SINGLE-BLIND, RANDOMIZED, CONTROL TRIAL OF A UNANI COMPOUND FORMULATION IN ILTEHAB TAJAWEEFE ANAF MUZMIN

Objective: The objective of the study was to establish the efficacy and tolerability of oral Unani formulations with inhalation of Kalonji and to provide safe, effective, and economical treatment for Iltehab Tajaweefe Anaf Muzmin (chronic rhinosinusitis [CRS]). Methods: A randomized single-blind, comparative study of 40 patients of CRS. The patients were randomly allocated to two groups each consisting of 20 patients. In Group A, oral Unani formulation of Katan (Linum usitatissimum), Filfil Siyah (Piper nigrum), and honey was given 6 g BD with steam inhalation of Kalonji (Nigella sativa) and Tab Alaspan 1 BD with Karvol Plus inhalation was given in Group B. Results: Statistical analysis of the data was done using paired t test by comparing the visual analog scale score of all major and minor symptoms before and after treatment. The result is statistically highly significant in Group A (p<0.0001) and it is significant in Group B. (p<0.01). Conclusion: It may be concluded that the oral Unani formulation with inhalation of Kalonji has statistically highly significant effect on major and minor symptoms of CRS. A multicentric trial of the test drug on larger sample size for a longer duration is required to establish the efficacy of the formulation on CRS

SANKHAHOLI (( Evolvulus alsinoides Linn.)): A REVIEW

ABSTRACT: The Sankhaholi (Evolvulus alsinoides Linn.) of family  Convolvulaceae which is commonly known as sankhpushpi, in traditional system of medicine including Unani Medicine. It is a perennial herb with a small woody branched root stock which contains alkaloids: shankhapushpine and evolvine. Fresh plant of sankhholi contains volatile oil. It also contains a yellow neutral fat, an organic acid and saline substances. Therapeutic uses of Sankhaholi Evolvulus alsinoides Linn, mentioned in the Unani Medicine are Alexiteric (Mufarreh), Cardiac  tonic  (Muqawwi-e Qalb), Brain tonic  (Muqawwi-e Dimag), Digestive (Hazim)  Musaffi-e- Khoon (Blood purifier),General tonic (Muqawwi-e-am), Diuretic (Mudirr-e-Baul), Anti Inflammatory (Muhallil-e-waram), Hypoglycemic (Dafa-e-Ziabitus), Antihypertensive (Dafye Imtella). It is also used in headache, asthma, hyperlipidemia etc. The present article reviews the pharmacological actions and therapeutic uses of Sankhaholi ( Evolvulus alsinoides Linn.) present in Unani literature supported with the available clinical and animal studies.Keywords: Sankhaholi Evolvulus alsinoides Linn. Sankhpushpi, Unani Medicin

INTERNAL FACTORS, EXTERNAL FACTORS AND BANK PROFITABILITY

A developed banking sector provides the impetus for the economy to grow. However, in order to maintain financial stability and sustain negative shocks, it is important to understand the factors that influence the profitability of banks. The aim of the study was to analyse the effect of internal and external factors on the profitability of banks in Pakistan for the period 2007-2015. Fixed effects model was used to analyse the effect of internal and external factors on the profitability of banks in Pakistan. The findings of the study revealed that among internal factors only bank size and asset composition significantly influences the profitability of banks whereas in the external determinants only real interest rates and GDP growth rates has a significant effect on the profitability of banks

Performance optimisation of small antenna arrays

This thesis addresses radiation pattern synthesis problems for small linear periodic phased arrays (with array elements less then 10). Due to the small array size conventional pattern synthesis techniques fail to produce the required results. In the case of practical small arrays, mutual coupling and element pattern asymmetric effect degrade the array radiation performance. The main performance metrics considered in this thesis include side lobe level (SLL), gain, halfpower beamwidth (HPBW) and mainbeam scan direction. The conventional pattern synthesis approaches result in sub optimal gain, SLL and HPBW due to the limited number of elements and the mutual coupling involved. In case of difference pattern synthesis these factors resulted in lower difference pattern slope, degraded SLL and difference peak asymmetry. The sum and difference patterns are used in monopulse arrays and a simplified feed that could produce both patterns with acceptable radiation properties is of interest and has been examined (chapter 5). A conventional technique is applied to small arrays to synthesise a sector beam and there is limited control over the radiation pattern. It is shown that the mutual coupling has significant effect on the array radiation pattern and mitigation is necessary for optimum performance (chapter 6). Furthermore, wideband phased arrays may have a natural limitation of the HPBW in low gain applications and minimisation of the variation becomes important. Also the SLL variations for wideband antenna arrays in the presence of mutual coupling considerably degrade the radiation pattern. The mutual coupling degrades significantly the radiation pattern performance in case of small scanning wideband arrays (chapter 7). It is the primary goal of this thesis to develop an optimisation scheme thatis applied in the above scenarios (chapters 3 & 4). The only degree of freedom assumed is the array excitation. Optimised amplitude and phase for each element in the array are determined by the proposed scheme, concurrently. The deterministic optimisation techniques reported in the literature for the pattern synthesis may involve complicated problem modelling. The heuristic opti-misation techniques generally are computationally expensive. The proposedIntelligent z-space Boundary Condition-Particle Swarm Optimiser (IzBC-PSO)is based on a heuristic algorithm. This scheme can be applied to a wider rangeof problems without significant modifications and requires fewer computationscompared to the competing techniques.In order to verify the performance of IzBC-PSO antenna array measure-ments were performed in the receiving mode only using the online and offlinedigital beamforming setups described in chapter 8. The measurement resultsshow that the proposed scheme may be successfully applied with both onlineand offline digital beamformers for a practical small array (chapter 8).EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceCOMSATS Institute of Information Technology (CIIT), Islamabad, PakistanGBUnited Kingdo

Plan dose evaluation of three dimensional conformal radiotherapy planning (3D-CRT) of nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC): experience of a tertiary care University Hospital in Pakistan

Background: Radiation therapy is the mainstay of treatment for nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Importance of tumor coverage and challenges posed by its unique and critical location are well evident. Therefore we aimed to evaluate our radiation treatment plan through dose volume histograms (DVHs) to find planning target volume (PTV) dose coverage and factors affecting it.MATERIALS AND Methods: This retrospective study covered 45 histologically proven nasopharyngeal cancer patients who were treated with definitive 3D-CRT and chemotherapy between Feb 2006 to March 2013 at the Department of Oncology, Section Radiation Oncology ,Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan. DVH was evaluated to find numbers of shrinking field (phases), PTV volume in different phases and its coverage by the 95% isodose lines, along with influencing factors.Results: There were 36 males (80%) and 9 females (20%) in the age range of 12-84 years. Stage IVA (46.7%) was the most common stage followed by stage III (31.1). Eighty six point six-percent received induction, 95.5% received concurrent and 22.2% received adjuvant chemotherapy. The prescribed median radiation dose was 70Gy to primary, 60Gy to clinically positive neck nodes and 50Gy to clinically negative neck regions. Mean dose to spinal cord was 44.2Gy and to optic chiasma was 52Gy. Thirty seven point eight-percent patients completed their treatment in three phases while 62.2% required four to five phases. Mean volume for PTV3 was 247.8 cm3 (50-644.3), PTV4 173.8 cm3 (26.5-345.1) and PTV5 119.6 cm3 (18.9-246.1) and PTV volume coverage by 95% isodose lines were 74.4%, 85.7% and 100% respectively. Advanced T stage, intracranial extension and tumor volume \u3e200 cm3 were found to be important factors associated with decreased PTV coverage by 95% isodose line.CONCLUSIONS: 3D CRT results in adequate PTV dose coverage by 95% isodose line. However advanced T stage, intracranial extension and large target volume require more advanced techniques like IMRT for appropriate PTV coverage

Medicinal efficacy of Khar-e-Khasak Khurd (Tribulus terrestris Linn)

Khar-e-Khasak-khurd (Tribulus terrestris Linn.) commonly known as Gokharu, is used for a long time for treatment of various diseases. Considerable literature is available in Unani system of medicine regarding the medicinal properties of Khar-e-khasak-khurd (Tribulus terrestris Linn.). Its various parts contain a variety of chemical constituents which are pharmacologically active, such as Harmine, Chlorogenin, Tribuloside, Trigogenin. Whole plant and seeds are used as traditional herbal medicine and having properties such as diuretic, aphrodisiac, immunomodulatory, antidiabetic, absorption enhancing, hypolipidemic, cardiotonic, hepatoprotective, antiurolithic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antispasmodic, and antibacterial. In the present review, an attempt has been made to cover the major pharmacological actions as well therapeutic uses of Khar-e-khasak-khurd (Tribulus terrestris Linn.) mentioned in Unani system of medicine. Keyword: Tribulus terrestris Linn. Unani Medicine, Khar-e- Khasak Khurd, Pharmacological Actions

Majoon-E-Piyaz: A Potent Unani Formulation for Premature Ejaculation

Surʻat-e-Inzāl (Premature Ejaculation) is the most prevalent male sexual dysfunction affecting 25 - 40% global population of men. It is a universal disorder and is independent of age, social or marital status. It has a significant impact on both- patients and their partners, causing distress, anxiety and relationship difficulties affecting the quality of life. Several aetiologies have been proposed by various researchers which are not evidence-based but speculative. Accordingly the International Society for Sexual Medicine (ISSM) issued treatment guidelines for Premature Ejaculation (PE) recommending Serotonergic Antidepressants (SSRIs) and Local Anaesthetics (LA) for its management in modern medicine. However, these treatments were not actually developed for PE, and have limitations associated with their off-label use. Furthermore, nearly all the recommended drugs have a wider spectrum of adverse effects and serious drug interactions which sometimes could be fatal. On the other hand, centuries old Unani medicine offers a complete line of treatment for Surʻat-e-Inzāl based on traditional knowledge and experience. Unani physicians devised a large number of poly-herbal recipes which are still in vogue.  Majoon-e-Piyaz (MP) is one of the compound Unani formulations which are in use for the treatment of premature ejaculation since centuries. This article is an attempt to summarize scientific investigations in support of the claim made by Unani physicians regarding Majoon-e-Piyaz (MP).  Keywords: Surʻat-e-Inzāl, Premature Ejaculation, Majoon-e-Piyaz, Unani Medicin

Antecedents of Halal Brand Equity : A Study of Halal Food Sector of Malaysia

Purpose - Islamic marketing is an emerging field with a lot of potentials, so it is worthwhile to explore it. This study aims to conduct research on the unexplored relationship of antecedents of the equity, image, and consumers’ trust and satisfaction of halal brands. Design/methodology/approach - A structured questionnaire was designed to conduct research to analyze the halal brand equity and its antecedents. Data were collected from 250 halal consumers of Kota Samarahan and Kuching, Malaysia through a self-administered questionnaire using a convenience sampling method. Findings -The study finds a positive relationship of three antecedents of brand equity which confirms a strong relationship between the image and satisfaction of halal brand equity. The results further showed that halal brand image is linked with halal brand trust but the relationship between halal brand trust and its equity could not be proved. Originality - Islamic marketing has received great attention of researchers, academicians, and practitioners which has rather been unexplored earlier particularly the relationships among antecedents of the equity, image, and consumers’ trust and satisfaction of halal brands. Research Limitations -This has been a cross-sectional study that was limited to Malaysia, a Muslim majority country. Researchers can conduct a longitudinal study and can conduct it in non-Muslim societies to comprehend their diversity and wider impact. Additionally, this study was limited to halal food brands in Malaysia

EFFICACY OF PIPER NIGRUM (BLACK PEPPER): A REVIEW

Abstract-  Considerable literature on medicinal uses of Black Pepper is available in the traditional system of medicine. Black Pepper has been used in many traditional particularly Unani system of medicine. In this review paper, the study of Black Pepper its medicinal uses along with pharmacological actions is being presented. The plant description, its chemical constituents and properties have also been included. The paper also demonstrate the geographical distribution of Black Pepper across the world. The analysis shows that Black Pepper could be used as an effective medicine for various ailments mainly gastro-intestinal disorders in both as single as well in compound formulations.Key Words- Black Pepper,  Filfil Siyah, Unani Medicine,Â