Inaugural Address

Mr. Chairman, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen. It gives me great pleasure to inaugurate the First Annual General Meeting of the Pakistan Society of Development Economists. Based in the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, the Society is intended to play a key role in disseminating information on pressing economic problems and in providing a permanent forum for a free and dispassionate exchange of ideas among professional economists and policy-makers. I am confident that the Society will set in motion a process of interplay between the ideas produced by the economists and the pragmatic application of these ideas by the policy-makers in the world of reality, thereby engendering efficiently functioning models of growth and development. Economics is a living and practical science which must draw its inspiration from and determine the parameters of its theories on the basis of actual organisation of economic life around us and the nature of economic problems faced at a particular stage of development. Theories and models, in turn, must stand the test of practical application in the market-place. A dialogue between the economists and the policy-makers, if they have to be at all placed into separate categories as a part of product discrimination, would represent the most desirable synthesis of professional energy, and for such a dialogue this Society, I am sure, will provide an ideal forum

Phytochemical screening and antibacterial effect of root extract of Boerhaavia diffusa L. (Family Nyctaginaceae)

Boerhaavia diffusa belonging to the family of the Nyctaginaceae is mainly a diffused perennial herbaceous creeping weed of India. The present study deals with the investigation of phytochemical analysis and evaluation of the antimicrobial activity of the aqueous and methanolic extract of the roots of Boerhaavia diffusa. The result revealed the presence of alkaloid, glycoside, saponins, flavonoids, polysaccharides, steroid and tannin in both the root extracts. B. diffusa root extract possesses antimicrobial activity as the zone of inhibition was observed for both gram positive as well as gram negative bacterial strains

Rotational vs. standard smooth laryngeal mask airway insertion in adults

OBJECTIVE: To compare the ease of insertion between rotational laryngeal mask airway (LMA) insertion and Brain\u27s LMA insertion technique in terms of number of LMA insertion attempts, time duration of LMA insertion and complications: trauma, laryngospasm, and hypoxaemia. STUDY DESIGN: Randomized control study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from September 2006 to May 2007. METHODOLOGY: One hundred ASA I and II adults undergoing short elective surgical procedures requiring general anaesthesia with spontaneous breathing were enrolled. Following pre-oxygenation, anaesthesia was induced with propofol 2 mg/kg and fentanyl 2 mug/kg. Patients were randomly assigned into one of the study groups: rotational-(R) and standard-(S). LMA insertion was performed when patients became apnoeic and adequate LMA insertion depth achieved. Successful placement was confirmed by chest expansion, reservoir bag movement and appearance of capnographic tracing in both spontaneously breathing patients and in apnoeic patients with assisted ventilation. RESULTS: Significant differences were not seen in patient\u27s demographics, Mallampati score, ASA status and pre-operative vital signs. Statistically insignificant difference was found for the time duration and number of LMA insertion attempts. The incidence of trauma was significantly noted in standard insertion technique (28%) compared to (6%) in rotational insertion technique (p = 0.003). The hypoxaemia and laryngospasm was not reported among the groups. CONCLUSION: The rotational technique was practically easy while negotiating the back of mouth and it requires little efforts with lowest complication rate. This technique can be considered in adults when encountering difficulty and repetitive failures with standard LMA insertion technique

Physico-chemical and phytoplanktonic characteristics of river Tons at Dehradun (Uttarakhand), India

The physico-chemical and phytoplankton characteristics of the Tons River were analyzed during August 2011-July 2012. The samples were collected from Garhi Cant (Site 1) and Tapkeshwar temple (Site 2) at Dehradun. The results showed that temperature, velocity, DO, nitrate and phosphate affected the phytoplanktonic diversity of river Tons. Thirty five genera of phytoplankton belonging to three families of Chlorophyceae, Bacillariophyceae and Myxophyceae were also identified in the river water. The family Bacillariophyceae was dominating the river with much abundance throughout the study period. Bacillariophyceae was recorded with the maximum of 222.25±90.84 Unit/L at sampling site 1 and 239.08±125.41 Unit/L at sampling site 2. The greater number of individuals was in family Bacillariophyceae (239.08±125.41 Unit/L) followed by Chlorophyceae (183.75±112.50 Unit/L) and Myxophyceae(40.91±36.16 Unit/L) during the study period. Both the number of genera and number of individuals belonging to each genera was maximum in case of family Bacillariophyceae followed by Chlorophyceae and Myxophyceae. The present study revealed that the water quality of river Tons was fairly good for the growth and survival of phytoplankton, and as a result it sustains the higher phytoplankton diversity of Tons river

Disinfection Methods

Water must be made safe to drink, and an important step in ensuring water safety is disinfection. Disinfectants are added to water to kill disease-causing microorganisms. Ground water sources can be disinfected by “The Water Treatment Rule,” which requires public water systems for disinfection. Chlorination, ozone, ultraviolet light, and chloramines are primary methods for disinfection. However, potassium permanganate, photocatalytic disinfection, nanofiltration, and chlorine dioxide can also be used. Organic material is naturally present in water. Certain forms of chlorine can react with these organic materials and result in the formation of harmful by-products; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has anticipated maximum levels for these contaminants

The epidemiology of stroke In a developing country (Pakistan)

Ischemic stroke is a major cause of neurological morbidity and mortality. The objective of this review article is to summarize facts pertaining to acute ischemic stroke and its various aspects in a developing country like Pakistan, where resources are limited and the healthcare system is underdeveloped. No large-scale epidemiological studies are available to determine the true incidence of stroke in Pakistan. We conducted a study to determine the prevalence of several important stroke risk factors among Pakistani stroke patients, and to determine whether these risk factors differ among urban versus rural populations. We also used existing data from literature to compare overall stroke incidence in Pakistan to that in developed countries. In this study we found that for stroke besides hypertension, prolonged contraceptive use and pregnancy are additional risk factors in Pakistan. Which is more prevalent in urban populations than rural population? Developed countries except Germany have much lower stroke incidences than Pakistan

Frequency and Pattern of Early Complications after Endoscopic Third Ventriculostomy in Obstructive Hydrocephalus

Objective:  To determine the frequency, pattern and outcome of early complications after endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) in Obstructive hydrocephalus. Material and Methods:  The study included 160 patients from Neurosurgery department, Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar and private clinics over a period of twelve months. After performing ETV under general anesthesia by a single expert neurosurgeon, the patients were followed up for seven days post operatively for the CSF leak, wound infection, meningitis, seizures, bleeding and in hospital death. Results:  Eighty five percent of the patients had no untoward complications, while 15% showed complications including CSF leak (5%), wound infection (3%), meningitis (2%), seizures (2%), bleeding (2%) and in hospital death (1%). Conclusion:  Due to the less invasive nature, endoscopic third ventriculostomy is favored for treating obstructive hydrocephalus in select patient population as it is safe and have better outcomes

Fatal Hypermagnesemia: an acute ingestion of Epsom Salt in a patient with normal renal function

Background: Generally, it is very rare for clinically significant hypermagnesemia to develop in an individual with normal renal functions as the renal handling of serum magnesium is a very potent process and it has the capacity, under conditions of hypermagnesemia, to completely block Mg (magnesium) reabsorption from the thick ascending limb of Henle. Therefore, hypermagnesemia usually arises in the setting of renal failure. Case presentation: We present a very rare case of a 40-year-old African American obese female with prior normal renal functions, who presented post-cardiac arrest following accidental overdose of Epsom salt. The patient was initially given supportive therapy and was later considered for the dialysis despite normal renal functions, as serum Mg levels kept on creeping up and clinical status kept on deteriorating continuously. Conclusions: Seemingly harmless magnesium containing (over-the-counter) (OTC) can potentially be lethal, and such consequences must always be taken into account when using such medications for a prolonged period of tim