Determinants of Income Diversification among Rural Households of Pakistan

This study is designed to determine the poverty status and determinants of income diversification in rural areas of Pakistan using cross sectional data of Pakistan Social and Living Standards Measurement (PSLM) for 2010-2011. The variables used for measuring income diversification are demographic indicators, poverty status, and income of households. Foster-Greer-Thorbecke (FGT) poverty measures show that 43.1% poor and 56.9% non-poor resided in rural areas of Pakistan. A Tobit model was employed to examine the determinants of livelihood diversification among households. The results show that non-poor and female headed household with higher family size diversify more as compared to poor, male headed household with small size of family members. The place of residence (province used as proxy) also plays important role for income diversification. It is recommended to improve the ways of income diversification among rural household to reduce poverty. Keywords: Poverty, Income diversification, Rural Pakistan, Tobit Regression Model, FGT Poverty inde

Factors leading to delayed and challenging presentation of benign breast lumps in young females

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: A delayed presentation of benign breast diseases may lead to a therapeutic challenge when they enlarge enormously or become multiple. Aim of this study was to evaluate the factors leading to delayed presentation of benign breast lumps. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted at Madinah Teaching Hospital and Allied Hospital, Faisalabad from January 2019 to October 2021. One hundred and forty five female patients were selected by non-probability purposive sampling. Patients with large size (>5cm) or multiple benign breast lumps were included. An interview was conducted using structured questionnaire translated in Urdu. Factors leading to delayed presentation and social impact scale for stigma were evaluated. RESULTS: Patients had a mean age of 26.52 ± 6.90 years. The average delay of seeking medical care was 8.48 ± 8.41 months. Factors leading to delayed presentation were; lack of knowledge n=112 (77.2%) and parda (religious issues) n=112 (77.2%), followed by poverty n=109 (75.2%), and fear of cancer n=90 (62.1%). All the sub-scales of stigma, i.e., social rejection, financial insecurity, internalized shame and social isolation were high in late presenters, though, only financial insecurity was significantly high in late presenters (p=0.03). CONCLUSION: Lack of awareness, socioeconomic factors and disease related stigma were the main factors related to delayed presentation in young females with benign breast diseases. Addressing these factors may improve timely diagnosis and management of delayed and challenging cases

Shunt Migration into Scrotum: A Case Report

Ventriculoperitoneal shunting (VPS) is a common procedure involved in the management of hydrocephalus. VP shunt has many inherent complications including obstruction, infection, breakage, and migration of the shunt. The incidence of scrotal shunt migration is around 14% VPS migration into the scrotum manifests as reducible trans-illuminant scrotal swelling, which is more like hydrocele. Mostly migration occurs into the right hemi-scrotum within the first 6 months of performing a ventriculoperitoneal shunt. Bilateral herniotomy with repositioning of the distal shunt catheter is the treatment of choice

Survey of Hypocalcaemia Frequency in District Lahore, Pakistan

Calcium is important for regulation of various physiological functions like bones, teeth, different types of muscular movements, blood pressure, body growth and maintenance. But continuous calcium deficiency may cause hypocalcaemia in which major cause is insufficient intake of calcium along with other pathological states, financial constraints and lack of general public awareness about the significance and physiological role of calcium. Statistical analysis on the basis of current survey indicates that females remain malnourished and suffer from hypocalcaemia more than males. That’s why; there is urgent need of organized efforts for general public awareness from government and private platforms. Moreover, future researchers should introduce better diagnosis techniques and economical dietary sources and treatments to reduce frequency of hypocalcaemia

Biological Activity and Characterization of Bioactive Compounds under Lead Induced Stress in Maize

Background: Lead is most commonly released environmental contaminant making its way to air, soils and water. It causes hormonal imbalance and over production of reactive oxygen in plants when absorbed through leaves and roots. It contaminates the ground water depending on the type of soils and characteristics of lead. Plants ability to tolerate lead is linked with cell wall potential, activation of antioxidants defense mechanism and synthesis of osmolytes.Methods: The study was designed to evaluate the effects of Pb(NO3)2 induced stress on biological activity and bioactive compounds in maize. The plants were subjected under two different lead concentrations (T1- 0.35mg/ml and T2- 0.45mg/ml). Phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, coumarins, saponins, tannins and terpenoids in maize. Total Phenolic Content (TPC) was increased (T1- 45%, T2- 58.42%) under lead stress when compared with control (36.29%). The cytotoxicity was checked using hemolytic activity against human red blood cells.Results: The scavenging rate was highest (T1- 33.5%, T2- 52%) when compared with control (18.6%). Zone of inhibition of Aspergillus niger was highest amongst other fungal strains. The HPLC results showed that maize has some phyto-ingredients which may be accountable for cell reinforcement and anti-microbial activity. The extracts were further analyzed for the biochemical profile like superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, catalase, amylase and protease. Escherichia colishowed maximum activity with control (25±3.46mm) and maximum under stress (T1- 17±1.633 mm, T2- 20±4.08 mm).Conclusion: Lead stress altered all the activities when compared to control plants. In conclusion, Maize can be used as a potential indicator for lead and other compounds to play a vital role in phytoremediation. The results would further lead to find the new compounds and plant mechanism to cope with stress.

THE IMPACT OF ANTIHYPERTENSIVE DRUG THERAPY IN PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC KIDNEY DISEASE: A PROSPECTIVE OBSERVATIONAL COHORT STUDY

Objective: Hypertension (HTN) is both a cause and an effect of chronic kidney disease (CKD). To adequately control blood pressure (BP) in CKD, choosing antihypertensive strategies with the highest nephro-protective effect is crucial for preventing or reversing end-stage renal disease (ESRD) progression and reducing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. The present study was therefore designed to evaluate the impact of clinical use of antihypertensive drug therapy in patients with CKD and ESRD. Methods: It is a prospective observational cohort study. The patients were divided into two cohorts i.e.; non-dialysis dependent (NDD) and dialysis-dependent (DD) CKD. This study was conducted for six months in the Nephrology department, Osmania General Hospital, Hyderabad, India. The data collected and entered into Microsoft Excel (2007) and mean, SD and range were calculated using SPSS version 25. Results: Antihypertensive drugs were prescribed alone or in combination based on the co-morbidities associated with CKD and HTN. Loop diuretics (Furosemide and Torsemide) and calcium channel blocker (Amlodipine, Nifedipine and Cilnidipine) were most commonly prescribed antihypertensive drugs. Triple therapy (44.11%) was prescribed mostly in both the cohorts (NDD = 16.66%+DD = 27.45%) of which calcium channel blockers+loop diuretic+sympatholytic accounts for 19.16% (NDD = 5.88%+DD = 13.73%).  Conclusion: The practice of prescribing antihypertensive drugs for the management of HTN and to achieve BP targets in CKD and ESRD remains uncertain. The development of new and revised guidelines is needed to reduce inappropriate variations in practice and promote better delivery of evidence-based treatment

FLUORIDE INDUCED NEPHROTOXICITY: APOPTOSIS, ULTRASTRUCTURAL CHANGES AND RENAL TUBULAR INJURY IN EXPERIMENTAL ANIMALS

Fluorosis is endemic in many countries across the globe. Most of the Indian states are endemic for fluorosis. Fluoride is known to cause many types of health complications and affects skeletal & soft tissues. The kidneys are one of the highly exposed organs for all the ingested toxins including fluoride. Therefore fluoride exposed subjects are highly vulnerable to fluoride induced nephrotoxicity. In recent years it has been demonstrated that the prevalence of renal impairment is remarkably high in different fluorosis endemic areas. Higher prevalence of CKD observed in central dry zone of Sri Lanka, a fluorosis endemic region. The prevalence of renal tubular dysfunctions is significantly high in residents of El Quel, which is also an endemic fluorosis area in Southern Algeria. On the basis of previous research reports it may be concluded that fluoride induces renal impairments and renal tubular injuries, cellular and sub-cellular ultrastructural changes. But all the research reports available are confined to animal models only. The data available on fluoride associated renal impairment in human is scant and limited to case reports and epidemiological studies. Due to the variation in types of animal models used in the studies, variations in quantity of fluoride administered and variations in route of fluoride administration, the generated insight cannot be translated to clinic. Therefore there is need to adopt a direct holistic approach to evaluate the adverse effects of fluoride on kidney structure and function in human subjects.

Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Infections in Hostel Residents of Lahore, Pakistan

To maintain our good health, properly functioning gastrointestinal (GIT) track is always considered essential. Though in current era, living standards are much improved now but still gut infections are frequently reported around the globe. Because in third world countries, like Pakistan even in big cities people don’t have dietary sources of good quality. That’s why; a survey of randomly selected 10 hostels was conducted to estimate the prevalence of gastrointestinal infections among them. The results showed that mostly sufferers fall in age group of 18-28years and among them, females are more than males. Important causative factors for transmission of enteric pathogens are intake of impure water (in 42% cases), unhygienic food (in 18% cases) and blend of these two (in 33% cases) with major symptoms of abdominal discomfort, acid reflux, nausea and vomiting. But still only 19% gastric patients of hostel take proper medication for cure and rest of other are left untreated either due to lack of awareness or financial constraints. So these issues should be seriously addressed by the authorities to control the frequency of GIT infections among hostilities of Lahore, Pakistan

Sliding mode control rotor flux MRAS based speed sensorless induction motor traction drive control for electric vehicles

Climate change has highlighted a need to transition to more sustainable forms of transportation. Electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) offer a promising alternative to conventional gasoline powered vehicles. However, advancements in power electronics and advanced control systems have made the implementation of high performance traction drives for EVs and HEVs easy. In this paper, a novel sliding mode control model reference adaptive system (SMC-MRAS) speed estimator in traction drive control application is presented. However, due to the unpredictable operational uncertainties of the machine parameters and unmodelled non-linear dynamics, the proportional-integral (PI)-MRAS may not produce a satisfactory performance. The Proposed estimator eliminates the PI controller employed in the conventional MRAS. This method utilizes two loops and generates two different error signals from the rotor flux and motor torques. The stability and dynamics of the SMC law are obtained through the Lyapunov theory. The potential of the proposed SMC-MRAS methodology is simulated and experimentally validated for an electric vehicle application. Matlab-Simulink environment is developed and proposed scheme is employed on indirect vector control method. However, for the experimental validation, the dSPACE 4011 R & D controller board was utilized. Furthermore, the SMC-MRAS performance is differentiated with PI-MRAS for speed regulation performance, tracking and estimation error, as well as the fast minimization of the error signal. The results of the proposed scheme illustrate the enhanced speed estimation, load disturbance rejection ability and fast error dynamics