate and CO2, could benefit a great number of individuals including those afflicted with hyperoxaluria and calcium oxalate stone disease.

Studies on the Characteristics of Vertical Circulation and Equatorial Waves using Indian MST Radar

The aim of the present study is to understand the characteristics and properties of different wave modes and the vertical circulation pattern in the troposphere and lower stratosphere over Indian region using data obtained from the Indian Mesosphere-Stratosphere Troposphere (MST) radar, National Center for Environmental Prediction/National Centres of Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) reanalysed data and radiosonde observations.Studies on the vertical motion in monsoon Hadley circulation are carried out and the results are discussed . From the analysis of MST radar data, an overall picture of vertical motion of air over Indian region is explained and noted that there exists sinking motion both during winter and summer. Besides, the study shows that there is an anomalous northerly wind in the troposphere over the southern peninsular region during southwest monsoon season.The outcome of the study on intrusion of mid-latitude upper tropospheric trough and associated synoptic-scale vertical velocity over the tropical Indian latitudes are reported and discussed . It shows that there is interaction between north Indian latitudes and tropical easterly region, when there is an eastward movement of Western Disturbance across the country. It explains the strengthening of westerlies and a change of winter westerlies into easterlies in the tropical troposphere and lower stratosphere. The divergence field computed over the MST radar station shows intensification in the downward motion in association with the synoptic systems of the northwest Indian region.

Catalysis of C-alkylation of phenol using V2O5-La2O3 system

Vapour phase methylation of phenol is carried out over La2O3 supported vanadia systems of various composition. The structural features and physico chemical characterisation of the catalysts are investigated. Orthovanadates are formed in addition to surface vanadyl species on the metal oxide support. No V2O5 crystallites are detected. The acid base properties of the oxides are studied by Hammett indicator method and decomposition of cyclohexanol.The data are correlated with the catalytic activity and selectivity of the products. Ring alkylation is found to be predominant over these catalysts.

Photothermal Investigations on Certain Plasma Polymerized Thin Films and Near IR Overtone Studies of Some Organic Molecules

Photothermal effect refers to heating of a sample due to the absorption of electromagnetic radiation. Photothermal (PT) heat generation which is an example of energy conversion has in general three kinds of applications. 1. PT material probing 2. PT material processing and 3. PT material destruction. The temperatures involved increases from 1-. 3. Of the above three, PT material probing is the most important in making significant contribution to the field of science and technology. Photothermal material characterization relies on high sensitivity detection techniques to monitor the effects caused by PT material heating of a sample. Photothermal method is a powerful high sensitivity non-contact tool used for non-destructive thermal characterization of materials. The high sensitivity of the photothermal methods has led to its application for analysis of low absorbance samples. Laser calorimetry, photothermal radiometry, pyroelectric technique, photoacoustic technique, photothermal beam deflection technique, etc. come under the broad class ofphotothermal techniques. However the choice of a suitable technique depends upon the nature of the sample, purpose of measurement, nature of light source used, etc. The present investigations are done on polymer thin films employing photothermal beam deflection technique, for the successful determination of their thermal diffusivity. Here the sample is excited by a He-Ne laser (A = 6328...\ ) which acts as the pump beam. Due to the refractive index gradient established in the sample surface and in the adjacent coupling medium, another optical beam called probe beam (diode laser, A= 6500A ) when passed through this region experiences a deflection and is detected using a position sensitive detector and its output is fed to a lock-in amplifier from which the amplitude and phase of the deflection can be directly obtained. The amplitude and phase of the signal is suitably analysed for determining the thermal diffusivity.The production of polymer thin film samples has gained considerable attention for the past few years. Plasma polymerization is an inexpensive tool for fabricating organic thin films. It refers to formation of polymeric materials under the influence of plasma, which is generated by some kind of electric discharge. Here plasma of the monomer vapour is generated by employing radio frequency (MHz) techniques. Plasma polymerization technique results in homogeneous, highly adhesive, thermally stable, pinhole free, dielectric, highly branched and cross-linked polymer films. The possible linkage in the formation of the polymers is suggested by comparing the FTIR spectra of the monomer and the polymer.Near IR overtone investigations on some organic molecules using local mode model are also done. Higher vibrational overtones often provide spectral simplification and greater resolution of peaks corresponding to nonequivalent X-H bonds where X is typically C, N or O. Vibrational overtone spectroscopy of molecules containing X-H oscillators is now a well established tool for molecular investigations. Conformational and steric differences between bonds and structural inequivalence ofCH bonds (methyl, aryl, acetylenic, etc.) are resolvable in the higher overtone spectra. The local mode model in which the X-H oscillators are considered to be loosely coupled anharmonic oscillators has been widely used for the interpretation of overtone spectra. If we are exciting a single local oscillator from the vibrational ground state to the vibrational state v, then the transition energy of the local mode overtone is given by .:lE a......v = A v + B v2 • A plot of .:lE / v versus v will yield A, the local mode frequency as the intercept and B, the local mode diagonal anharmonicity as the slope. Here A - B gives the mechanical frequency XI of the oscillator and B = X2 is the anharmonicity of the bond. The local mode parameters XI and X2 vary for non-equivalent X-H bonds and are sensitive to the inter and intra molecular environment of the X-H oscillator.

Fatty acids as Biomarkers in the Mangrove sediments of Cochin

The biogeochemistry of mangroves are the least understood ecological properties because of their sediment complexicity due to the tidal influx of allochthonous organic matter and the autochthonous inputs.In order to understand the relative importance of biogeochemical processes,it is necessary not only to characterise and qualify the organic matter but also to identify its major sources .The present study is a preliminary investigation to identify the sources of organic matter in three mangrove systems of Cochin Estuary using fatty acid biomarkers,δ13 C of total organic matter,elemental composition and biochemical composition.

Fish habitats and species assemblage in the selected rivers of Kerala and investigation on life history traits of Puntius carnaticus(Jerdon,1849)

This thesis entitled Fish habitats and species assemblage in the selected rivers of kerala and investigation on life history traits of puntius carnaticus (JERDON,1849). Ecology is a new and exceedingly complex field of study, even though its concept was recognized by the Apostles in their use of the phrase ‘all flesh is grass.central role to play both in order to understand better the biodiversity phenomenon and to be able to draw up clear guidelines for careful resource management. In a review by WWF, IUCN and UNEP on the ways of conserving genetic diversity of freshwater fish it was recommended that the best way to conserve species diversity is to conserve habitat.The habitat studies in freshwater ecosystems are very essential for the proper understanding and management of human impact on fish diversity, to study the relationship between habitat variables and fish species assemblage structure, quantification of ecosystem degradation, habitat quality and biotic integrity of the ecosystems, development of habitat suitability index (I-ISI) models and classification of river reaches based on their physico-chemical properties. Therefore in the present study an attempt was made to assess the biodiversity potential and the relationship between habitat variables and fish species assemblage structure in six major river systems of Kerala which would be very useful in impressing upon the seriousness of habitat degradIn the present study, in Kabbini river system 15 locations encompassing between 721 946m above MSL were surveyed.ation and biotic devastation undergone in the major river systems of Kerala.During the present study the Habitat Quality Score (HQ) developed by the Ohio EPA was applied for the first time in India.The result of the present study revealed that, among various variables analysed, altitude has a very significant influence in deciding the fish diversity in six major river systems of Kerala. The fish diversity studied on the basis of Shanon-Weiner and Simpson diversity indices revealed that even though some minor variations occur with the suitability and complexity of habitats, the altitude showed inverse relationship with fish diversity.The present study revealed that the National Policy on the interlinking of rivers would permanently alter the HSI indices of the above mentioned fish species, which are now solely protected by the individuality of the rivers where their limited occurrence was notice.

Low energy excitations of double quantum dots in the lowest Landau level regime

We study the spectrum and magnetic properties of double quantum dots in the lowest Landau level for different values of the hopping and Zeeman parameters by means of exact diagonalization techniques in systems of N=6 and 7 electrons and a filling factor close to 2. We compare our results with those obtained in double quantum layers and single quantum dots. The Kohn theorem is also discussed.

Studies on biochemical genetics of the grey mullet Mugil cephalus linnaeus

The thesis deals with the results of an investigation on the "BIOCHEMICAL GENETICS OF MUGIL CEPHALUS" from Cochin, Madras and Orissa. It is presented under the following major headings: Introduction, Review of Literature, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussions, Conclusions, Recommendations, Summary and References.The introduction gives a brief account of historical and modern back ground on the stock concept in fisheries research and management, followed by the importance and potential role of biochemical genetics in the identification of natural units of fisheries management. In the review of literature published reports relevant to biochemical genetics with special reference to that of general proteins and enzyme systems of fish populations were considered. A detailed account of the source of experimental specimens, mode of collection, transportation, sample extraction, gel preparation/gel electrophoresis, buffer systems, staining procedures of proteins/enzymes, standardization of experiments, interpretation of electrophoretic data using basic formulae etc. are given in the materials and methods section. Four important conclusions were drawn on the basis of the results of the present investigation. Three recommendations were also made on the basis of evaluation of the results.

Gender discrimination in the law of divorce and succession among christians

The present work deals with the Gender discrimination in the law of divorce and succession among christians.Inquiries Into the personal laws bereft of the historical develcpment of the concerned communities will be extremely inadequate as they may not help the researcher to Identify the laws' real source.In this view, the origin and development of Christian law In india has not so far been adequately gone into. Keeping In view the Importance of such a study calling for an exploration of the origin and development of the Christian community and its branching out In india as a prelude to the inqury into the Christian laws, the history of the conmunity in india was examined and the present study IndIcates that christianity In india has a diverse origin in dIfferent parts of India.And this diversity has resulted in the development of different systems of personal law for different sects among them. At present Christians in India constitute a minority but their numerical strength is not negligible. Yet they have not been able to act as an Influential group either socially or politically.The social changes and developments that swept away the community of its feet have overturned the position and the liberals in the community inspired by the changes elsewhere could bring in some statute law to govern the arena traditionally held by the customs.The history of reception of canon law concepts In different parts of India throws some light on the differences In the personal laws applicable to Christians In India.

Study on acceleratore in rubber vulcanization with special reference to the binary systems containing substituted dithiobiurets

The thesis entitled Study on Accelerators in Rubber Vulcanization with Special Reference to the Binary Systems Containing Substituted Dithiobiurets. It includes a detailed study on the binary accelerator systems containing substituted dithiobiurets in natural rubber and NR latex and dithiobiurets in SBR and NR-SBR blends vulcanization systems. It deals with the experimental procedure adopted for the preparation of DTB-II and DTB-III; the procedure for compounding and vulcanization and determination of physical properties like modulus, tensile strength, elongation at break, hardness, compression set, heat build up etc. The results indicate that there is efficient acceleration activity of the dithiobiurets in the vulcanization of natural rubber latex containing TMT. The study of dithiobiurets in natural rubber and NR latex reveal that they are having definite accelerating effect in SBR vulcanization systems.

Studies on integrability of some perturbed nonlinear evolution equations

Usually typical dynamical systems are non integrable. But few systems of practical interest are integrable. The soliton concept is a sophisticated mathematical construct based on the integrability of a class ol' nonlinear differential equations. An important feature in the clevelopment. of the theory of solitons and of complete integrability has been the interplay between mathematics and physics. Every integrable system has a lo11g list of special properties that hold for integrable equations and only for them. Actually there is no specific definition for integrability that is suitable for all cases. .There exist several integrable partial clillerential equations( pdes) which can be derived using physically meaningful asymptotic teclmiques from a very large class of pdes. It has been established that many 110nlinear wa.ve equations have solutions of the soliton type and the theory of solitons has found applications in many areas of science. Among these, well-known equations are Korteweg de-Vries(KdV), modified KclV, Nonlinear Schr6dinger(NLS), sine Gordon(SG) etc..These are completely integrable systems. Since a small change in the governing nonlinear prle may cause the destruction of the integrability of the system, it is interesting to study the effect of small perturbations in these equations. This is the motivation of the present work.

A study of the evolution and working of regulated markets in Tamilnadu

This study presents a detailed investigation of the origin and development of regulations in agricultural marketing in Tamil Nadu. It evaluates the method and process of regulation practised through the orgahisation of a chain of regulated markets in the State. The study also examines in detail the conceptual frame work behind state intervention and show the original concept has been modified subsequently to suit the changed conditions during the post-independence era of planning for economic development Specific objectives explained in the present study include the following: viz, a) The historical aspects that necessitated state intervention in agricultural marketing in the form of organising regulated markets and their evolution, b) The conceptual and organisational bases of regulated markets in Tamil Nadu. c) The impact of such regulations on the existing trade channels or systems.168 d) The performance and efficiency of regulated markets and their achievements. The study also has suggested some remedial measures to reorganise the present organisational pattern of regulated marketing in Tamil Nadu.