19-6.77), malignancy (pOR 2.38, 95% CI 1.25-4.52), diabetes (pOR 2.29, 95% CI 1.56-3.39), hypertension (pOR 1.72, 95% CI 1.23-2.42), cardiovascular disease (pOR 1.61, 95% CI 1.31-1.98) and chronic kidney disease (pOR 1.46, 95% CI 1.06-2.02), for predicting severe COVID-19. Our analysis describes the association of specific symptoms and comorbidities with severe COVID-19 disease. Knowledge of these clinical determinants will assist the clinicians in the risk-stratification of these patients for better triage and clinical management. Our analysis describes the association of specific symptoms and comorbidities with severe COVID-19 disease. Knowledge of these clinical determinants will assist the clinicians in the risk-stratification of these patients for better triage and clinical management. Nocardiosis is a rare infection that affects immunocompromised patients on immunosuppressive medications used for transplantation and cancer therapy. Such therapies are becoming more widely available in the Middle East region. Yet, reports on nocardiosis are scarce. This was a retrospective analysis of patients who were diagnosed with nocardiosis from 2004 to 2018 at a transplantation and cancer center. Nocardiosis were defined per the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer criteria. During the study period, 35 patients with nocardiosis (male 68.5%) were identified. The most common underlying associated condition was transplantation 11 (31.4%), followed by malignancy 7 (20%), connective tissue disease and sarcoidosis 7 (20%), chronic lung disease 5 (14%), miscellaneous conditions 4 (11%), and one patient with human immunodeficiency virus. was disseminated in 8 patients (22.9%) and isolated in 27 (77.1%); the latter included 13 patients (37.1%) with bronchial form, 11 (31.4%) with isolated visceral form, and 3 (8.6%) with cutaneous form. Pulmonary involvement occurred in 90% of the cases with cough, fever, and dyspnea being the most common symptoms. The main strain isolate was , and the cure rate was 90%. Mortality related to nocardiosis occurred in 3 transplant patients (8.6%). Wider use of immunosuppressive therapy warrants vigilance to nocardiosis, which can present in a myriad of clinical forms. In our series, mortality was confined to the transplantation group, probably because of the relatively heavy immunosuppression. Nonetheless, prognosis is favorable if the infection is recognized and treated early. Wider use of immunosuppressive therapy warrants vigilance to nocardiosis, which can present in a myriad of clinical forms. In our series, mortality was confined to the transplantation group, probably because of the relatively heavy immunosuppression. Nonetheless, prognosis is favorable if the infection is recognized and treated early. Published literature is silent about the gender gap in tuberculosis (TB) among adolescent (10-19 years) population despite extensive information on increased susceptibility of the male gender after 20 years. We analyzed the data from 1113 adolescent microbiologically confirmed TB cases using cartridge-based nucleic acid amplification test (CBNAAT) in 2019 in the State of Himachal Pradesh (HP), India. The data generated by 39 CBNAAT sites in HP were analyzed with an objective to describe the gender gap in TB among adolescents. Among 983 patients with pulmonary TB (PTB), the male female ratio was 11.5 ( = 0.0001), whereas in 130 patients with extra PTB (EPTB), the male female ratio was 11.8 ( = 0.0001). This male female ratio was seen to reverse after 20 years for PTB, and but it persisted till 40 years for EPTB. Two main forms of TB that were significantly high in females during adolescence were PTB and lymph node TB ( = 0.0001). Significant gender difference with female susceptibility was seen for TB among adolescents, a fact that needs more research. Adolescent TB is a neglected area with little published data driven mainly by the fact that most countries report their TB population above and below 15 years, dividing the adolescent population into two halves. The world needs to acknowledge adolescents (10-19 years) as a separate important group for reporting TB statistics. Significant gender difference with female susceptibility was seen for TB among adolescents, a fact that needs more research. Adolescent TB is a neglected area with little published data driven mainly by the fact that most countries report their TB population above and below 15 years, dividing the adolescent population into two halves. The world needs to acknowledge adolescents (10-19 years) as a separate important group for reporting TB statistics."Body packers" are persons who voluntarily or through coercion, swallow or insert drug-filled packets into body cavity, generally in an attempt to smuggle them across secure borders. The drugs most often involved in body packing are heroin and cocaine. Body packers can present in the emergency department as a result of ruptured drug packets, bowel obstruction, or for medicolegal purposes. Suspected cases are diagnosed with X-ray and computed tomography scan of the abdomen. Symptomatic patients require urgent removal of packets. We present a case of foreign national male in whom a drug packet got ruptured and 49 other packets were retrieved with help of laxatives and manual evacuation.Hemosuccus pancreaticus (HP), a term used for upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) from the ampulla of Vater through the pancreatic duct, is most commonly caused by the rupture of aneurysm of the splenic artery associated with acute or chronic pancreatitis. It is a rare cause of UGIB, and estimates of its rate (1/1500) are based on small case series. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/l-glutamic-acid-monosodium-salt.html Because of its rarity, the diagnosis is easily overlooked. Here, we have described a case of alcohol-induced acute pancreatitis that developed hemorrhagic shock due to HP. Patients with an alcohol use disorder (AUD) have an increased risk of developing complications during their hospital stays; however, how AUD impacts the length of stay (LOS) and the utilization of hospital resources remains inconclusive. This study aimed to identify the associations between AUD, defined by self-reported alcohol consumption, blood alcohol content (BAC), and hospital LOS (HLOS) including intensive care unit (ICU) LOS in the trauma patient population. We conducted a retrospective study analyzing data obtained from 2010 to 2018 at a university-based, level-one trauma emergency department. We identified 1689 adult trauma patients who completed the AUDs identification test (AUDIT) and were admitted to the hospital. We retrieved BAC, age, gender, LOS, and injury severity score (ISS) from the patient charts. The independent samples' median test was used to assess the association of HLOS and ICULOS with ISS, BAC levels, or AUDIT scores. ISS was directly associated with higher HLOS ( < 0.001) and ICULOS ( < 0.