Medical students’ endeavour to make use of their mental capabilities

Objective: To identify and compare awareness of intellectual wellness in male and female medical students of Karachi. Methods: The cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey comprised randomly selected 800 medical students of both gender. It was conducted from January to December 2010 in 8 medical colleges of Karachi. Responses - never, sometimes, mostly and always (numbered 0-4) - were analysed in terms of frequency, proportion and percentages by Predictive Analysis Software version 18. Chi square test was applied for comparison of intellectual wellness in both genders. Results were considered significant at p \u3c0.05. Results: Of the 800 questionnaires distributed, 736 (92%) were received fully completed; 526 (71.5% of them from females. Intellectual wellness was significantly higher in females due to an increasing aptitude towards book reading (p Conclusion: Females were found to be better in terms of intellectual wellness compared to the males. However, males used mentorship support to acquire intellectual wellness

Intellectual wellness awareness: a neglected area in medical universities of Pakistan

Abstract Objective: To compare the presence of intellectual wellness awareness in students of public and private sector medical colleges in a metropolitan city. Methods: The cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was conducted from March to November 2011 at Bahria University Medical and Dental College, Karachi, and overall covered five private and 3 public sector medical colleges of the city. The study randomly selected 800 medical students. The responses -- never, sometimes, mostly and always (numbered 0-4) - were analysed in terms of frequency, proportion and percentages using Predictive Analysis Software version 18. Results: Of the 800 forms distributed, 736(92%) completed forms were analysed. Among the respondents, 526 (71.5%) were females. Besides, 450(61%) belonged to private medical colleges and 236(39) were from public medical colleges. The participants of private medical colleges had taken part in intellectual discussions actively compared to those from public colleges (p\u3c0.001). Habit of reading books to acquire knowledge was found in 126(44%) private college students compared to 149(33%) in public colleges (p\u3c0.004). The importance of creative mental activities (p=0.954) and current information about local and international affairs (p\u3c0.564) was deficient in both sets of students. Conclusion: Students of private medical colleges were better in terms of presence of intellectual wellness awareness, took active participation in class discussions, had good reading habits and carefully selected television programmes and movies

Students\u27 perceptions of usefulness of Anatomy demonstrations in traditional and hybrid undergraduate medical education curricula

A cross-sectional study was carried out to study students\u27 perceptions on the usefulness of Anatomy demonstrations (AD) in the undergraduate medical education by comparing the Conventional Medical College (CMC) and problem-based learning as hybrid curriculum (HMC). Purposive sampling technique was used and all students were included. The completed questionnaire responses were returned by 92 CMC and 87 HMC students. CMC cohort understood the structural relationship more than HMC (p=0.03). AD helped 50 students (54%) of CMC to get through the theory examination, however 73 (84%) students of HMC found them useful in preparation for theory examinations (p\u3c0.001). The importance of AD as a major content delivery strategy cannot be overemphasized in the anatomy curriculum and useful teaching strategies from various undergraduate medical curricula, such as the use of the plastic and plastinated models and the session handouts

Comparative Evaluation of Lamina Cribrosa Anatomical Parameters with Retinal Nerve Fiber Layer Thickness Defects In Primary Open-angle Glaucoma Cases And Controls

OBJECTIVES To assess the lamina cribrosa (LC) anterior lamina cribrosa depth (ALCD), lamina cribrosa thickness (LCT) and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness (RNFLT) in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) cases and age-matched controls and to compare these anatomical variables among POAG cases and age-matched controls. METHODOLOGY The case-control study was researched at Al-Ain Eye Institute, Karachi, in four month’s duration (November 2018 till February 2019). Expert eye specialist recruited 57 POAG cases and 46 age-matched healthy controls. Observation of intraocular pressure (IOP) and open angle was done using Goldmann tonometry and Slit-lamp biomicroscopy with stereoscopic ophthalmoscopy respectively. Visual field parameters of mean deviation (MD) and pattern standard deviation (PSD) measured using Humphrey Field Analyzer. Highly sensitive spectral domain ocular coherence tomography with enhanced depth imaging (EDI-OCT) was used to determine ALCD, LCT and RNFLT. RESULTS Statistically significant results were produced by RNFLT defects when it is compared in groups of mild with moderate cases of POAG (P-value 0.037). ALCD and LCT did display an association with RNFLT defects but did not produced statistically significant results. CONCLUSION Assessments of ALCD and LCT can provide important prognostic evidence about RNFLT and can assist in future planning of mild and moderate cases suffering from POAG

Frequency and Risk Factors of Depression among Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study in Karachi

OBJECTIVES The study aimed to determine the frequency of depression among medical students and to identify the different risk factors associated with depression. METHODOLOGY A cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students at a private medical college in Karachi. The study was initiated after approval was taken from the ethical committee. Consent was taken before the data collection after explaining the details of the study. Students were selected for this study as per inclusion criteria. They were provided with the PHQ-9 questionnaire in which they were inquired about the factors for depression. The total students with depression positive were presented by their frequencies with a 95% confidence interval. RESULTSThree hundred seventy medical students participated, and 207 (56%) tested positive for depression. Notably, depression was more prevalent among final-year students, with 80% affected. Additionally, the severity of depression gradually increased with advancing medical years, reaching the highest level in the final year, where 61 students (80%) reported significant depression. The most frequent causes of depression were living away from home and facing the challenges of a demanding curriculum. CONCLUSION The study findings revealed a higher likelihood of depression among medical students, particularly in their final year. This vulnerability was exacerbated by the stress associated with extensive coursework and peer pressure to achieve excellent exam grades

“Flow void sign” on MRI: Differentiation of uterine leiomyomas from other solid pelvic masses

Objective: To assess the usefulness of demonstrating flow void sign on conventional MRI sequences in differentiating uterine leiomyomas from other solid pelvic masses which have same signal intensity to myometrium.Methods: This descriptive study was conducted in the Department of Radiology, University Hospital, Karachi from April 2014 to May 2015. It comprised female patients of all ages who had Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) pelvis with diagnosis of a solid appearing pelvic mass followed by surgery and histopathology at our institution. Flow void sign was described as demonstration of feeding vessels appearing as flow void between the uterine leiomyomas and uterus. Histopathology was taken as gold standard.Results: Flow void sign was observed in 66 out of 73 pelvic masses on MRI. Out of 66 patients 65 were diagnosed histologically as leiomyomas. When the flow void sign was seen on MRI and subsequent histopathology confirmed the diagnosis of leiomyoma. In all such cased the sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and diagnostic accuracy of the flow void sign for diagnosing leiomyomas were calculated as 97% (65/67), 83% (65/66), 98% (65/66), 71% (65/67) and 95% (70/73), respectively.Conclusion: Flow void sign is an important ancillary sign for the radiological diagnosis of leiomyoma on MRI and useful in differentiating leiomyoma from focal adenomyosis or ovarian tumors (fibromas) which show signal intensity similar to uterine leiomyomas