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Authors are the souls of any journal, and deserve much respect. To publish a journal manuscripts are needed from authors. Authors have a great responsibility for producing facts of their work in terms of number and results truthfully and an individual honesty is expected from authors in this regards. Both ways its true "No authors-No manuscripts-No journals" and "No journals–No manuscripts–No authors". Reviewing a manuscript is also a very responsible and important task of any peer-reviewed journal and to be taken seriously. It needs knowledge on the subject, sincerity, honesty and determination. Although the process of reviewing a manuscript is a time consuming task butit is expected to give one's best remarks within the time frame of the journal.
Salient features of the JCDR: It is a biomedical, multidisciplinary (including all medical and dental specialities), e-journal, with wide scope and extensive author support. At the same time, a free text of manuscript is available in HTML and PDF format. There is fast growing authorship and readership with JCDR as this can be judged by the number of articles published in it i e; in Feb 2007 of its first issue, it contained 5 articles only, and now in its recent volume published in April 2011, it contained 67 manuscripts. This e-journal is fulfilling the commitments and objectives sincerely, (as stated by Editor-in-chief in his preface to first edition) i e; to encourage physicians through the internet, especially from the developing countries who witness a spectrum of disease and acquire a wealth of knowledge to publish their experiences to benefit the medical community in patients care. I also feel that many of us have work of substance, newer ideas, adequate clinical materials but poor in medical writing and hesitation to submit the work and need help. JCDR provides authors help in this regards.
Timely publication of journal: Publication of manuscripts and bringing out the issue in time is one of the positive aspects of JCDR and is possible with strong support team in terms of peer reviewers, proof reading, language check, computer operators, etc. This is one of the great reasons for authors to submit their work with JCDR. Another best part of JCDR is "Online first Publications" facilities available for the authors. This facility not only provides the prompt publications of the manuscripts but at the same time also early availability of the manuscripts for the readers.
Indexation and online availability: Indexation transforms the journal in some sense from its local ownership to the worldwide professional community and to the public.JCDR is indexed with Embase & EMbiology, Google Scholar, Index Copernicus, Chemical Abstracts Service, Journal seek Database, Indian Science Abstracts, to name few of them. Manuscriptspublished in JCDR are available on major search engines ie; google, yahoo, msn.
In the era of fast growing newer technologies, and in computer and internet friendly environment the manuscripts preparation, submission, review, revision, etc and all can be done and checked with a click from all corer of the world, at any time. Of course there is always a scope for improvement in every field and none is perfect. To progress, one needs to identify the areas of one's weakness and to strengthen them.
It is well said that "happy beginning is half done" and it fits perfectly with JCDR. It has grown considerably and I feel it has already grown up from its infancy to adolescence, achieving the status of standard online e-journal form Indian continent since its inception in Feb 2007. This had been made possible due to the efforts and the hard work put in it. The way the JCDR is improving with every new volume, with good quality original manuscripts, makes it a quality journal for readers. I must thank and congratulate Dr Hemant Jain, Editor-in-Chief JCDR and his team for their sincere efforts, dedication, and determination for making JCDR a fast growing journal.
Every one of us: authors, reviewers, editors, and publisher are responsible for enhancing the stature of the journal. I wish for a great success for JCDR."
Thanking you
With sincere regards
Dr. Rajendra Kumar Ghritlaharey, M.S., M. Ch., FAIS
Associate Professor,
Department of Paediatric Surgery, Gandhi Medical College & Associated
Kamla Nehru & Hamidia Hospitals Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh 462 001 (India)
E-mail: drrajendrak1@rediffmail.com
On May 11,2011
Dr. Shankar P.R.
"On looking back through my Gmail archives after being requested by the journal to write a short editorial about my experiences of publishing with the Journal of Clinical and Diagnostic Research (JCDR), I came across an e-mail from Dr. Hemant Jain, Editor, in March 2007, which introduced the new electronic journal. The main features of the journal which were outlined in the e-mail were extensive author support, cash rewards, the peer review process, and other salient features of the journal.
Over a span of over four years, we (I and my colleagues) have published around 25 articles in the journal. In this editorial, I plan to briefly discuss my experiences of publishing with JCDR and the strengths of the journal and to finally address the areas for improvement.
My experiences of publishing with JCDR: Overall, my experiences of publishing withJCDR have been positive. The best point about the journal is that it responds to queries from the author. This may seem to be simple and not too much to ask for, but unfortunately, many journals in the subcontinent and from many developing countries do not respond or they respond with a long delay to the queries from the authors 1. The reasons could be many, including lack of optimal secretarial and other support. Another problem with many journals is the slowness of the review process. Editorial processing and peer review can take anywhere between a year to two years with some journals. Also, some journals do not keep the contributors informed about the progress of the review process. Due to the long review process, the articles can lose their relevance and topicality. A major benefit with JCDR is the timeliness and promptness of its response. In Dr Jain's e-mail which was sent to me in 2007, before the introduction of the Pre-publishing system, he had stated that he had received my submission and that he would get back to me within seven days and he did!
Most of the manuscripts are published within 3 to 4 months of their submission if they are found to be suitable after the review process. JCDR is published bimonthly and the accepted articles were usually published in the next issue. Recently, due to the increased volume of the submissions, the review process has become slower and it ?? Section can take from 4 to 6 months for the articles to be reviewed. The journal has an extensive author support system and it has recently introduced a paid expedited review process. The journal also mentions the average time for processing the manuscript under different submission systems - regular submission and expedited review.
Strengths of the journal: The journal has an online first facility in which the accepted manuscripts may be published on the website before being included in a regular issue of the journal. This cuts down the time between their acceptance and the publication. The journal is indexed in many databases, though not in PubMed. The editorial board should now take steps to index the journal in PubMed. The journal has a system of notifying readers through e-mail when a new issue is released. Also, the articles are available in both the HTML and the PDF formats. I especially like the new and colorful page format of the journal. Also, the access statistics of the articles are available. The prepublication and the manuscript tracking system are also helpful for the authors.
Areas for improvement: In certain cases, I felt that the peer review process of the manuscripts was not up to international standards and that it should be strengthened. Also, the number of manuscripts in an issue is high and it may be difficult for readers to go through all of them. The journal can consider tightening of the peer review process and increasing the quality standards for the acceptance of the manuscripts. I faced occasional problems with the online manuscript submission (Pre-publishing) system, which have to be addressed.
Overall, the publishing process with JCDR has been smooth, quick and relatively hassle free and I can recommend other authors to consider the journal as an outlet for their work."
Dr. P. Ravi Shankar
KIST Medical College, P.O. Box 14142, Kathmandu, Nepal.
E-mail: ravi.dr.shankar@gmail.com
On April 2011 Anuradha
Dear team JCDR, I would like to thank you for the very professional and polite service provided by everyone at JCDR. While i have been in the field of writing and editing for sometime, this has been my first attempt in publishing a scientific paper.Thank you for hand-holding me through the process.
Dr. Anuradha
E-mail: anuradha2nittur@gmail.com
On Jan 2020
Original article / research
Full Version
Relationship between Physical Activity Status and Physiological Parameters among Adolescents and Young Children
Correspondence Address :
Dr. Srujana Dampetla,
Pavan Cardiac Clinic, 57-9-10/4, 7th Line, New P&T Colony, Pantakaluva Road, Patamata, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India.
E-mail: drsrujanapavan@gmail.com
Introduction: Childhood obesity is strongly associated with elevated Blood Pressure (BP) and elevated cholesterol levels, progressing over time to adult premature Cardiovascular Disease (CVD). Physical Activity (PA) is protective against various diseases like hypertension and CVD.
Aim: To assess the relationship between PA status and physiological parameters among adolescents and young children.
Materials and Methods: An interventional study was conducted in the Department of Physiology at Siddhartha Medical College, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India from October 2019 to December 2019. A PA intervention was given to 30 participants in the study group (one hour of PA, three times a week for three months) and compared with 30 participants in the control group. The anthropometric and physiological parameters were compared between the groups. The coGuide statistical software was used for data analysis.
Results: A total of 30 participants in each group were studied. The mean age was 14.28±3.1 years in the study group and 13.6±2.8 years in the control group. The mean duration of PA was 47.8±6.3 minutes. No statistical significance was observed between groups for Systolic Blood Pressure (SBP), Diastolic Blood Pressure (DBP) and body temperature postintervention. There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in heart rate (beats/min) and respiratory rate (breaths/min) postintervention (p-value <0.05).
Conclusion: The findings shed light on the need of different PA intervention programs for school going children to improve their physiological parameters.
Children, Cardiovascular disorders, Heart rate, Lifestyle disorder, Non communicable disease, Risk, School
Globally, there is a rise in the prevalence of obesity and body fat accumulation. Worldwide, there are 350 million obese (Body Mass Index, BMI ≥30 kg/m2) and one billion overweight people (BMI ≥25), and approximately 2.5 million deaths are caused due to overweight and obesity (1). Overweight and obesity in childhood can increase the risk of developing the same in adult life; hence, childhood obesity is considered a public health problem (2). The worldwide increase in body fat among adolescents and children is caused due to insufficient PA and unhealthy lifestyles among them (3). Childhood obesity has a strong association with elevated Blood Pressure (BP) and elevated cholesterol levels, progressing over time to adult premature CVD (4).
A study done in Bahraini school children shows significant differences in mean SBP and DBP between obese and non obese children. Children with high BP had a greater risk of developing hypertension in adult life (5). Since high BP contributes significantly to coronary heart disease among adults (6), it becomes essential that an association between PA and BP and other health parameters in adolescents and children should be examined (7). Available literature suggests that school based PA interventions might help improve the health parameters and result in lifestyle behaviour changes among children and adolescents, ultimately leading to a reduction in cardiovascular risk in adulthood (8) and World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that 5 to 17-year-olds should engage in atleast 60 minutes of moderate or vigorous PA per day (9). Improvement in objective health outcome was reported in adolescent population with increased PA levels, but the evidence is conflicting about the level of PA and self reported health status (10). Ansari W El et al., showed that in Egyptian adolescents, a school based PA intervention improved physiological parameters and reduced overweight in 12.5% of the intervention group (11). A systematic review by Granger E et al., supports the need for PA initiatives among adolescents in order to improve their physical health (12). This study was planned as there are no studies available in this study area and with increase in the prevalence of non communicable diseases among children, it is ideal to plan an intervention that can improve their physical health.
Hence, this study was planned to find the association between PA and physiological factors among adolescents and young children.
An interventional study was conducted in the Department of Physiology at Siddhartha Medical College, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India, from October 2019 to December 2019 after taking clearance from the Institutional Ethical Committee. A non randomised convenient sampling technique was followed. A secondary school in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India, was selected to conduct the study since they had indoor and outdoor sports and sports kits. This criterion was considered so that the PA program can continue without interruption in all weathers to ensure the children’s safety. Children were given an introductory session and explained the aim of the study, and participation was encouraged. Informed written consents were signed by both the participants and their parents/guardians. Boys and girls were randomnly distributed among the study groups.
Sample size calculation: The expected mean and standard deviation of the heart rate in control group was 93.21±6 and in the intervention group it was 89.11±5 as per the previous study by Omoniyi MM et al., (13). The other parameters considered for sample size calculation included were 80% power of study and 5% two sided alpha error (14). The required sample size as per the above mentioned data was 30 (29 with 5% lost to follow-up therefore, one case added) in each group. In our study, we considered 30 subjects in each group.
Inclusion criteria: All children aged 5-19 years with no history of intake of medicines and no history of chronic illness were included in the study.
Exclusion criteria: Children with contraindication for PA, chronic medical illness and under chronic medication were excluded from the study.
Study Procedure
Medical fitness was ensured for all participants, and a PA readiness questionnaire was used for assessing the medication and chronic disease status. The PA readiness questionnaire contains total of seven step questionnaire that screens for evidence of risk factors during moderate PA (15). Based on the completed PA readiness questionnaires and consent forms, 30 subjects were included in the intervention and control group (aged 5-19 years), respectively. A PA intervention program was implemented for the study group with one hour of moderate PA three times a week for three months. The control group children followed the routine physical activity conducted in school (optional and not standardised).
For the 60 pupils, anthropometric (weight, height, BMI) and physiological (pulse rate, respiratory rate, body temperature, SBP, DBP, heart rate) measurements were taken twice, once at baseline during the first school term (preintervention); and after three months during the second school term (postintervention). The measurements were obtained three times the same day, and an average of the value was taken as the final measurement. Participants were instructed not to take any caffeine or tobacco on the day of measurement. The anthropometric evaluation comprised three parameters:
Weight (and height) were measured using digital scales. Height measurement was done to the nearest 0.1 cm when participants stood barefoot, and body weight measurement was done to the nearest 0.1 kg in light clothing and no footwear.
The Body Mass Index (BMI) Status was calculated using Metric BMI Formula {BMI (kg/m2)=weight in kilograms/the squared height (m2)} (9),(16),(17). The BP and heart rate measurements were done using a digital BP monitor. The BP documentation was done based on international guidelines (18). The measurements were repeated three times in a day, and the average values were taken as final.
The values were measured in a quiet, peaceful room after allowing the participant to sit there for 10 minutes. These measurements were taken at a sitting position in the right arm at the level of the heart. After the intervention period, the participant’s measurements were taken after a two day rest period.
Statistical Analysis
Physiological parameters like heart rate, respiratory rate, BP etc., were included as study outcomes, and the study group intervention was considered explanatory variable. Continuous variables were analysed by independent samples t-tests and expressed as the mean and standard deviation. The count variables were analysed by the Chi-square, expressing as the number. Baseline to follow-up time differences in continuous parameters was defined using paired t-test. A statistically significant difference was set at p<0.05. Data was analysed by using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software, version 22 (19).
A total of 30 participants were considered in intervention (PA) and control group (no PA) each. In intervention group the mean age of study participants was 14.28±3.1 years, 23 (76.67%) were boys and 7 (23.33%) were girls and in control groups mean age was 13.6±2.8 years, 20 (66.67%) were boys and 10 (33.33%) were girls. The difference in age and gender between study group was statistically not significant (p-value >0.05). The mean duration of PA was 47.8±6.3 minutes.
No statistical significance was observed between groups in baseline parameters like weight, BMI (p-value >0.05); weight and BMI were higher in controls than in the study that is 48.6±12.7 kg and 25.1±4.9 kg/m2, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in baseline parameter of height (p-value <0.05). Height was more in intervention group children as 1.8±0.2 meters (Table/Fig 1).
The difference in family income/per year between the study groups was insignificant, with a p-value of 0.26. The majority of 14 (46.67%) participant’s parents earned one to five lacs in the intervention group. The difference in family type between the study groups was insignificant with a p-value of 0.42. The difference in parent’s education status between the study groups was significant with a p-value of 0.01(Table/Fig 2).
There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups in physiological parameters like SBP (mm/Hg), DBP (mm/Hg), body temperature (degrees Celsius), peak VO2 (at rest) (p-value >0.05) at baseline. However, there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups in physiological parameters like heart rate (beats/min), pulse rate (beats/min), respiratory rate
(breaths/min) and SpO2 (%) (at rest) (p-value <0.05). Postintervention, there was no statistically significant difference in follow-up physiological parameters like, SBP (mm/Hg), DBP (mm/Hg), body temperature (degrees celsius), pulse rate (beats/minute) and peak VO2 between study groups (p-value >0.05). There was a statistically significant difference in follow-up physiological parameters like heart rate (beats/min), respiratory rate (breaths/mints), SpO2% between study groups (p-value <0.05) (Table/Fig 3).
Respiratory rate (breaths/min) in controls showed statistically significant difference (p-value=0.04), from baseline to follow-up period. In both intervention and control groups SpO2% reported statistically significant difference in follow-up compared to baseline (p-value <0.05) where peak VO2 reported no statistically significant difference from pre to post in both the groups individually (p-value >0.05) (Table/Fig 4).
Based on the study findings, it was clear that the physiological variables were slightly improved among the intervention group compared to the control group. This might be attributed to the PA. Risk factors of CVD in childhood can project into adult life leading to morbidity and mortality (20),(21). Children and adolescents do insufficient PA that puts their health at risk of obesity (22), due to this overweight and obesity epidemic has been spreading globally with negative health impact (23).
As per the study’s objective, a description of a range of anthropometric and physiological parameters was studied for a sample of secondary school children. School based BMI measurement acts as a potential approach to address the increase in obesity among youth (24). Objective measurement of various parameters is preferred over reported values, as self reported values might be underestimated (10),(25). Since, BMI classification based on self reported values in previous studies was inaccurate, we followed the objective measurement method (26),(27),(28),(29).
With reference to baseline mean SBP, the sample values in present study were (124.1±18.7 mmHg in the intervention group and 126.2±20.4 mmHg in the control group) were slightly higher than the 107.1 mmHg reported in 2,156 Argentinean adolescents (15 to <18-year-old) but close to those of 676 adolescents in Norway (119.9 mmHg). Similarly, our baseline means DBP (67.3±5.9 in the study group and 69.2±6.7 in the control group) were slightly higher than Norway and Argentina (64 and 67 mmHg, respectively) (30). A physically active child will have a good basal metabolic rate that can help in maintaining the physiological parameters (31).
The study findings suggest a positive relationship between a moderate PA intervention and prevention of obesity and becoming fit. This finding was supported by study that indicated that PA could reduce weight gain by increasing energy expenditure (31). Similar results were seen in previous studies that suggest that atleast one hour three times per week, PA will have a beneficial effect on the physiological parameters(Table/Fig 5) (6),(30). PA can improve the physiological parameters by ensuring a balanced state. Physically active work results in maintaining the body’s metabolism and enables in maintaining a normal BMI range (30).
Limitation(s)
The limitations of the current study are the short duration of a three month follow-up period. One school in Vijayawada was selected for the study. Hence, generalisation to the whole population is not possible. Therefore, in the future, multicentric studies with large sample sizes and long term follow-up are recommended.
The study findings showed that physiological parameters improved in those doing PA. A PA program for three months can help maintain and enhance the anthropometric and physiological parameters in children compared to those not physically active. Education and healthcare policymakers should include school based PA as a part of the school curriculum, thus ensuring a healthy child can become healthy adult.
DOI: 10.7860/JCDR/2022/51630.16264
Date of Submission: Aug 02, 2021
Date of Peer Review: Oct 11, 2021
Date of Acceptance: Feb 14, 2022
Date of Publishing: Apr 01, 2022
AUTHOR DECLARATION:
• Financial or Other Competing Interests: None
• Was Ethics Committee Approval obtained for this study? Yes
• Was informed consent obtained from the subjects involved in the study? Yes
• For any images presented appropriate consent has been obtained from the subjects. NA
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