Management of non-epileptic seizures through Hypnosis: a case study

Conversion disorder is associated with diverse somatic complaints including visual deficiency, psychogenic nonepileptic seizures, lethargy, paralyses etc. Studies have revealed that in addition to pharmacological treatment, psychological intervention including hypnosis has a significant impact in the management of conversion disorder. The current case study was focused to see any effect of unique hypnotic technique, Circle Therapy for the management of conversion disorder. The patient A.J. was referred for the evaluation and psychological management ofnon-epileptic seizures. After a complete physical and psychological observation and interview, stressors were identified a n d the patient underwent brief hypnotic session and it was suggested to diminish the stressors. The first therapy session showed remarkable impact and a second session was given as booster the next day. There were no signs of conversion disorder after the second session and even after eleven months

Development and validation of juvenile Criminal thinking styles’ inventory

The current research explored the styles of criminal thinking among juvenile delinquents in Pakistani cultural context. Initially, 40 juvenile delinquents were interviewed individually to generate an item pool of 34 distinct thought statements. After excluding repetitive items a list of 19 items was piloted on 30 juvenile delinquents as a self-report measure of 5-point rating scale (Juvenile Criminal Thinking Styles’ Inventory). Finally, a sample of 211 juvenile delinquents were given the final list of 19 items, Measure of Criminal Social Identity (Boduszek, Adamson, Shevlin, & Hyland, 2012; Shagufta, 2015), and a demographic form. Principal Component factor analysis determined a three factor solution, namely Social Alienation, Vindication, and Domination. The inventory found to have high internal consistency and concurrent validity. The outcomes are discussed in terms of the implications of criminal thinking styles for juvenile correctional counselling services and propose further research

Criminal Thinking Styles and Criminal Social Identity Among Juvenile Delinquents: Moderating Role of Parenting Styles

Parenting is considered imperative in the development of juvenile\u27s cognitions, and beliefs. The parent-child relationship might significantly influence juvenile’s thought patterns and social communications. Different parenting styles perhaps indicate criminal involvement of juveniles, resultantly turns them into delinquent. The present study was done to discover whether parental authority styles moderate the path that links criminal thinking styles to criminal social identity amongst juvenile delinquents. Participants of the study were 211 juvenile delinquents who responded on Juvenile Criminal Thinking Styles’ Inventory (Sana & Rafiq, 2019), Measure of Criminal Social Identity (Boduszek, et al., 2012), Parental Authority Questionnaire (Babree, 1997) and approached through purposive sampling technique. Association among variables was measured by using the Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient whereas moderating effects of parental authority styles in linking criminal thinking styles to criminal social identity were assessed through hierarchical regression. The results show a positive relationship of criminal thinking styles with criminal social identity, authoritarian and permissive parenting styles while a negative relationship with authoritative parenting style. Moreover, it is evident that strict (authoritarian) and liberal (permissive) parenting moderates the interrelationship of criminal thinking styles and criminal social identity of juvenile delinquents as compared to reliable and trustworthy (authoritative) parenting. Results suggest working to develop intervention as well as prevention programs for juveniles that need appropriate attention and affection from parents, which resultantly persuade distorted thought patterns and criminal peer associations

Personality traits and mental health Of university male students Viewing internet Pornography

Studies have indicated that viewing internet pornography is like addiction and has been implicated in the development of psychosocial issues leading to mental health. However, in view of Pakistani culture, psychosocial issues and mental health problems associated with viewing internet pornography especially in perspective to personality traits are not studied yet. Objective: Objective of the current study was to investigate any effect of personality traits on mental health of university male students viewing internet pornography

Modeling reconfigurable Systems-on-Chips with UML MARTE profile: an exploratory analysis

International audienceReconfigurable FPGA based Systems-on-Chip (SoC) architectures are increasingly becoming the preferred solution for implementing modern embedded systems, due to their flexible nature. However due to the tremendous amount of hardware resources available in these systems, new design methodologies and tools are required to reduce their design complexity. In this paper we present an exploratory analysis for specification of these systems, while utilizing the UML MARTE (Modeling and Analysis of Real-time and Embedded Systems) profile. Our contributions permit us to model fine grain reconfigurable FPGA based SoC architectures while extending the profile to integrate new features such as Partial Dynamic Reconfiguration supported by these modern systems. Finally we present the current limitations of the MARTE profile and ask some open questions regarding how these high level models can be effectively used as input for commercial FPGA simulation and synthesis tools. Solutions to these questions can help in creating a design flow from high level models to synthesis, placement and execution of these reconfigurable SoCs

A Review on Anticancer Potential of Nitric Oxide

Nitrous oxide (NO) is a free radical gas which performs various physiological and pathological processes in body. NO is produced by different enzymatic pathways and plays role in homeostasis. Over past years, NO has emerged as a molecule of interest in many ailments including cancer. But its role in cancer is still controversy. It can display dose-dependant anticancer therapy on one hand and induce procancer properties on the other hand. But as compared to conventional treatments, NO proved better tumor cell resistance. This review mentions dichotomous nature of NO that may encourage future research assessing the role of NO in cancer prevention and treatment either as a single agent or in combination with other antineoplastic compounds

Engagement of private healthcare providers for case finding of tuberculosis and diabetes mellitus in Pakistan

Background: The rising co-epidemic of tuberculosis (TB) and diabetes mellitus (DM) is a challenge for constrained health systems in low and middle-income countries. Diabetes is a known risk factor for tuberculosis and associated with poor tuberculosis treatment outcomes, while tuberculosis is associated with worsening glycemic control. We investigated the performance of bi-directional TB and DM case finding approaches through a private-sector engagement model in Karachi, Pakistan.Methods: Between July 2016 and July 2018, private health care providers were engaged to generate referrals for bi-directional TB and DM screening at private diagnostic and treatment centers in Karachi, Pakistan. Individuals diagnosed with TB underwent glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) testing at the time of anti-tuberculous treatment initiation and at three -month follow up stage. All individuals with a history of diabetes or random blood sugar of greater than 200 mg/dl were screened for TB using a chest X-ray and Xpert MTB/RIF.Results: A total of 6312 persons with tuberculosis were tested on HbA1c at treatment initiation, of whom 1516 (24%) were newly diagnosed with DM. About one third of those with HbA1c in the diabetic range (≥ 6.5%) at baseline were found to have a normal HbA1c (\u3c 5.7%) result at 3-month follow-up. A total of 3824 individuals with DM, of whom 2396 (63%) were known cases and 1428 (37%) were newly identified with random blood sugar \u3e 200 mg/dl, underwent chest x-ray and Xpert MTB/RIF testing, with 321 (13.4%) known and 54 (3.8%) new diabetics respectively identified with tuberculosis.Conclusion: This study demonstrates a high yield of TB and DM through bidirectional screening and the feasibility of engagement of private sector in finding missing cases of tuberculosis and diabetes. Given the high prevalence of undiagnosed DM in individuals with TB tuberculosis patients, there is a need to scale-up DM screening within TB programmes. Increased awareness of the high risk of TB among individuals with DM is needed among private health providers and screening for TB among diabetics should be strongly considered

Zeolite-Assisted Immobilization and Health Risks of Potentially Toxic Elements in Wastewater-Irrigated Soil under Brinjal (Solanum melongena) Cultivation

Application of wastewater to agricultural soils not only enhances economic benefits but is also considered as a safe disposal option by the administrators. Worldwide, peri-urban horticulture is a common practice for growing vegetables. When agricultural soils are irrigated with wastewater, numerous potentially toxic elements (PTEs) contained therein are bioaccumulated and pose health risks. The presented study aimed to reveal the PTEs, i.e., copper (Cu), cadmium (Cd), nickel (Ni) and lead (Pb) concentration in the agricultural soils irrigated with wastewater for longer times. Zeolite, a natural mineral was used to immobilize these in contaminated soils to reduce its availability to brinjal (Solanum melongena L.). During a pot study, zeolite was applied at four different levels, i.e., 0.25, 0.50, 1.00 and 2.00% in contaminated soil, keeping one control. The results revealed that growth as well as biochemical and physiological characters were found best with treatment receiving zeolite at 2.00%. In edible parts (fruit), PTE contents were found lowest in the same treatment. Relative to the control, ~121, 87, 120 and 140% less DTPA-extracted Cu, Cd, Ni and Pb in soil was found with this treatment. Based on the results, it was revealed that zeolite effectively immobilized Cu, Cd, Ni and Pb in the soil. Although all the applied levels of zeolite had positive potential to immobilize PTEs in wastewater-contaminated soil, zeolite applied at 2.00% proved most effective.11s

Evaluation of computer aided detection of tuberculosis on chest radiography among people with diabetes in Karachi Pakistan

Pakistan ranks fifth among high tuberculosis (TB) burden countries and also has seventh highest burden for diabetes mellitus (DM). DM increases the risk of developing TB and contributes to adverse TB treatment outcomes hence screening and integrated management for both diseases in high burden countries is suggested. Computer-Aided Detection for TB (CAD4TB) can potentially be used as triage tool in low resource settings to pre-screen individuals for Xpert MTB/RIF testing. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy and performance of CAD4TB software in people with diabetes (PWD) enrolled in a TB screening program in Karachi, Pakistan. A total of 694 individuals with a diagnosis of DM (of whom 31.1% were newly diagnosed) were screened with CAD4TB and simultaneously provided sputum for Xpert MTB/RIF testing. Of the 74 (10.7%) participants who had bacteriologically positive (MTB+) results on Xpert testing, 54 (73%) had a CAD4TB score \u3e70; and 155 (25%) participants who tested MTB-negative had scores \u3e70. The area under the receiver operator curve was 0.78 (95% CI: 0.77-0.80). Our study findings indicate that CAD4TB offers good diagnostic accuracy as a triage test for TB screening among PWD using Xpert MTB/RIF as the reference standard