Causes of Dropout Rate at Primary Level in Pakistan

The study was designed to investigate the causes of dropout at primary level in Pakistan. Descriptive research method was adopted by using both quantitative and qualitative techniques for data collection. The study sought to get the opinion of education managers, teachers, parents and community members on various factors causing high dropout at primary level. Data was collected from 208 education managers and 291 primary school teachers. Twelve districts and 96 schools across the country were included in the sample. Moreover, focus group discussion was held with community members and parents in each sample school and district to solicit their opinion about causes of dropout. All the possible factors causing dropout were grouped into socio-economic factors, physical factors, geographical factors, teacher related factors, family related factors, teaching learning material related factors, administrative related factors, child related factors, and facilities in schools related factors

Coverage and predictors of vaccination among children of 1-4 years of age in a rural sub-district of Sindh

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the proportion of children 1-4 years of age vaccinated in the first year of their life and determine socio-demographic factors associated with vaccination in the rural sub-district Khairpur, Sindh, Pakistan.STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: The study was conducted in 9 Union Councils of sub-district Gambat, district Khairpur, Sindh, from August to October 2008.METHODOLOGY: A questionnaire based representative multi-stage cluster survey was conducted. A total of 549 children aged 1-4 years were assessed for coverage and predictors of vaccination. Univariate and multivariate analysis was done using logistic regression to determine the unadjusted and adjusted relationship between socio-demographic predictor and outcome (vaccination status).RESULTS: The coverage for complete vaccination was 71.9% (95%CI=68.1%-75.7%). Educational level of mother (p=0.042), father (p=0.001) and child birth at hospital (p=0.006) were significantly associated with the vaccination status. Mother\u27s educational level of intermediate and above was the strongest predictor (OR=12.19, 95%CI=1.57-94.3) for vaccination.CONCLUSION: Education of parents, particularly mother\u27s education was important determinant of vaccination status of the children. In addition, distance from taluka health facility and misconception of parents were among the main reasons of not getting the children vaccinated. There is a need to educate the parents especially mothers about the importance of vaccination and organize EPI services at Basic Health Unit level to improve the vaccination coverage in rural areas of Pakistan

Non-Fatal limb injuries in motorbike accidents.

OBJECTIVE: To determine frequency and pattern of non-fatal limb injuries in motorbike accidents victims.STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional observational study.PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: Study was conducted at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), Karachi, from October 2006 to March 2007.METHODOLOGY: Trained data collectors prospectively collected data from the emergency department of JPMC, Karachi using structured pre-tested questionnaires. All motorbike accident victims presented to Emergency department with single or multiple bone injury in body extremities were included. Head injury patients who had first presented to neuro-surgery department were excluded. Motorbike accident victims with soft tissue injuries were also excluded from this study. Chisquare test was applied to find out statistical significance at 95% confidence level. P-value \u3c 0.05 was considered as significant.RESULTS: A total of 137 (39%) patients presented with tibial injury among the study sample of 348 patients, which was significantly higher than the bone injuries of the body part (p60 years. Those with less than 15 years accounted for 12% of cases.CONCLUSION: Tibial bone is at the greatest risk in motorbike accidents probably due to its superficiality and exposed position while riding motorbike. Protective measures need to be taken for the prevention of disability associated with lower limb involvement in motorbike accidents

Needle stick injuries among health care workers of public sector tertiary care hospitals of Karachi

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the frequency of needle stick injuries (NSI) among health care workers (nurses, student nurses and paramedical staff) in public hospitals of Karachi.STUDY DESIGN: Cross sectional, observational.PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY: This study was conducted in three public tertiary care hospitals of Karachi, from November 2007 to January 2008.METHODOLOGY: Data was collected by structured interview-based questionnaires in Urdu and English language. Questionnaire was designed to obtain information regarding demography, work experience, hepatitis vaccination status, and occurrence of needle stick injuries with associated factors. Needle stick injury that occurred in the previous month was the defined outcome. Data was entered in Epi Data and analyzed in SPSS version 15.RESULTS: A total of 417 health care workers participated in the study. Mean age of the participants was 24+/-11 years. Estimated proportion of participants with history of at least one time NSI was found in 66%. Around 13% (n=54) had one or more NSI in the previous one month at work and half of them were affected by non-sterile needle. None of them sought medical care. Almost 90% of them were not wearing gloves or taking any other protective measures at the time of injury.CONCLUSION: There can be serious consequences of needle stick injuries in public hospitals as large proportion of injuries involve non-sterile used needles and health care workers do not take appropriate measures of protection

Psychiatry as a career: A survey of factors affecting students’ interest in Psychiatry as a career

The objectives of this study were to determine the characteristics of medical students and graduates interested in choosing psychiatry as a career and the obstacles in choosing this field of medicine. Two private and two public medical institutes were surveyed from June 2007 to August 2007. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to third, fourth and final year students and to medical graduates doing their internship in these four medical institutes. A total of 909 medical students and graduates participated in the study. Seventeen percent of participants responded positively regarding their interest in psychiatry as a career. Significantly higher proportion belonged to private medical institutes (14% vs. 24%, P-value =0.001). There was no significant difference in reporting interest for psychiatry in regard to age, sex, year in medical school and whether or not the participant had done a psychiatry ward rotation. However significantly higher proportion of participants (22%, n=43) were reporting their interest in the field of psychiatry who had done more than a month long psychiatry ward rotation as compared to those participants (14%, n=54) with less than a month or no psychiatry rotation (P-value=0.01). More students were reporting their interest in psychiatry with a family history of psychiatric illness as compared to without family history (24% vs 16%, P-value=0.03). In conclusion, students and graduates with more than a month long rotation in psychiatry, studying in private medical colleges and with a family history of psychiatric illness were more interested in choosing psychiatry as a career

PREVELANCE OF OVARIAN CANCER AND ITS CORELATION WITH AGE IN PAKISTAN

Introduction: group of diseases that is originated from the different parts of ovaries and cause production of abnormal cells that divide uncontrolled themselves in the ovaries is known as ovarian cancer. OC is mainly classified into majorly three types on the base of three components of ovaries known as epithelium, stroma and germinal cells. Approximately, 7000 women develop OC and 4200 of them die every year in UK. In Pakistan the incidence of OC is increasing at the rate of around 13.6%. Approximately 70% cases are diagnosed at later stages. Methodology: The blood sample was collected by Layyah region. The CA125 identification through Elisa technique for their better identification on the basis of antibodies. Normal values of CA125 were considered less than 35 U/ml. the other tumor marker was also measured such as fibrinogen, prolactin, CA15.3, PT, APTT, INR, D Dimer, and CA19.9. Results: The mean age of patients was 59.0 ± 8.1while the minimum and maximum age at which the tumor marker detection was 22 and 74 years. The no of patient was found in order of 25 >24 > 10 in 1st, 2nd and 3rd age groups, respectively. The clinical histopathological test in the ovarian cancer patients show that the tumor size 5.21 ± 3.42, fibrinogen 5.09 ± 1.29, CA-199 (U/mL) 121.17 ± 59.76, and D-dimer 0.61 ± 0.31. The CA-125 level increase in ovarian cancer patients it indication as a tumor marker

Detection of BCR-ABL kinase domain mutations in CD34+ cells from newly diagnosed chronic phase CML patients and their association with imatinib resistance

BCR-ABL kinase domain (KD) mutations, the most common cause of imatinib resistance, are infrequently detected in newly diagnosed chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CP-CML) patients. Recent studies indicate pre-existing mutations (PEMs) can be detected in a higher percentage of CML patients using CD34+ stem/progenitor cells, and these mutations may correlate with imatinib resistance. We investigated KD mutations in CD34+ stem cells from 100 CP-CML patients by multiplex ASO-PCR and sequencing ASO-PCR products at the time of diagnosis. PEMs were detected in 32/100 patients and included F311L, M351T, and T315I. After a median follow-up of 30 months (range 8-48), all patients with PEMs exhibited imatinib resistance. Of 68 patients without PEMs, 24 developed imatinib resistance. Mutations were detected in 21 of these patients by ASO-PCR and KD sequencing. All 32 patients with PEMs had the same mutations. In imatinib-resistant patients without PEMs, we detected F311L, M351T, Y253F, and T315I mutations. All imatinib-resistant patients without T315I and Y253F mutations responded to imatinib dose escalation. In conclusion, BCR-ABL PEMs can be detected in a substantial number of CP-CML patients when investigated using CD34+ stem/progenitor cells. These mutations are associated with imatinib resistance, and mutation testing using CD34+ cells may facilitate improved, patient-tailored treatment

Relationship of leukaemias with long-term ambient air pollution exposures in the adult Danish population

Background Few population-based epidemiological studies of adults have examined the relationship between air pollution and leukaemias. Methods Using Danish National Cancer Registry data and Danish DEHM-UBM-AirGIS system-modelled air pollution exposures, we examined whether particulate matter (PM2.5), black carbon (BC), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone (O3) averaged over 1, 5 or 10 years were associated with adult leukaemia in general or by subtype. In all, 14,986 adult cases diagnosed 1989–2014 and 51,624 age, sex and time-matched controls were included. Separate conditional logistic regression models, adjusted for socio-demographic factors, assessed exposure to each pollutant with leukaemias. Results Fully adjusted models showed a higher risk of leukaemia with higher 1-, 5- and 10-year-average exposures to PM2.5 prior to diagnosis (e.g. OR per 10 µg/m3 for 10-year average: 1.17, 95% CI: 1.03, 1.32), and a positive relationship with 1-year average BC. Results were driven by participants 70 years and older (OR per 10 µg/m3 for 10-year average: 1.35, 95% CI: 1.15–1.58). Null findings for younger participants. Higher 1-year average PM2.5 exposures were associated with higher risks for acute myeloid and chronic lymphoblastic leukaemia. Conclusion Among older adults, higher risk for leukaemia was associated with higher residential PM2.5 concentrations averaged over 1, 5 and 10 years prior to diagnosis.</p

Brief review: Applications of nanocomposite in electrochemical sensor and drugs delivery

The recent advancement of nanoparticles (NPs) holds significant potential for treating various ailments. NPs are employed as drug carriers for diseases like cancer because of their small size and increased stability. In addition, they have several desirable properties that make them ideal for treating bone cancer, including high stability, specificity, higher sensitivity, and efficacy. Furthermore, they might be taken into account to permit the precise drug release from the matrix. Drug delivery systems for cancer treatment have progressed to include nanocomposites, metallic NPs, dendrimers, and liposomes. Materials’ mechanical strength, hardness, electrical and thermal conductivity, and electrochemical sensors are significantly improved using nanoparticles (NPs). New sensing devices, drug delivery systems, electrochemical sensors, and biosensors can all benefit considerably from the NPs’ exceptional physical and chemical capabilities. Nanotechnology is discussed in this article from a variety of angles, including its recent applications in the medical sciences for the effective treatment of bone cancers and its potential as a promising option for treating other complex health anomalies via the use of anti-tumour therapy, radiotherapy, the delivery of proteins, antibiotics, and vaccines, and other methods. This also brings to light the role that model simulations can play in diagnosing and treating bone cancer, an area where Nanomedicine has recently been formulated. There has been a recent uptick in using nanotechnology to treat conditions affecting the skeleton. Consequently, it will pave the door for more effective utilization of cutting-edge technology, including electrochemical sensors and biosensors, and improved therapeutic outcomes

Author Correction: Characterization of rifampicin-resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.

The original version of this Article contained an error in the spelling of the author Otavio Cabral-Marques which was incorrectly given as Otavio Marques Cabral. The original Article has been corrected