A Qualitative Account of The Nature and Use of Self-Regulated Learning (SRL) Strategies Employed by University Students

Students\u27 conceptions of how they initiate, plan, implement and monitor self-regulated learning (SRL) strategies have practical implications for teaching and learning. This study explores the nature and use of SRL strategies employed by university students as it occurs in naturalistic settings, for example, studying in non-classroom environments. Framed within the social cognitive perspective, it focuses on a group of students from an under-researched population. Focus group interviews were used to elicit information about the nature of SRL strategies and contexts for their use. The findings reveal that students employ a range of SRL strategies, from shallow to cognitively rich and deep processing. Furthermore, the use of SRL strategies alters under different contextual influences such as personal goals, SRL phase specific conditions, semester and academic capabilities

Frequency Of Raised Mean Platelet Volume In Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome In HIT Hospital Taxila

To determine the frequency of raised Mean Platelet Volume (MPV) in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in HIT Hospital Taxila. Materials and Methods: A case-control study was at HIT Hospital Taxila. All the patients presented with chest pain who fulfilled the inclusion criteria were recruited into the study. Patients with acute coronary syndrome were included in the case group (ACS group). The patients included in the control group (non-ACS group) had chest pain without having ischemic heart disease or risk of ischemic heart disease. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 28. To find out the correlation between the type of chest pain and mean platelet volume chi-square test was applied. Results: Total 93 patients were included in this study. 51 patients were included in the ACS group while 42 were in non- ACS group. To find out the correlation between the type of chest pain and mean platelet volume chi-square test was applied. The results show a significant association between raised MPV and acute coronary syndrome. Conclusion: Patients with raised MPV are at higher risk of acute coronary disease and complications related to it. It could be used as a predictor of ischemic heart disease and its complications

De Quervain's Tenosynovitis and Thumb Pain in Physiotherapists Practicing Manual Therapy: Prevalence and Associated Factors

Background and Objective: Manual therapy is a treatment approach by physical therapists where different techniques are applied to patients with hands for rehabilitation purposes. The objective of the study was to find the frequency of De&rsquo;Quervain tenosynovitis and thumb and wrist pain in physical therapists working in different rehabilitation centers in relation to age, body mass index (BMI), and working hours. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 135 physical therapists working in different settings in Lahore, Pakistan. Physiotherapists were enrolled by convenience sampling. Data were recorded on a questionnaire form. Finkelstein test was performed to check De Quervain&rsquo;s tenosynovitis. A numeric pain rating scale was sued to measure pain. The data were tested for significance using statistical tests. Results: On the dominant hand, 99 (73.3%) physical therapists had no wrist pain, 104 (77%) had no thumb pain, 28 (20.7%) had mild wrist pain and 20 (14.8%) had mild thumb pain. Only 21 (15.6%) physiotherapists were tested positive for Finkelstein (De Quervain&rsquo;s tenosynovitis). Finkelstein test reported 100% negative result on the non-dominant side. There is a negative correlation between thumb pain with the age (r = -0.005), BMI (r = -0.110) and working hours (r = -0.033) of the physical therapists. Conclusion: The study concluded that the prevalence of De Quervain&rsquo;s tenosynovitis, thumb, and wrist pain was more on the dominant hand than on the non-dominant side. The majority of the physical therapists reported mild to no pain in the wrist and thumb. There is a negative correlation of thumb pain with age, BMI and working hours. &nbsp;</p

Anti-Ulcerogenic Evaluation of Torilis Leptophylla Plant Extract on Indomethacin Induced Mice Gastric Ulcer

Introduction: Despite conventional anti-ulcer therapies for peptic ulcer diseases, medicinal plants might provide effective new anti-ulcer compounds or, alternatively, as adjuncts to existing therapies. Aims & Objectives: To evaluate the effects of Torilis leptophylla on indomethacin-induced gastric ulcer in mice. Place and duration of study: It was an experimental study carried out in the Department of Pharmacology, University of Health Sciences, Lahore, from March to December 2016. Material & Methods: Thirty six (36) adult healthy male BALB/C mice were divided equally in 6 groups and assigned as group I (control), group II (positive control), group III–V (TLM low, medium and high dose) and group VI (omeprazole). Gastric ulcers were induced by oral ingestion of indomethacin in groups II -VI. Acute oral toxicity of the plant was also tested. Antiulcer effect was assessed by measuring body weight, amount and pH of gastric juice, ulcer count, severity of gastric lesion, ulcer index, percentage (%) inhibition of ulcer and histopathology of gastric tissue. Results were analyzed by SPSS 20.0, P-value<0.05 was considered significant. Results: Gastric ulcer reduced the body weight in indomethacin induced animals (28 ± 2.53, 29.66 ± 3.88, 29.66 ± 2.33, 31 ± 3.52,32 ± 3.099 g in group II, III, IV, V and VI respectively) at day 3. Omeprazole and TLM treated groups reduced the gastric volume and pH as compared to positive control. Ulcer index (18.83, 5.14, 3.42, 1.71, 1.76 of the group II, III, IV, V and VI respectively) depicted significant reduction by treatment groups. Ulcer's percentage inhibition (72.7, 81.8, 90.88, 90.65 of low, median and high dose of TLM and standard drug respectively) was increased. Histopathological observations were remarkably reversed by TLM treated groups. Conclusion: Torilis leptophylla could significantly protect gastric mucosa from damage by indomethacin

Cardiac sarcoidosis: a comprehensive review of risk factors, pathogenesis, diagnosis, clinical manifestations, and treatment strategies

Cardiac Sarcoidosis (CS) is a deadly consequence of systemic sarcoidosis that inflames all three layers of the heart, especially the myocardium—clinical signs of CS range from asymptomatic disease to abrupt cardiac death. CS generally remains undiagnosed secondary to a lack of definitive diagnostic criteria, a high percentage of false negative results on endomyocardial biopsy, and ill-defining clinical manifestations of the disease. Consequently, there is a lack of evidence-based recommendations for CS, and the present diagnostic and therapeutic management depend on expert opinion. The aetiology, risk factors, clinical symptoms, diagnosis, and therapy of CS will be covered in this review. A particular emphasis will be placed on enhanced cardiovascular imaging and early identification of CS. We review the emerging evidence regarding the use of Electrocardiograms (ECGs), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging of the heart to identify and quantify the extent of myocardial inflammation, as well as to guide the use of immunotherapy and other treatment regimens, such as ablation therapy, device therapy, and heart transplantation, to improve patient outcomes

Microplastic contamination from surface waters and commercially valuable fishes of Karachi Coast, Pakistan

Microplastic (MPs) pollution is a major concern due to extensive human plastic dependency that is deteriorating ecological health of the world’s oceans. This study was conducted to observe MPs contamination in surface water samples and gastrointestinal tracts of 127 fishes attributed to 15 species from Karachi coast, the busiest port of Pakistan. Total of 6319 MPs/m3 were recorded during this study from water samples where 73% MPs recorded from Manora channel (Karachi harbor) and 27% from open ocean. The most dominant MPs were fibers (42%), pellets (27%), and fragments (20%) respectively. MPs abundance differed significantly among species and ranged between 20.833 ± 2.522– 76.400 ± 7.869 item ind.−1 . Fibers were the most dominant type in all samples (53.39–90.0 %) followed by pellets (4.88–20.22 %) and blue (21.60–66.23 %) was the most common color. The mean size of MPs ranged between 0.34 mm (Otolithus ruber) to 2.1 mm (Terapon jarbua). The mean highest number of MPs were recorded from shallow coastal fishes (440 item ind.−1 ) followed by estuarine and shallow coastal fishes (385 item ind.−1 ). MPs abundance differed significantly among species from different habitat type (Kruskal–Wallis Test, P < 0.0001) with negative correlation between MPs abundance in GITs of fishes and their habitat (Spearman’s rho, r = -0.143) whereas MPs abundance was not significantly correlated with body weight (F = 0.002, p = 0.963), suggesting that MPs ingestion is independent of body weight. There is a need to work about origin, composition, interaction of MPs with biota and impacts of consuming fishes contaminated with high levels of MPs on human health. This is the preliminary study from the Karachi coast and will be a gateway for future studies in this are

An observational multi-center study on type 2 diabetes treatment prescribing pattern and patient adherence to treatment

Abstract In 2021, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) reported that the prevalence of diabetes in Pakistan was 9.6%, higher than the global average. However, adherence to treatment guidelines, e.g., American Diabetes Association and Pakistan Endocrine Society and prescription patterns for Oral anti-diabetes (OAD), is poorly understood in Pakistan. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the prescribing practices of anti-diabetic medications, an association of lifestyle modification with drugs prescribed, and their effectiveness in preserving ideal glycemic levels in diabetic patients undergoing treatment in tertiary care teaching hospitals in rural and urban Pakistan. In this cross-sectional study, data were collected from prescriptions of outpatient diabetic patients from different rural and urban tertiary care hospitals between October 2021 and February 2022. 388 participants were enrolled in the study for a detailed interview on prescription evaluation and glycemic control. The coinvestigators conducted an interview with the patient and used a pre-validated questionnaire to collect the data. The relationship between following treatment guidelines and clinical and demographic factors was found using chi-square tests for bivariate analyses. The study reported that out of 388, the mean ages of the patients were 48 ± 12.4, and the majority were female. It was observed that 60.1% and 66.5% have uncontrolled fasting and random blood glucose, respectively. The education level of the study participants was also below par to have a complete understanding of the medical condition and self-management therapy. Even though they were taking the right medications—an average prescription regimen included 5.08 medications—52.1% of the studied people had glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) levels higher than the therapeutic threshold set by the International Diabetes Federation. In this modern era, it was observed that the prescribing trend was still focused on traditional therapeutic options Biguanides, sulfonylureas, and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors were prescribed in 64.6% of the patients. A significant association was found between glycemic control and body mass index, adherence to lifestyle modifications, and the number of medications prescribed (p-value < 0.05). The study reveals that Pakistan's prescribing practices do not align with international and national guidelines, leading to a high prevalence of uncontrolled diabetes and widespread use of polypharmacy among patients. To address this issue, policymakers should prioritize establishing a comprehensive national diabetes action plan. Additionally, there is a pressing need to develop diabetes education and awareness programs emphasizing the importance of lifestyle modifications for effective diabetes management