933 research outputs found

    Prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among individuals screened positive for diabetes in five community based eye camps in northern Karachi Pakistan

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    Background: Population-based data on the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in Pakistan are lacking. We determined the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among individuals screened positive for diabetes in five community-based eye camps in northern Karachi, Pakistan. Methods: In summer 2002, five community-based eye camps were set up in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city. All individuals aged 30 years or older who visited the camps were requested to participate in the study. Those who agreed were screened for diabetes and those found to have the disease were referred to an eye hospital for diabetic retinopathy screening. Verbal informed consent was obtained from all participants at the examination site. Our main outcome measure was diabetic retinopathy, which was classified as non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR), severe NPDR, and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR). Our grading was based on clinical examination. Results: A total of 912 subjects were screened for diabetes mellitus. Of these, 160(17.5%) had diabetes- 1.8% had type I diabetes and 15.9% had type II diabetes. One hundred and eight individuals visited the hospital for ophthalmic examination. Of them, 15.7% had diabetic retinopathy. The prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was higher among individuals with type I diabetes, with greater duration of diabetes, and among women. The commonest form of diabetic retinopathy was non-proliferative (76.5% [mild: 35.3 %, moderate: 29.4 %, and severe: 11.8 %]), followed by maculopathy (17.6 %) and proliferative diabetic retinopathy (5.9 %). Conclusion: More systematic and population-based research is needed to estimate the prevalence of and identify risk factors for diabetic retinopathy in Pakista

    Effect of Phosphorus and Sulfur on the Yield and Nutrients Uptake of Wheat

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    A field experiment was conducted to study the effect of phosphorus and sulfur on the yield and nutrients uptake of wheat at New Developmental Research Farm (NDF)  Malakandher, University of Agriculture, Peshawar in Rabi season during 2011-2012. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Phosphorus was applied  at the rate of 60, 90 and 120 kg ha-1 as DAP where as sulfur was applied at the rate of  45, 60 and 75 kg ha-1 as ammonium sulphat  along with control ( no fertilizer) and a treatment of just N and K  as basal dose (120 + 60 kg ha-1). The results showed that biological yield increased significantly (p≤0.05) over control when P and S were applied at the rate of 90-45 kg ha-1where as significantly higher grain yield was recorded in treatment receiving 120 kg P and 45 kg S along with a basal dose of N and K, Significantly highest straw yield of 4245 kg ha-1 was noted in treatment receiving 90 kg P along with 45 kg S ha-1. The soil samples collected at anthesis stage and post harvest stage showed that the P and S contents were significantly affected and the higher values were noted in plot receiving the maximum level of the respective fertilizer i.e P and S but the trend of increase was not consistent with respect to the amount of P and S applied. The P and S content in leaves indicated that higher level of S (75 kg ha-1) resulted in significantly low uptake of P and vice versa indicating their antagonistic effect with each other. This antagonistic effect was displayed in the yield whereby maximum grain yield was obtained where higher dose of P along with lower level of S was applied.

    Knowledge, apptitude and practice: smoking and gutka habits in a lower socio-economic cohort

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    Background: Smoking and smokeless tobacco use is the major cause of death and disease in South Asia, the use of gutka has surpassed that of smoking in this region thus, acting as a major contributor to oral and esophageal cancer especially in the younger population. Authors have designed this study to explore the knowledge, apptitude and practice regarding smoking and gutka use in a lower socio-economic cohort and observe the impact of education, income and type of profession on the users.Methods: This cross sectional descriptive survey is conducted in Creek General Hospital, Korangi, Karachi. The study design is non-probability convenience. A questionnaire is used to quantify the frequency of smoking-related knowledge-attitude-practice, knowledge and attitude about tobacco-related disease and, smoking cessation-related thoughts and practice. Data is analysed in SPSS 16.Results: A total of 250 subjects participated in this descriptive study, 133 subjects (22% females and 62.6% males) were found addicted to smoking or smokeless tobacco product with stress, seeking pleasure and peer pressure being the most convincing factor to initiate their habit.90% of the users want to stop using the substance of abuse and 80 have at least once tried to quit the habit.Conclusions: This study shows a direct relationship between level of education and socioeconomic status with use of addictive substance. It also resulted in identifying the desire to quit in our cohort and need for formulating a plan specifically for the target population to focus not only to remove the cause, but also to empower them to take responsibility for their own well being.

    Controlled failure warning and mitigation of prematurely failing beam through adhesive

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    In plated beam, an adhesive is used primarily to adhere the external plate to the concrete beam to achieve a composite action. Even though some work has been found to indicate that the choice of softer adhesive increased the capacity of beam (MacDonald & Calder, 1982), relatively stiffer adhesives have been largely assumed to provide better strengthening. Largely, due to the fact that adhesive has been widely considered as an insignificant structural component towards the capacity of a composite beam; material capabilities (if not structural) of adhesive have also been ignored for further research towards studying its effects on premature failures (particularly debonding). Under mixed-mode loading, the adoption through discretisation of Cohesive Zone Model as a bulk material (indicative of adhesive component) and to simulate interfacial cracks is shown here to achieve the objectives. The outcomes of the research indicate the critical material properties of adhesive in all directions, such as stiffness, strength and crack energy, play crucial role in controlling the behaviour of modes of failure. Further, based on this study, recommendations have been proposed on the choice of adhesive type at different locations of plated beam so as to capture a failure warning and avoid catastrophic failure

    Numerical representation of multiple premature failures in steel-plated RC beams

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    © World Scientific Publishing Company.Realizing the importance of widely used technique of plating for flexural retrofitting of reinforced concrete (RC) beams and its drawbacks due to premature failure(s), present work concentrates in developing a finite element tool model capable of successfully capturing multiple premature failure modes and their corresponding behaviors. The model is simple but focused; the capability and accuracy of the results have been validated through test literature, particularly focusing on the load capacities of beams at progressive stages of failure modes; which is from crack initiation through to complete failure, such as the load of crack initiation, first crack and complete failure. Acceptable accuracy is shown in terms of crack type(s), crack patterns, sequence, location and direction of propagation through the innovative use of cohesive zone model (CZM). The model clearly explains that debonding and peeling, although originating from a same location for most cases, are extensions of different types of cracks

    Relative behaviour of premature failures in adhesively plated RC beam using controllable and existing parameters

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    © 2017 Elsevier Ltd Retrofitting of RC beam by gluing a steel plate at the soffit has been a widely adopted technique due to its ease of use, calculations and having minimal variations on structural aesthetics; hence, a large number of such retrofitted structures exist today. However, such structures have also failed frequently due to the formation of premature failures such as peeling and debonding. The further investigations conducted in literature indicated that such undesirable failures can be effected by a large number of geometrical and material parameters. Although, the characterisation and relative influence of such parameters on modes of failures remain unknown; as the past studies have been largely case sensitive or focussing on a small set of parameters. Therefore, to address these issues, a simple but focussed numerical model has been validated through literature for multiple modes of failures over wide range of possible parameters. Further, targeting the response of beam and its critical locations, the authors of this study suggest that the understanding of relative impact of effective parameters, in terms of beam capacity and brittleness of modes of failure, can be broadly utilised to re-evaluate the cause(s) of failure(s) through case studies, or to predict the future of retrofitted structures/beams

    Influence of Natural Zeolite and Mineral additive on Bacterial Self-healing Concrete: A Review

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    With time, the development of micro-cracks in concrete is a frequently reported problem in the structures due to the ingress of harmful substances, leading to the degradation of its quality and strength, which ultimately declines the construction. The present work is a review paper based on enhancing the self-healing property of concrete by inducing different bacteria alone or incorporating different mineral additives. It has been seen that various rehabilitated methodologies are in queue to surmount concrete’s weaknesses and to increase its strength and durability. The latest methodology includes using non-pathogenic microbes in concrete as Microbial induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation (MICCP). The property of precipitating calcium carbonate (CaCO3) crystals by their metabolic activities helps repair the cracks in harsh conditions and improve their strength. Ureolytic bacteria like Bacillus pasteurii/Sporosarcina pasteurii, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus megaterium, etc., have a specific property by which they can excite urea when integrated with a calcium source and help in sealing the cracks by CaCO3 precipitation. Different studies have observed that specimens having a bacterial concentration of 105-107 cells/ml with Natural Zeolite (NZ) replacement (10%) represents better interaction of the microstructure of concrete because of the formation of calcium silicate hydrate (CSH) gel. Further, the reduction in CH bond with reduced pore space has also been observed. NZ alone enhances micro-structural property, but it shows CaCo3 precipitation and more densification of microstructure under bacterial combination. XRD also confirms an increase in the calcite composition when the bacterial concentration of 105-107 cells/ml is used. The overall properties of standard and high-strength bacterial concrete (105-107 cells/ml) with 10% Natural Zeolite replacement can provide a better option for the future of sustained and strong concrete. Doi: 10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-05-015 Full Text: PD

    Frequency of Depression Among Patients With Parkinson Disease

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    Background and Objective: Parkinson\u27s disease is a degenerative neurological condition that affects a large number of individuals worldwide. One of the common non-motor symptoms associated with this disease is depression, which can pose challenges for both patients and their caregivers. The main objective of this research was to determine the frequency of depression among patients with Parkinson disease. Methods:This was a cross-sectional study that was conducted in Karachi, Pakistan, between March 26, 2022, and September 30, 2022. Male and female patients diagnosed with Parkinson\u27s disease according to the UK Parkinson\u27s Disease Society Brain Bank Clinical Diagnostic Criteria, who were receiving either outpatient or inpatient care at two medical facilities, Neuro Clinic and Falij care center, Karachi and Darul Sehat Hospital, Karachi, were evaluated for depression using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. The collected data were analyzed statistically, using the SPSS version. Results:According to the results of the study, 100 Parkinson\u27s disease patients were included, out of which 81 individuals were identified as experiencing depression while the rest showed no signs of depression. Among those suffering from depression, 35 individuals were found to have mild depression, 52 had moderate depression, and 13 individuals had severe depression. Conclusion:The study concluded that depression is a common non-motor symptom among Parkinson\u27s disease patients, with a substantial number of patients having mild to moderate depression

    Construction and Optimization of Dynamic S-Boxes Based on Gaussian Distribution

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    Block ciphers are widely used for securing data and are known for their resistance to various types of attacks. The strength of a block cipher against these attacks often depends on the S-boxes used in the cipher. There are many chaotic map-based techniques in the literature for constructing the dynamic S-Boxes. While chaos-based approaches have certain attractive properties for this purpose, they also have some inherent weaknesses, including finite precision effect, dynamical degradation of chaotic systems, non-uniform distribution, discontinuity in chaotic sequences. These weaknesses can limit the effectiveness of chaotic map-based substitution boxes. In this paper, we propose an innovative approach for constructing dynamic S-boxes using Gaussian distribution-based pseudo-random sequences. The proposed technique overcomes the weaknesses of existing chaos-based S-box techniques by leveraging the strength of pseudo-randomness sequences. However, one of the main drawbacks of using Gaussian distribution-based pseudo-random sequences is the low nonlinearity of the resulting S-boxes. To address this limitation, we introduce the use of genetic algorithms (GA) to optimize the nonlinearity of Gaussian distribution-based S-boxes while preserving a high level of randomness. The proposed technique is evaluated using standard S-box performance criteria, including nonlinearity, bit independence criterion (BIC), linear approximation probability (LP), strict avalanche criterion (SAC), and differential approximation probability (DP). Results demonstrate that the proposed technique achieves a maximum nonlinearity of 112, which is comparable to the ASE algorithm
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