Correspondence Address:
R N Srivastava
Department of Pediatrics, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals, Sarita Vihar, New Delhi - 110 076
India

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This first issue of Apollo Medicine of 2019 marks the beginning of the 16th year if its publication.

The Journal has three review presentations. Agrawal has comprehensively reviewed the problem of posttraumatic brain edema. He has mentioned the role of various mediators, including aquaporins, glutamate, arginine vasopressin, erythropoietin, and the role of neuroinflammation. The management of increased intracranial pressure including attempts to block the progression of cerebral edema is discussed. Princess and Vadala briefly described the value of standard microscopic examination in the diagnosis of respiratory infections. She emphasized the value of carefully examining Gram-stained preparation with standard microscopy. Special stains and fluorescence microscopy are of further help particularly to identify mycobacteria. These simple methods are of particular help in rural and low-resource situations, where advanced diagnostic facilities are not available. Swain et al. reviewed primary fungal laryngitis, which is often unrecognized as it is mostly seen in immunocompromised patients. It may be mistaken for granulomatous conditions, leukoplakia, and malignancy.

Sahu et al. reported their findings on the identification of dermatophytes in varying clinical conditions in patients from the coastal Eastern population. Trichophyton rubrum was the most common causative agent. The disease was more severe in elderly participants. Sarangi et al. have examined the presence of anxiety and depression in patients undergoing elective surgical procedures. These were identified in a significant proportion, both before and following surgery and need to be addressed appropriately. Singh and Kaur evaluated the outcome in surgically managed patients with acute subdural hematoma. Certain presurgical abnormalities, based on the Glasgow coma scale, including status of sensorium and pupillary size, were found to influence the results.

Several instructive case reports are included.

Madan et al. reported the successful management of a patient having gastrointestinal stromal tumor having hepatic metastases with aggressive surgery, followed by administration of neoadjuvant tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate. Singhania et al. diagnosed low-grade fibromyxoid sarcoma in the paravertebral region, a rare site for such tumor, which was successfully excised. Marappan et al. reported a case of patient with persistent urinary incontinence, which was caused by neurofibromas at multiple spinal levels. No similar lesions were found in any other part of the body. Surgical management resulted in gradual recovery. Bakshi and Vaithy observed sialolipoma of the submandibular gland, which is a benign lesion having a mixture of adipose and normal salivary glandular tissues.

Pehlivanla et al. reported a case of Amyand's hernia, characterized by the presence of vermiform appendix in the inguinal hernia sac, in a 66–year-old male. Ravikanth and Prasannam identified hydrops fetalis, a large septate, cystic hygroma, anasarca, hydramnios, and Turner syndrome in a multiparous woman on antenatal evaluation at 18 weeks' gestation. Hydrops was regarded as being “nonimmune.” Patel reports the successful use of bulldog vascular clamps to control bleeding while carrying out hysterectomy for placenta percreta.

Vaish et al. described the procedure of spinal decompression and instrumental fusion in an elderly woman and reviewed the relevant literature. Nagashree and Manohar reported the use of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor in a patient with recurrent miscarriages and implantation failures, which leads to successful pregnancy.

Ghazi Ali et al. reported the use of DRONES for supporting emergency medical services, which would have a major impact on the management of emergencies.

Jain and Tewari, in a letter, mentioned the need of the trace mineral Boron in the human diet.

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