Towards Malaysian sign language database

Sign language is the verbal language for the people who have hearing impairment. Those people who have those kinds of problems are widely known as the deaf people. Basically the word of deaf is referred into two; the Deaf (with capital D) is the hearing impairment person who understands sign language and the deaf (with small d) is the person who does not have capability in understanding the sign language. In this article, the "deaf' (with small d) will be used to cover the entire people with hearing impairment and disabilit

Pattern of Thrombocytopenia In Pregnancy At Teaching Hospital Of Rahim Yar Khan, Pakistan

Background:  Platelet count less than 150 × 109 / L is referred to as thrombocytopenia, which is the second common blood disorder in pregnancy after anemia. Although pregnancy is related with physiological variations in platelet count, however, several pathological conditions also cause thrombocytopenia showing significant impact on health of mother and her baby. The prevalence of thrombocytopenia during pregnancy is 7 to 11%. The physiological thrombocytopenia is multifactorial, related to hemodilution, increased platelet consumption and increased platelet aggregation. Objective: To determine the pattern of thrombocytopenia during third trimester of pregnancy in Rahim Yar Khan. Methodology: This cross-sectional study was carried out at Teaching Hospital of Rahim Yar Khan with effect from May 16, 2022 to September 30, 2022. Five hundred (500) pregnant females in their third trimester were the part of this study. All the study subjects were selected from the department of gynecology and obstetrics at Sheikh Zayed Hospital, Rahim Yar Khan which is a renowned teaching hospital of the region attached with Sheikh Zayed Medical College. Data collection was done on a pre-designed questionnaire. Sample of blood was taken in EDTA and Gel containing vacutainers by convenient sampling technique. Results: The frequency of thrombocytopenia during pregnancy was found 10.4%. Gestational thrombocytopenia was the most common type among thrombocytopenic pregnancies with frequency of 63.46% in comparison to pre-eclampsia 30.76%, HELLP Syndrome 3.80% and immune thrombocytopenic purpura 1.90%. The mean age of pregnant women was observed 27.53±5 years. There is no significant difference in number of thrombocytopenic patients from rural and urban areas (p=0.2). Conclusion: The frequency of thrombocytopenia during the third trimester of pregnancy is observed high, so the regular screening is necessary to avoid any adverse outcome. Specially the patients with Pre-eclampsia and HELLP syndrome should be monitored critically.   Key words: Platelet Count, Thrombocytopenia in Pregnancy, Types of Thrombocytopenia, Pre-Eclampsi

A survey on video segmentation for real-time applications

Video object segmentation is to extract moving and static objects from consecutive video frames. It is a prerequisite for visual content retrieval (e.g., MPEG-7 related schemes), objectbased compression and coding (e.g., MPEG-4 codecs), object recognition, object tracking, security video surveillance, traffic monitoring for law enforcement, and many other application

Transthoracic ultrasound guided fine needle aspiration cytology of peripheral lung lesions: an experience of a pulmonologist

Background: Ultrasound (USG) guided fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) is a simple and cost-effective method for the diagnosis of various peripheral lung lesions. Being radiation free and easily available in most of centres, it has become an important diagnostic modality for early diagnosis of peripheral lung lesions. Besides procedure is simple and complications if occur, can be managed by a pulmonologist effectively. This study was aimed to evaluate the role of Transthoracic ultrasound guided FNAC in diagnosis of peripheral lung lesion.Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted at Government Chest Diseases Hospital Srinagar over a period of one year from January 2018-December 2018. 61 patients who fulfilled inclusion criteria were included in this study. After properly explaining the procedure and taking informed consent, USG guided FNAC was done in patients with peripheral lung lesions under local anaesthesia. Radiological and cytological data of enrolled patients was collected prospectively and analysed.Result: About 61 patients were included in this study comprising of 39 males and 22 females in age range of 17- 90 years. Malignancy was the most common cytological diagnosis (78.57%). while as benign diagnosis was reached in 21.43%. In 8.19% of patients, FNAC was inconclusive. Among the malignant group, adenocarcinoma (47.72%) was most common cytological diagnosis. The overall diagnostic yield of USG guided FNAC in this study was 91.8%.Conclusion: USG guided FNAC of peripheral lung lesions is a simple procedure with high accuracy and less complication rate which can be performed by a pulmonologist for diagnosis

Complex partial non-convulsive status epilepticus masquerading as hepatic encephalopathy: a case report

INTRODUCTION: Hepatic encephalopathy is usually suspected in patients who are cirrhotic with neuropsychiatric manifestations. We present a case of suspected hepatic encephalopathy that did not respond to standard empiric therapy and was eventually diagnosed as non-convulsive status epilepticus of complex partial type. Our patient responded dramatically to anti-convulsive therapy. CASE PRESENTATION: We report the case of a 45-year-old African-American man with hepatitis C virus cirrhosis and human immunodeficiency virus who presented to our facility with a one-day history of confusion and a variable mental status. Our patient’s vital signs were stable and all his electrolytes were within normal range. A clinical diagnosis of hepatic encephalopathy was made and our patient was started on empiric therapy with lactulose and rifaximin. Our patient did not respond to therapy. After five days of treatment, alternative diagnoses were sought and a neurology consult was requested. An electroencephalogram was eventually performed which showed seizure activity in the right parietal lobe. A diagnosis of non-convulsive status epilepticus was made and our patient was started on oral levetiracetam. On day two of therapy, our patient was alert and oriented. He continues to do well on follow-up approximately one year after discharge. CONCLUSIONS: Non-convulsive status epilepticus should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with suspected hepatic encephalopathy who do not respond to empirical treatment. Further studies are needed to investigate the incidence of this entity in patients with persistent hepatic encephalopathy

Carotid Endarterectomy in Women versus Man: Patient Characteristics and Perioperative Complication (

AIM: Compare the basic characteristics of patients and to examine the existence of higher rates of perioperative complications (0 - 30 days) in women versus men after carotid endarterectomy (CEA).METHODS: This is a retrospective-prospective study included 270 patients with significant stenosis of carotid in whom CEA was performed, during the period from 2012 to 2017. Patients they were divided: group 1 - 100 female patients, group 2 - 170 male patients.RESULTS: No statistically significant age difference was observed between the two groups, group 1 - 66.01 years (SD 8.42, 46 to 86 years), group 2 - 66.46 years (SD 8.03, 47 to 85 years) (p = 0.659). Risk factors represent a greater prevalence in group 2, but the observed difference is not statistically significant. The average duration of surgery and the time of carotid artery clamping time were longer in group 1: (p = 0.002; p = 0.005). The number of classic endarterectomy with the patch was higher in women (41 (41%) versus 31 (18. 2%), p = 0.005), while the number of bilateral CEAs was not statistically significant.CONCLUSION: The results of this study of this study did not indicate a greater presence of perioperative complications (< 30 days) in women versus male patients after CEA

Internal Mammary Arteries as a Model to Demonstrate Restoration of the Impaired Vasodilation in Hypertension, Using Liposomal Delivery of the CYP1B1 Inhibitor, 2,3′,4,5′-Tetramethoxystilbene

A significant number of patients with severe cardiovascular disease, undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), present with hypertension. While internal mammary arteries (IMAs) may be a better alternative to vein grafts, their impaired vasodilator function affects their patency. Our objectives were to (1) determine if inhibition of the cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP1B1, using liposome-encapsulated 2,3′,4,5′-tetramethoxystilbene (TMS), can potentiate vasodilation of IMAs from CABG patients, and (2) assess mechanisms involved using coronary arteries from normal rats, in an ex vivo model of hypertension. PEGylated liposomes were synthesized and loaded with TMS (mean diameter 141 ± 0.9 nm). Liposomal delivery of TMS improved its bioavailability Compared to TMS solution (0.129 ± 0.02 ng/mL vs. 0.086 ± 0.01 ng/mL at 4 h; p < 0.05). TMS-loaded liposomes alleviated attenuated endothelial-dependent acetylcholine (ACh)-induced dilation in diseased IMAs (@ACh 10−4 M: 56.9 ± 5.1%; n = 8 vs. 12.7 ± 7.8%; n = 6; p < 0.01) for TMS-loaded liposomes vs. blank liposomes, respectively. The alleviation in dilation may be due to the potent inhibition of CYP1B1 by TMS, and subsequent reduction in reactive oxygen species (ROS) moieties and stimulation of nitric oxide synthesis. In isolated rat coronary arteries exposed to a hypertensive environment, TMS-loaded liposomes potentiated nitric oxide and endothelium-derived hyperpolarization pathways via AMPK. Our findings are promising for the future development of TMS-loaded liposomes as a promising therapeutic strategy to enhance TMS bioavailability and potentiate vasodilator function in hypertension, with relevance for early and long-term treatment of CABG patients, via the sustained and localized TMS release within IMAs

Clean birth kits to improve birth practices: development and testing of a country level decision support tool

Background: Clean birth practices can prevent sepsis, one of the leading causes of both maternal and newborn mortality. Evidence suggests that clean birth kits (CBKs), as part of package that includes education, are associated with a reduction in newborn mortality, omphalitis, and puerperal sepsis. However, questions remain about how best to approach the introduction of CBKs in country. We set out to develop a practical decision support tool for programme managers of public health systems who are considering the potential role of CBKs in their strategy for care at birth. Methods: Development and testing of the decision support tool was a three-stage process involving an international expert group and country level testing. Stage 1, the development of the tool was undertaken by the Birth Kit Working Group and involved a review of the evidence, a consensus meeting, drafting of the proposed tool and expert review. In Stage 2 the tool was tested with users through interviews (9) and a focus group, with federal and provincial level decision makers in Pakistan. In Stage 3 the findings from the country level testing were reviewed by the expert group. Results: The decision support tool comprised three separate algorithms to guide the policy maker or programme manager through the specific steps required in making the country level decision about whether to use CBKs. The algorithms were supported by a series of questions (that could be administered by interview, focus group or questionnaire) to help the decision maker identify the information needed. The country level testing revealed that the decision support tool was easy to follow and helpful in making decisions about the potential role of CBKs. Minor modifications were made and the final algorithms are presented. Conclusion: Testing of the tool with users in Pakistan suggests that the tool facilitates discussion and aids decision making. However, testing in other countries is needed to determine whether these results can be replicated and to identify how the tool can be adapted to meet country specific needs