Frequency of side effects of sofosbuvir and daclatsavir in patients of chronic Hepatitis C

Objective: To evaluate side effects of direct acting antivirals for hepatitis C patients.Study Design: Descriptive case series.Setting: Hepatitis Clinic, Medical Unit II, Jinnah Hospital Lahore.Duration Of Study: three months starting from 1st Dec 2018 to 28th Feb 2019. Subjects And Methods: Forty patients meeting the inclusion criteria were included in the study. All patients were then given direct anti-virals for a period of three months. Patients were called after every four weeks and observed for the presence of side effects like fever, fatigue, malaise, generalized weakness, myalgia, nausea and vomiting. Data was entered and analyzed in SPSS version ver.21.0. Frequency and percentages were calculated for demographic and clinical profile and side effects. Mean and Standard deviation was calculated for biochemical values at base line and end of therapy. Chi-square test was used to assess side effects among age, gender and duration of disease and paired t test for biochemical parameters with p < .05 as statistical significance. Results: Mean age of the patients was 39 years + 11.6. Fever was recorded in 72.5% fatigue was seen in 52.5%, malaise was recorded in 37.5% and generalized weakness was noticed in 37.5. Myalgia was recorded in 12.5% and nausea and vomiting were reported in 2.5% of patients. . (p> .05). There was a statistically significant difference between mean baseline and at end treatment values for AST, ALT, AP and TLC. ( P< .05). Conclusion: Our study concluded that along with efficacy advantage of DAA therapy, their safety profile is acceptable in terms of adverse drug reaction of immediate or during treatment however long term follow up is needed to ascertain and apprehend the safety matters linked with the utilization of DAAs. Key Words: Direct acting antivirals (DAAs), side effects, chronic hepatitis C

The Radiological Outcome of Thoracolumbar Spine Fracture Fixation in Short Vs Long Segment

Objectives:  The study determined the radiological outcomes of short-segment vs. long-segment fixation of thoracolumbar spine fractures. Materials and Methods:  A total of 322 patients (18 – 60 years) with thoracolumbar spine fractures were included. Preoperative X-rays and CT scans were performed on all patients to determine the integrity and orientation of the pedicle. Cobb's approach was also used to estimate the kyphotic angle on x-rays. The posterior pedicle 65 screw fixation was used in all instances. Group A (N = 161) received long segment fixation at least two levels above and below the fractured vertebra, while Group B (N = 161) received short segment fixation with pedicle screws placed in the broken level as well as one level above and below the fractured level. Results:  In Group A, the mean age was 38 years, and the mean length of fracture was 45 hours; in Group B, the mean age was 43 years, and the mean duration of fracture was 46.354 hours. A good radiological outcome was observed in 115 (71.4%) patients in group A as compared to 103 (64%) patients in group B. A radiological outcome (p-value: 0.049) of a duration greater than 8 hours was observed in both groups (A: 75.5%; B: 58.1%). Conclusion:  Short segment fixation using a pedicle screw at the level of fracture provides comparable correction to long segment fixation. Keywords:  Thoracolumbar Fractures, Short Segment, Long Segment, Radiological Outcome

THE CHILDHOOD’S TRADITIONAL GAMES AND PHYSICAL FITNESS OF RURAL, URBAN AND PRIVATE SCHOOL GIRLS- A CASE STUDY OF BAHAWALPUR CITY, PAKISTAN

This study was designed in two folds, first) to explore the physical fitness and performance the rural, urban and private school girls in the capacity of traditional games, and second) to examine the relationship between the performance of traditional games and physical fitness. Data were obtained from (n = 120) of school girls of Bahawalpur city, of 11-to-15 years of age. These measurements were attained as stature for height, body mass- for weight, speed test of the 30-meter run, set and reach for flexibility, zig-zag run for agility, standing broad jump for leg power, set-ups for trunk strength, finally skipping rope, and shtapu for traditional games. One-way ANOVA was applied to compare the physical fitness and ability of traditional among groups, and the Pearson product of correlation was applied to examine the relationship between the physical fitness and performance of traditional games. Results exhibited the rural girl's students were significantly superior to the urban school girls in the 30-meter dash. The rural girls were also significantly higher in the performance of skipping rope and shtapu than urban and private school girls. On the other hand, stature, body mass, leg power, zig-zag run, sit-and-reach, trunk strength was a significantly positive correlation with skipping rope and shatpu. The main finding of this study was that traditional games have a strong relationship with the physical fitness of school girls. Therefore, this study suggests the traditional games would be a part of co-curriculum activities in school as well as in the social life of the school girls to improve their physical fitness

Foot-and-Mouth Disease Virus (FMDV) and Its Treatment with Plant Extracts

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a contagious viral infection which is caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV). The disease appears in cloven-footed animals. Symptoms of the disease are abrupt manifestation of sores on the mouth, nose, feet, etc. Nowadays the control and treatment of FMDVare becoming a worldwide economic problem and challenge for the society. Currently, there is no particular treatment available for FMDV, as well as the limitations and disadvantages in the use of vaccines divert the focus of researchers toward natural sources like plant extracts which possess potential antiviral activity. Various researches documented in the literature demonstrated various plant extracts with antiviral potency against FMDV. In the current chapter, we discussed about FMDV and its possible treatment with plant extracts

Fractional Burgers Fluid Flow Due to Metachronal Ciliary Motion in an Inclined Tube

Cilia-induced flow of fractional Burgers fluid is studied in an inclined tube for both symplectic and antiplectic wave patterns. The solution of the problem is persued under the long wave length limitation. The fractional Adomian decomposition method is employed to evaluate the pressure gradient. Mathematical expressions for the axial velocity, frictional force, pressure gradient, and stream function are obtained and the influence of the main operating parameters is discussed in detail. It is noted that the velocity profile is more dominant in the case of antiplectic metachronal waves compared to symplectic ones, which confirms former results on the better capability of antiplectic waves to transport mucus, obtained with more complex numerical solvers

Anxiolytic and hypnotic effects of Cocculus laurifolius leaf extract in mice

The present study aims to assess the anxiolytic and hypnotic activity of ethanolic extract of Cocculus laurifolius leaf in mice. Anxiolytic activity was observed using behavioral paradigms while hypnotic activity was assessed by sodium pentobarbital induced hypnosis in mice. Animals were treated with the extract at dose 200 and 400 mg/kg orally for 30 days. Anxiolytic and hypnotic effect were observed on day 1, 7, 15 and 30 of treatment. Significant increase in the number of entries and time spent in open arm were observed in elevated plus maze. Similar results were observed in light/dark, open field and hole board test. The anxiolytic effect was substantially greater at dose 200 mg/kg in comparison to dose 400 mg/kg. Minimal hypnotic activity was observed with decrease in onset and prolongation in duration of sleep at dose 400 mg/kg, while dose 200 mg/kg did not produce any hypnotic effect. These results showed that the ethanolic extract of C. laurifolius leaf might have potential anxiolytic and hypnotic activity in mice

Critical Discourse Analysis of Islamic Ideological Expressions in Acknowledgement Sections of Theses Written by Scholars in English Language Teaching (ELT)

The objective of current research is to analyze the expressions of Islamic ideology in the acknowledgement sections of theses written by researchers in the field of English Language Teaching (ELT) from Pakistan. These acknowledgements, a specific concept in academic writing, offers a particular frame to capture the religious and cultural aspects on scholarly discourse. 30 theses were examined and data were gathered from electronic libraries of universities, online thesis databases, and institutional archives sections of the required theses. It provided enough material and reach data in this regard. Fairclough’s three-dimensional model of Critical Doscourse Anaysis (CDA) was applied, centering to Textual Analysis and analyzes concrete words, phrases and sentences that contain the ideology of Islam. The results reveal clear Islamic orientations in the features of the Arabian language used, with recurrent appeals to Allah, prayer and blessing calls, as well as direct references to both Quran and Hadiths. These acknowledgements are not only the writers own faith but it also reveal the inteewined cultural and religious value