Welcome to the first edition of Chettinad Health City Medical Journal. You may wonder why we need another Medical Journal when we have a plethora of Medical Journals. The Core Committee also dwelt on this point and felt there is indeed scope for another Medical Journal particularly to address the explosion of Medical Knowledge and Medical Technology in different fields of medicine.

A competent human MII (Metaphase ll) oocyte is regarded as crucial for efficiency of assisted reproductive technique (ART). The non invasive morphological appearance of the oocyte helps in evaluation of developmental competency of oocyte. The purpose of this observational study was to document different patterns of oocyte morphology in our IVF laboratory. This study includes 121 patients who underwent ART from January 2011 to December 2011. The results showed that there were a considerable number of normal and abnormal oocytes observed during ART cycles. From the morphological features of 1070 oocytes retrieved from 121 ART patients, 311(29.06%) oocytes were abnormal. Of 121 patients, oocytes retrieved from 90 patients (74.28%) had one of the abnormalities. Most common abnormality observed were empty and broken zona which were found in 57 oocytes (18.3%) and fragmented polar body which were found in 49 oocytes (15.7%). Of the 90 patients who showed oocyte abnormalities, oocytes from 61 patients (67%) showed either of the two abnormalities mentioned above. We find 74.28% of our patients out of 121 patients had one of the abnormalities. This can be due to underlying infertility, effect of ovarian hyper stimulation or advanced maternal age. Further work is required to assess the benefits of oocyte assessment in selecting best embryo for transfer.

Though short stature is not uncommon in pediatric practice, there are only a few conditions where the growth retardation is very severe. One of them is Seckel syndrome, which is a cause for primordial dwarfism, and is extremely rare. The reported incidence is 1 in 100001 live births. We report a case of Seckel syndrome in a 14 month old child.

Missing anterior teeth is of serious concern in the social life of a patient in most of the societies. Conventional fixed partial dentures and implant-supported restorations may often be the treatment of choice. Fiber-reinforced composite (FRC) resins offer a conservative, fast, and cost-effective alternative for single and multiple teeth replacement and may prove to be a successful modality for aesthetic and functional replacement of missing teeth along with periodontally compromised abutments, which has always been a challenge for the dentist. The aim of the case report is to describe the clinical procedure in rehabilitation of edentulous space through fabrication of direct fiber-reinforced composite resin fixed partial denture with periodontal splinting of adjacent teeth.

Gastric volvulus was first described by Berti in 1866 at autopsy on a 60 year old woman who died of closed loop obstruction. Berg,1896 carried the first successful operation of gastric volvulus. First Radiological demonstration was shown by Rosselet,1920. Literature review shows around 200 cases of Gastric volvulus were diagnosed between the period 1920 to 1971. Considering the rarity of this condition, gastric volvulus associated with wandering spleen is even more a rare entity, with only around 5 cases reported in the last decade. Here we describe this unusual case of an 18 yr old female who presented as acute abdomen, diagnosed with acute organo axial volvulus of stomach with gastric perforation associated with wandering spleen.

The acute abdomen may be defined as an intra- abdominal process causing severe pain and often requiring surgical intervention. It is the most common complaint by individuals attending the outpatient department or the emergency department. In most of the cases, a thorough history and physical examination will reveal the cause of the abdominal pain or at least sufficiently narrow down the possibilities to allow initial treatment decisions to be made. Therefore it is of prime importance that a thorough examination be done both in elective and emergency scenarios.

Careful observers would have noticed that medical profession is represented by not one but two symbols. Almost all self-respecting professional healthcare organisations have chosen “Rod of Asclepius” while most of the commercial healthcare establishments have opted for “Caduceus”. This seeming discord between service and commerce aspects of our profession has infuriated some perceptive commentators. Daniel P. Sulmasy, in particular, has remarked – “It is hard to trust a profession that cannot even get its symbols straight”. So, which on of these symbols is the right one? To answer this question, we have to carefully examine the historical evidence.

This article reviews the role of inflammation in coronary artery disease, particularly its conversion from a chronic to an acute illness. An overview is provided about various inflammatory markers and their role in inflammation which lead to the development and progression of atherosclerotic vascular disease and its clinical consequences, especially acute coronary syndromes. The very episodic nature and the common short duration of acute coronary syndromes suggest the role of inflammatory stimuli. Causes of inflammation may be multiple and not necessarily the same in all patients, and their effect is probably modulated by the individual immunological and inflammatory response.

Periodontitis is a complex disease which may be accelerated or dampened by the innate differences among individuals and changes in environmental factors. The diagnosis is based on clinical signs and symptoms, as well as medical and dental history, the importance of determination and integration of subject-level factors, microbial composition, systemic immune response, and gingival tissue inflammatory mediator responses is being increasingly discussed. From being considered as a condition confined to the oral cavity, it is now known to branch out to the entire human body. Good oral health for good general health is gaining paramount importance. At this juncture, we aimed to bring to light the subtle connection between the two debilitating conditions osteoporosis and periodontitis through this review article. Osteoporosis is a silent disease, reflected only in a low bone density, till a fracture occurs. With increasing longevity of the Indian population, it is now being realized that, osteoporotic fractures are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the elderly. Periodontitis and other periodontal inflammatory conditions are implicated in alveolar bone loss leading to tooth mobility and tooth loss. We attempt to answer the question of whether dental osteopenia is a local manifestation of osteoporosis having similar etiology and risk factors, or it is an independent process depending primarily on factors that cause periodontal disease.

Semen Analysis, despite its limitations, remains the single most important test for evaluating male fertility. However, the test is prone for errors at all levels of its performance.