Distribution of arsenic and heavy metals in soils and surface waters in Central Victoria (Ballarat, Creswick and Maldon)

"Three sampling campaigns were conducted in the Ballarat, Creswick and Maldon areas. The sampling area is part of the Golden Triangle region where significant gold-mining activities took place from the 1850s to the present day. [...] Locations were chosen to evaluate arsenic distribution in soils, surface waters and plants in different environments. Easy access to sampling locations allowed detailed scientific sampling, especially in the seasonality study. The different range of environments such as agricultural, state forest, mining, urban and rural provided an opportunity to compare the concentrations of arsenic and other elements in the study area. The study of the three selected areas combined provided further understanding of possible exposure and pathways through which arsenic can get into the food chain. "The objective of the study is to measure levels of heavy metals/metalloids in soils, water and plants in various environments, identify whether the heavy metals/metalloids are mobile and bioavailable and understand the importance of clays and oxide complexes in the fixation of metals."Doctor of Philosophy (PhD

Increased level of morning surge in blood pressure in normotensives: across-sectional study from Pakistan.

Objective: To determine the mean morning surge (MS) in blood pressure, the frequency of increased morning surge in normotensive subjects, and to compare those with morning surge with those without MS. Study Design: A cross-sectional, comparative study. Place and Duration of Study: The Department of Medicine, The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from April 2011 to March 2012. Methodology: Adult normotensive healthy volunteers aged 35 to 65 years were inducted. Their ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) was measured over a 24-hour period, using digital ambulatory blood pressure monitors. Morning surge was calculated as the average of four readings after waking minus the lowest three nocturnal readings. Increased morning surge was defined as \u3e 11 mm Hg in systolic (SBP) or \u3e 12 mm Hg in diastolic (DBP). Dipping was defined as \u3e 10% dipping in blood pressure. Results: Eighty-two healthy volunteers were recruited. Their mean age was 36.9 ±1.2 years; 74.4 (61%) were men, and 58.5 (48%) woke up for morning prayers. Mean overall SBP was 113 ±1.6 mm Hg, overall DBP was 73.9 ±0.7 mm Hg, and overall heart rate was 75 (10) beats/minute. Mean morning surge was 17.6 ±1.0 mm Hg in SBP and 16.0 ±0.8 mm Hg in DBP. The frequency of increased morning surge was 66 (80.5%) in SBP, and 57 (69%) in DBP. On comparison of participants with normal morning surge and increased morning surge in SBP, there was a significant difference in nondipping status (13.4% in normal vs. 18.3% in increased morning surge, p= 0.001). Conclusion: Mean morning surge in SBP and DBP are relatively higher in this subset population in a tertiary care center in Pakistan. These values are higher than those reported in the literature

IMPACT OF OPTIMISM ON POST-TRAUMATIC GROWTH OF BURN SURVIVORS: ROLE OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE, GENDER AND SEVERITY OF BURN INJURY

OBJECTIVES: To examine the mediating role of emotional intelligence (EI) between optimism and post-traumatic growth (PTG) among burn survivors and to see the interaction effects of gender and nature of injury on optimism, emotional intelligence and PTG. METHODS: This descriptive correlational study was conducted from 2nd January-30th April 2022, at in-patient department of burn centers of three public hospitals of Lahore, Pakistan. Out of 250 survivors of moderate and severe burns, selected through purposive sampling strategy, 229 completed the survey via face to face or call contacts. Participants filled out three structured questionnaires along consent form. Later, collected data was analyzed through PROCESS macro v3.5 and SPSS V23.0. RESULTS: Out of 229 patients 139 (60.7%) were males and 90 (39.3%) were females. Mean age was 32.4±3.1 years. Optimism had a direct effect on emotional intelligence, emotions perception, emotions utilization, managing self-relevant emotions, managing other’s emotions, and PTG, p<.0001. EI and all its subscales predicted PTG, the overall model explained 36% of variance in dependent variable, significant at R=.60, F (3,226) =151.30, p<.0001. Indirect effects of EI and subscales were found between optimism and PTG. Further, interaction effects of gender and nature of injury were seen for optimism, EI and PTG. CONCLUSION: Optimistic approaches and stimulating emotional expressions, managing self-relevant emotions, and utilization of positive emotions might help burn survivors in adapting to their trauma in the longer term. Further, both men and women reported post traumatic growth but severity of injury was affecting PTG in men and women equally

Accumulation of phytotoxic metals and metalloids in vegetable continuum subjected to different irrigation streams: a threat towards nutritional security

The urban agro-ecosystem in developing countries plays a major role in uplifting the socioeconomic status of their inhabitants by confronting the challenges of improving food security and eradicating hunger. Food security and safety has become a serious global concern owing to accumulation of phytotoxic metals and metalloids in different food commodities subjected to different contaminated irrigation sources. The current study was undertaken to assess the concentrations of heavy metals and metalloid in ridge gourd (Luffa cylindrica L.), its planting soil medium and irrigation water sources used for crop production to determine the health risk. The results showed that the mean concentrations of different metals and metalloids in ground water samples i.e. Ni (0.14 mg L-1), Fe (1.29 mg L-1), Cu (0.10 mg L-1), Pb (0.55 mg L-1), As (0.10 mg L-1), Cr (2.38 mg L-1) and Cd (0.05 mg L-1) were over the permissible limits. Soil samples irrigated with ground water showed that concentrations of Cd (23.67 mg kg-1), Cr (26.66 mg kg-1) and As (45.97 mg kg-1) were above the permissible limits. Similarly, vegetable samples irrigated with ground water had a higher level of Cd (0.33 mg kg-1) than their prescribed safe limits. The bio-concentration factor ranged from 0.00 to 8.21 for all irrigation sources. The target hazard quotients (THQ) for Zn, Fe, and Cr were higher than the threshold value when ridge gourd was consumed, indicating a health concern. Similarly, hazard index values were 5.05, 28, 27, and 1.01, from groundwater, canal water, and sewage water, respectively. Target Cancer Risk (TCR) exposed Ni, Cr, Cd and As in canal water were sources of high cancer risk and Pb showed moderate cancer risk for the local community. These findings suggest that human intake of ridge gourd vegetable from the studied area may pose health hazards. Hence, frequent monitoring of different irrigation streams used in urban and semi-urban agriculture is strongly recommended to manage higher concentrations of phytotoxic metals and metalloids in crop produce and their associated health risks for humans.

Prognostic model to predict postoperative acute kidney injury in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery based on a national prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Acute illness, existing co-morbidities and surgical stress response can all contribute to postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing major gastrointestinal surgery. The aim of this study was prospectively to develop a pragmatic prognostic model to stratify patients according to risk of developing AKI after major gastrointestinal surgery. Methods: This prospective multicentre cohort study included consecutive adults undergoing elective or emergency gastrointestinal resection, liver resection or stoma reversal in 2-week blocks over a continuous 3-month period. The primary outcome was the rate of AKI within 7 days of surgery. Bootstrap stability was used to select clinically plausible risk factors into the model. Internal model validation was carried out by bootstrap validation. Results: A total of 4544 patients were included across 173 centres in the UK and Ireland. The overall rate of AKI was 14·2 per cent (646 of 4544) and the 30-day mortality rate was 1·8 per cent (84 of 4544). Stage 1 AKI was significantly associated with 30-day mortality (unadjusted odds ratio 7·61, 95 per cent c.i. 4·49 to 12·90; P < 0·001), with increasing odds of death with each AKI stage. Six variables were selected for inclusion in the prognostic model: age, sex, ASA grade, preoperative estimated glomerular filtration rate, planned open surgery and preoperative use of either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker. Internal validation demonstrated good model discrimination (c-statistic 0·65). Discussion: Following major gastrointestinal surgery, AKI occurred in one in seven patients. This preoperative prognostic model identified patients at high risk of postoperative AKI. Validation in an independent data set is required to ensure generalizability

Pattern of Biopsy-Proven Renal Disease in Pakistan: A Single Center Experience

Background: This study was conducted to determine pattern (spectrum) of renal diseases on basis of renal biopsy in a tertiary care hospital in Islamabad. Methodology: This retrospective observational study was conducted at Nephrology department of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences Islamabad from February 2012 to April 2020. Results of all biopsies done during this period were analyzed to determine the prevalence of different renal diseases on basis of histopathology and immunofluorescence. Results: There were 254 kidney biopsy samples studied during the course of study. Out of total 254 patients 133 (52.4%) were male and 121 (47.6%) were female.&nbsp; Mean age of participants was 34.47±7.67 years (Range:15-60 years). Primary glomerulonephritis and secondary glomerulonephritis was found in 169 (66.5%) and 48 (18.9%) respectively, while tubulo-interstitial disease was reported in 37 (14.6%) of the total biopsies. Among 169 biopsies that showed primary GN, IgA Nephropathy (IgAN) was the most common in 16% of the biopsies, followed by membranous GN in 15.4% while membranoproliferative GN (MPGN) was seen in 13.6%, and focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) was seen in 13% of primary GN. Among 48 biopsies with secondary GN, lupus nephritis (LN) was found to be most common in 83.3% followed by amyloidosis in 6.3%. Among 37 biopsies having tubulo-interstitial disease, acute tubular nephritis (ATN) and renal cortical necrosis was seen in 29.7% each followed by tubulo-interstitial nephritis in 18.9% and acute interstitial nephritis (AIN) was seen in 16.2%. Conclusion: This study shows that primary GN is the most common finding on renal biopsy. Among them IgA Nephropathy is the commonest lesion followed by membranous nephropathy, MPGN and FSGS. Among secondary GN, Lupus Nephritis is the commonest lesion. Key words: Glomerulonephritis, Renal Biopsy, Renal Disease, Renal histopatholog

Clay mineralogy of central Victorian (Creswick) soils : Clay mineral contents as a possible tool of environmental indicator

The clay mineralogy and heavy metal/metalloid (As, Pb and Cu) contents of soils developed on the various rock units in a central highlands environment in Victoria (Creswick, Australia) have been investigated. The clay minerals identified showed an order of abundance as: kaolinite - illite > smectite > mixed-layer (ML) ≈ vermiculite. The soil clay mineralogy did not change systematically with depth (0- 10, 10- 20 and 20- 30 cm) and showed large variations spatially. The high proportion of kaolinite was probably due to the removal of 2:1 phyllosilicates by the formation of 1:1 kaolinite through weathering, which also reduced the cation exchange capacity (CEC) and electrical conductivity (EC, soil: water ratio of 1:5) of soils by aging. Soils were classified as silty loam to loam with a low clay size (≤ 2C

Distribution of metals and arsenic in soils of Central Victoria (Creswick-Ballarat), Australia

A soil-sampling campaign was conducted to identify and map heavy-metal contamination in the Ballarat-Creswick area of Central Victoria, Australia, with respect to mining activities and natural background levels in soils. The distribution and concentrations of both lithology- (Fe, Al, and Mn) and pollution-sensitive elements (Zn, As, Pb, Cu, Cr, Ni, and Co) were documented in surface soils (approximately 0 to 10 cm, fraction <2 mm, n = 85). The total heavy-metal and metalloid contents in soils decreased in the order Fe >> Al >> Zn > Mn >> As > Pb > Cu ≈ Ni ≈ Cr > Co. Mean levels of Zn (273 mg/kg) and As (39 mg/kg) in soils were well above normal global ranges and could be of local importance as a source of contamination. Extreme soil levels of Ni, Cr, Pb, and Fe were found in old mining waste material and pointed to the anthropogenic influence on the environment. Most of the measured elements showed marked spatial variations except Co. As contents were significantly higher than the tolerable level (ANZECC (1992) guidelines), with values up to 395.8 mg/kg around the mine tailings site. Mn soil contents were strongly associated with Co and Ni contents in most soils. High Fe contents (average approximately 41,465 mg/kg) in soils developed on basalt bedrock were correlated with Zn contents (average 400 mg/kg), and it is highly likely that Fe-oxides serve as sinks for Zn under near-neutral soil pH (6.3) conditions. Between the two major bedrock lithologic units, Ordovician sediments and Tertiary basalt, a clear enrichment of metals was found in the latter that was reflected in high background levels of elements. Among the various size fractions, silt (average approximately 45.1%) dominated most of the soils. In general and with a few exceptions, the concentrations of measured elements did not show significant correlations to other measured soil parameters, e.g., clay, silt and sand size fractions, organic matter, soil pH, and cation exchange capacity. © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.C