Quantifying Urban Karachi’s Air Quality Effect on Human Health and Policy Recommendations

Today’s environmental issues are systematic in nature and cannot be tackled in isolation from man-made activities and impacts. The change in land use and land cover resulting from urbanization has aggravated air quality in urban centers of the country. One of the main sources of air pollution is the use of automobiles in human populated regions resulting in an excess of carbon, sulfur and nitrogen compounds. The emission of greenhouse gases in the form of carbon dioxide from 1990 to 2005 showed an increase of 97.4%. The main source of this increment were vehicular and industrial emissions due to which Pakistan is facing glacier melt in northern areas, earthquakes, flooding and lack of fresh water availability. The authors analyze the effects of vehicular emission on human health; this study is focused on the commercial and industrial areas of Karachi where the flow of heavy traffic and heavy vehicular exhaust emissions are common. The sampled areas are Port Qasim, University Road, Korangi and Mosmiyat. The purpose of this study is to evaluate perceptions of health factors due to air borne pollution in 4 different localities in Karachi. The results showed predominance of headache which is due to an excessive quantity of carbon monoxide and air borne dust in the survey areas as slight exposure of Carbon monoxide affiliated with headache, the second highest complain from respondents is the  Eye Irritation, the exposure of NO2 has acute health effects which include eye irritation, cough and asthma. Based on the above study, recommendations are made to reduce GHG and other pollutants

Cholestasis of pregnancy: effects on maternal and fetal outcome

Background: Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) typically occurs in late pregnancy affecting 1.5-2% pregnancies. Limited data is available regarding its fetal and maternal implications. This study aims to assess the impact of ICP on maternal and fetal outcome.Methods: A total 200 patients with pruritus in later half of pregnancy were studied over a period of 18 months out of which 135 were diagnosed as ICP. Clinical and biochemical parameters like serum aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, total protein, and gamma glutamyl transferase was recorded. Maternal and fetal outcome was noted in the form of LSCS rate, preterm births, fetal distress and neonatal ICU admissions.Results: In this study, most common symptom was pruritus. Most of cases had onset of symptoms between 32-36 weeks. High LSCS rates were seen among cases. Intrapartum complications viz. meconium staining of amniotic fluid (57.8%), preterm delivery (11.9%), fetal distress (42.2%) were significantly higher in study population and there was high incidence of NICU admissions (49. 6% neonates) among cases mostly due to meconium aspiration and prematurity.Conclusions: ICP increases maternal morbidity and is associated with adverse perinatal outcome viz. increased risk of fetal distress, preterm births and sudden IUD at term as evidenced in this study. A timely intervention at 37-38 weeks will reduce the adverse outcomes

Economic Feasibility of Stand-Alone Wind Energy Hybrid with Bioenergy from Anaerobic Digestion for Electrification of Remote Area of Pakistan

Hybrid Renewable Energy systems (HRES) are gaining importance throughout the world because of the finite sources of oil and gas reservoirs. These have the great ability in the production of electrical energy and cleaning the environment. It is difficult to get grid electricity in the remote areas where no infrastructure exists. The utilization of renewable sources is the ultimate solution for the generation of electricity. In this paper, the economic modeling of Hybrid system consisting of Wind/biomass is explored for the remote area ‘Jangiah’ of Balochistan province, Pakistan. Anaerobic Digestion of biomass is used to get biogas. This source is used to complement the uncertainties in the wind production. Homer is used to simulate the hybrid model. Economic analysis is performed to get the net present value (NPV) and cost of energy. It is observed that wind/biomass alone is capable to meet the demand of community which consumes 60 kW peak daily along with the storage backup. This system is the most economical with COE equal to 0.118 US$/kWh following the hybrid biomass/wind/diesel system with COE 0.202 US$/kWh. The sensitivity analysis is carried out and shows that the proposed system is sensitive to the prices of fossil fuel and project lifespan. The net present value increases as the lifetime of the project increases from 15 years to 30 years. It can also be concluded that if the price of the diesel drops below 0.8 US$/liter, the traditional system using fossil fuels will become the most suitable system for the generation of electricity in remote areas

Challenges of Islamic Education in the Changing World

Islamic education, deeply rooted in the teachings of Islam, has evolved over centuries to cater to the spiritual, moral, intellectual, and societal needs of Muslims. This article explores the historical foundations of Islamic education, its core objectives, and the challenges it faces in the modern era. The challenges include striking a balance between tradition and modernization, addressing gender equity, promoting critical thinking, countering extremism, and integrating technology. The recommendations presented emphasize curricular reform, teacher training, quality assurance, and the incorporation of critical thinking and digital integration. The conclusion underscores the dynamic nature of Islamic education, emphasizing its role in shaping well-rounded individuals who are rooted in their faith while navigating contemporary realities. The continued collaboration among educators, scholars, and community leaders is essential to ensure that Islamic education remains a transformative force for future generations of Muslims. Keywords: Islamic education, Muslim communities, Challenge

Performance evaluation of a discrete-time Geo[X]/G/1 retrial queue with general retrial times

AbstractWe consider a discrete-time Geo[X]/G/1 retrial queue with general retrial times. The system state distribution as well as the orbit size and the system size distributions are obtained in terms of their generating functions. These generating functions yield exact expressions for different performance measures. The present model is proved to have a stochastic decomposition law. Hence, a measure of the proximity between the distributions of the system size in the present model and the corresponding one without retrials is derived. A set of numerical results is presented with a focus on the effect of batch arrivals and general retrial times on the system performance. It appears that it is the mean batch size (and not the batch size distribution) that has the main effect on the system performance. Moreover, increasing the mean batch size is shown to have a noticeable effect on the size of the stability region. Finally, geometric retrial times are shown to have an overall better performance compared with two other distributions

Categorization and frequency of indications for packed cell transfusion in the preterm newborn during the initial hospital stay at a tertiary care hospital: A cross-sectional study

Introduction: Packed cell transfusion is a lifesaving procedure in premature babies as they have more complications as compared to babies who are born at term. Complications related to prematurity increase as gestational age decreases and anemia is one of the complications of prematurity which needs packed cell transfusions. To date, when to transfuse preterm babies and what would be the threshold for hemoglobin and hematocrit is still a point of argument as well as liberal versus restrictive transfusion protocols have been developed but what should be followed still needs more data. In our study, we have observed frequencies of different indications of packed cell transfusion in the neonatal intensive care unit of a tertiary care hospital. This endeavor will help in the establishment of guidelines regarding transfusion and the threshold on which any intervention should be done also it would be a step towards the identification of preventable causes that lead to transfusion and transfusion-related risks and hazards. Objective: To determine the indication of packed cell transfusion and their frequencies in preterm neonates. Study Design: This was a cross-sectional study. Setting: The study was carried out in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Study Duration: The duration of the study was 1 year. Material and Methods: A total of 246 preterm neonates admitted to Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) neonatal intensive care unit in the tenure of 1 year, fulfilling the inclusion criteria and requiring packed cell transfusion were included. After the approval from ethical review committee, charts were reviewed for gestational age, birth weight, mode of delivery (normal vaginal or Cesarean-section) were recorded. Indications of packed cell transfusion (intraventricular hemorrhage, infection or sepsis, anemia of prematurity, phlebotomy losses, increase oxygen requirement, hematological causes, other causes of hemorrhage and other causes) were observed and recorded. Pre-transfusion hemoglobin levels (g/dL) and hematocrit levels were also recorded. Other information like number and volume of transfusion and day of life on which transfusion was administered was also documented. Results: A total of 246 critically ill children were enrolled in this study. Of the total, 52.8% were baby boys and 47.2% were baby girls. 57% of babies were born via cesarean section and 43% were born via vaginal delivery. Out of total preterm newborns admitted in NICU, 22.8% were extremely preterm, 35.4% were very preterm and 41.9% were late preterm. Mean gestational age was observed to be 31 (±4) weeks and the mean birth weight of newborns was 1500 (±600) grams. Indications of packed cell transfusion observed in our study are intraventricular hemorrhage 10%, 26% sepsis/infection, 4% hematological disorders, 12.8% anemia of prematurity, 25.2% was related to increase in oxygen requirement, 13% other hematological causes and 9.3% other causes. Conclusion: An increase in oxygen requirement and anemia of prematurity were the indications that were observed in the extremely preterm and very preterm groups. Sepsis and increase oxygen requirement are some of the major causes of transfusions observed in the late preterm group. Preventable indications can be one of the areas that can be worked on and will reduce the need for transfusion in preterm babies with subsequent prevention of transfusion-associated risks