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

An Overview of Genome-Wide Association Study for Genetics Novices: A Review

SNP chip-based genome-wide association studies (GWAS) is an inspiring and fast scanning method for mapping variations within the genome and associating them with specific diseases/trait. This association information has enhanced the chances of improvement in disease diagnosis, understanding the causative variants locations and associated gene hunting strategies. GWAS have laid foundation of an era in which both personalized medicine and pharmacogenomics would be reinforced along with better understanding of functional genomics aspects of modern molecular genetics. Since the advent of first GWAS in 2002, thousands of genome wide association studies have been published which have proven GWAS a successful methodology in identifying significant variants in disease/trait association but application of GWAS outcomes to clinical settings demands more evaluation for validity. Here, we have divided the GWAS approach into various aspects including history, development, analysis strategies, approaches, current scenario and different applications with brief description of major methodologies being used in scientific community to get associated SNP hits and narrowing down the search by functional variant filtration involved in subject disease, traits or physiological condition.Keywords: GWAS, Genetic Association, Linkage Disequilibrium, HapMap, PLIN

Patients\u27 satisfaction and spectacle independence after cataract surgery with multifocal intraocular lens implantation in a tertiary care hospital

Abstract This single group cohort study, undertaken at Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, from Jan 2012 to September 2013, assessed patients\u27 satisfaction, spectacle independence and visual disturbance after implantation of multifocal IOLs. A total of 39 patients who underwent bilateral cataract surgery with multifocal IOL implantation were included for telephonic interviews. The mean age of participants was 55.5 ± 8.1 years. The mean follow up time was 9.60 ± 3.19 months. The overall satisfaction rate after surgery was found to be 84.6% and there was no statistically significant association of satisfaction with gender, age or education. In all 84.6%, 94.9% and 84.6% people had spectacle independence for far, intermediate and near, respectively. More than half of participants (59%) had some degree of visual disturbance. In this study, multifocal IOL implantation provided high levels of satisfaction and spectacle independence despite notable risk of halo or glare symptoms at night. Therefore, careful patient selection and preoperative counselling regarding possible risks and benefits is recommended

Analytical Review of Land Use Changes by Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques in District Gujrat, Pakistan

Assessment of changes in land use and land cover through remote sensing and GIS is very important and keyanalysis. Urbanization has been continued by the rapid growth in the world economy so; it is the key study withregards to agriculture and urbanization. The aim of this study is to determine the loss of agriculture land and effects ofincreasing urbanization on surface temperature. For urban temperature impact analysis, distinctive time series ofLandsat images have been chosen. Temporal analysis for different time series shows the decrease in agriculture landand increase in built up area. Urbanization increased the temperature up to 20C. Positive correlation is found betweenbuilt-up area and temperature and negative correlation is found between green spaces and temperature. Unplannedurban sprawl and lack of proper irrigation system according to population are major problems in study area. Recentstudy will be helpful for decision makers to develop the sustainable environment policy in future

Emerging trends for nonthermal decontamination of raw and processed meat: ozonation, high-hydrostatic pressure and cold plasma

Meat may contain natural, spoilage, and pathogenic microorganisms based on the origin and characteristics of its dietary matrix. Several decontamination substances are used during or after meat processing, which include chlorine, organic acids, inorganic phosphates, benzoates, propionates, bacteriocins, or oxidizers. Unfortunately, traditional decontamination methods are often problematic because of their adverse impact on the quality of the raw carcass or processed meat. The extended shelf-life of foods is a response to the pandemic trend, whereby consumers are more likely to choose durable products that can be stored for a longer period between visits to food stores. This includes changing purchasing habits from “just in time” products “for now” to “just in case” products, a trend that will not fade away with the end of the pandemic. To address these concerns, novel carcass-decontamination technologies, such as ozone, high-pressure processing and cold atmospheric plasma, together with active and clean label ingredients, have been investigated for their potential applications in the meat industry. Processing parameters, such as exposure time and processing intensity have been evaluated for each type of matrix to achieve the maximum reduction of spoilage microorganism counts without affecting the physicochemical, organoleptic, and functional characteristics of the meat products. Furthermore, combined impact (hurdle concept) was evaluated to enhance the understanding of decontamination efficiency without undesirable changes in the meat products. Most of these technologies are beneficial as they are cost-effective, chemical-free, eco-friendly, easy to use, and can treat foods in sealed packages, preventing the product from post-process contamination. Interestingly, their synergistic combination with other hurdle approaches can help to substitute the use of chemical food preservatives, which is an aspect that is currently quite desirable in the majority of consumers. Nonetheless, some of these techniques are difficult to store, requiring a large capital investment for their installation, while a lack of certification for industrial utilization is also problematic. In addition, most of them suffer from a lack of sufficient data regarding their mode of action for inactivating microorganisms and extending shelf-life stability, necessitating a need for further research in this area.Axencia Galega de Innovación | Ref. IN607A2019/0

Factors Associated with Catch‐Up Growth in Early Infancy in Rural Pakistan: A Longitudinal Analysis of the Women's Work and Nutrition Study

The adverse health impacts of early infant stunting can be partially ameliorated by early catch‐up growth. Few studies have examined predictors of and barriers to catch‐up growth to identify intervention points for improving linear growth during infancy. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of, and factors associated with, catch‐up growth among infants in Pakistan. A longitudinal study of mother–infant dyads (n = 1,161) was conducted in rural Sindh province, with enrolment between December 2015 and February 2016 (infants aged 0.5–3 months), and follow‐up (n = 1035) between November 2016 and January 2017 (infants aged 9–15 months). The outcome was catch‐up growth (change in conditional length‐for‐age z‐scores >0.67 between baseline and endline). Associated factors were examined using multivariable logistic regression analyses. The prevalence of stunting was 45.3% at baseline and 60.7% at follow‐up. 22.8% of infants exhibited catch‐up growth over this period. Factors positively associated with catch‐up growth included maternal height (odds ratio (OR) = 1.08 [1.05–1.11]), household wealth (OR = 3.61 [1.90–6.84]), maternal (OR = 2.43 [1.30–4.56]) or paternal (OR = 1.46 [1.05–2.03]) education, and households with two or more adult females (OR = 1.91 [1.26–2.88]). Factors negatively associated with catch‐up growth were two (OR = 0.64 [0.45–0.89]) or three or more (OR = 0.44 [0.29–0.66]) preschool children in the household and the infant being currently breastfed (OR = 0.59 [0.41–0.88]). Catch‐up growth was exhibited among approximately a quarter of infants despite living in challenging environments associated with extremely high rates of early infant stunting. Several modifiable factors were identified that might represent suitable programme intervention points to off‐set early infant stunting in rural Pakistan