Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Preparing For The Next Natural Disaster – Need For A Who Coordinating Centre, Mohammad Wasay, Saad Shafqat

Department of Medicine

No abstract provided.

Hepatitis B And C: Prevalence And Risk Factors Associated With Seropositivity Among Children In Karachi, Pakistan, Wasim Jafri, Nadim Jafri, Javed Yakoob, Muhammad Islam, Syed Farhan Ali Tirmizi, Tazeen Jafar, Saeed Akhtar, Saeed Hamid, Hasnain Ali Shah, Sheikh Qamaruddin Nizami

Section of Gastroenterology

Background

Infections with hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) can lead to chronic liver disease and hepato-cellular carcinoma (HCC). This cross-sectional study estimated the prevalence and identified risk factors associated with Hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and HCV antibody (anti-HCV) sero-positivity among children 1 to 15 years of age.

Methods

The study targeted the low to middle socioeconomic population that comprises 80% to 85% of the population. Consent was obtained from parents of the eligible children before administering questionnaire and collected a blood sample for anti-HCV and HBsAg serology.

Results

3533 children were screened for HBsAg and …

Knowledge, Attitude And Misconceptions Regarding Tuberculosis In Pakistani Patients, Javaid Ahmed Khan, Muhammad Irfan, Amna Zaki, Madiha Beg, Syed Fayyaz Hussain, Nadeem Rizvi

Section of Pulmonary & Critical Care

Objective:

To assess knowledge of patients with tuberculosis; about their disease and misconceptions regarding TB.

Methods:

A cross sectional study was conducted at Out-patient clinics of two teaching hospitals (private and public) in Karachi, Pakistan. A questionnaire was filled for the purpose.

Results:

A total of 170 patients were interviewed, 112 from private and 58 from a public sector hospital. Cough, fever, bloody sputum and chest pain were recognized as the common symptoms of TB. Eleven (7%) patients thought TB was not an infectious disease and 18 (10.6%) did not consider it a preventable disease. Contaminated food was considered the …

Metaplastic Carcinoma Of The Breast, An Intriguing Rarity., Naila Kayani, Fozia Rauf, Yasmin Bhurgri

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Abstract Metaplastic carcinoma breast is categorized as a rare heterogenous neoplasm generally characterized by a mixtureof adenocarcinoma with dominant areas of spindle cell, squamous and/or other mesenchymal differentiation. Todetermine the epidemio-demographic and histopathologic characteristics of this rare entity a retrospective studywas conducted to review all cases at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) Karachi, received during 1st January2000 to 31st August 2005. Twenty-four patients were identified with a mean age at diagnosis of 46.4 (±SD 3.8) years,and an age range of 28-68 years. The mean tumor size was 7.9 cm, range 2.0–17.0 cms (±SD 4.77). The specimenswere mostly obtained by …

Phylloides Tumors In Adolescent Girls And Young Women In Pakistan., Naila Kayani, Amna Khurshid, Yasmin Bhurgri

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Abstract The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of phylloides tumor (PT) in adolescent girls and youngwomen (less than and equal to 25 years of age) and to define the clinico-pathological features of PT in this unusualclinical setting. This descriptive study was carried out at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) pathologydepartment. All consecutive cases of PT diagnosed during the last sixteen years in the section of histopathology from1st January 1990 to 31st June 2005 were included. Selection of cases was restricted to patients up to 25 years of age.A total of 42 cases of PT in …

Socio-Demographic Correlates Of Betel, Areca And Smokeless Tobacco Use As A High Risk Behavior For Head And Neck Cancers In A Squatter Settlement Of Karachi, Pakistan, Samia Mazahir, Rabia Malik, Maria Maqsood, Kanwal Aliraza Merchant, Farida Malik, Atif Majeed, Zafar Fatmi, Muhammad Rizwanulhaq Khawaja, Shehzad Ghaffar

Community Health Sciences

Background

Head and neck cancers are a major cancer burden in Pakistan. They share a common risk factor profile including regular consumption of products of betel, areca and tobacco. Use of paan, chaalia, gutka, niswar and tumbaku is acceptable in Pakistan and is considered a normal cultural practice. This cross-sectional study was carried out to understand the relation of socio-demographic factors for the consumption of paan, chaalia, gutka, niswar and tumbaku in Pakistani population. Through systematic sampling, 425 subjects from a squatter settlement in Karachi were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. High risk behavior was defined as Daily use of …

Prevalence Of Diabetic Retinopathy Among Individuals Screened Positive For Diabetes In Five Community Based Eye Camps In Northern Karachi Pakistan, Jamal-U- Din, Mohammad Babar Qureshi, Akhtar Jamal Khan, Mohammad Daud Khan, Khabir Ahmed

Department of Surgery

Background: Population-based data on the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in Pakistan are lacking. We determined the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy among individuals screened positive for diabetes in five community-based eye camps in northern Karachi, Pakistan. Methods: In summer 2002, five community-based eye camps were set up in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city. All individuals aged 30 years or older who visited the camps were requested to participate in the study. Those who agreed were screened for diabetes and those found to have the disease were referred to an eye hospital for diabetic retinopathy screening. Verbal informed consent was obtained from all …

Evaluation Of A Cancer Awareness Campaign: Experience With A Selected Population In Karachi, Tazeen S. Ali, Sanah Baig

School of Nursing & Midwifery

The incidence and prevalence of cancer is rapidly increasing in both developed and developing countries. The most common cancers reported in Pakistan are breast and cervical cancers in females, and lung and oral cancers in males. Public awareness of cancer can play a vital role in its prevention, early diagnosis and treatment. A pilot survey conducted by the Cancer Support Group (CSG) of Aga Khan University Hospital from 2001 till 2004 to gauge the public awareness of cancer in Pakistan revealed that people were afraid of cancer and had little knowledge about its prevention and early detection. The survey also …

Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome: Need For Early Diagnosis And Therapy, Humaira M. Khan, Nadir A. Syed, Mughis Sheerani, Bhojo Khealani, Ayeesha Kamal, Mohammad Wasay

Department of Medicine

Background: Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome (NMS) is a medical entity that has received little attention in the clinical settings in Pakistan. The aim of our study was to review the predisposing factors, outcomes and characteristics of in-patients diagnosed with NMS.

Methods: We performed a retrospective chart review of all cases (age > 15 years) at a tertiary care center in Karachi between January 01, 1990 and November 30, 2001, diagnosed using ICD 10 coding. Data was collected using a standardized data entry form and statistical analysis was performed using Epi Info 6, Version 6.02.

Results: There were a total of 20 patients …

Psycho-Social Consequences Of Secondary Infertility In Karachi., Neelofar Sami, Tazeen Saeed Ali

Community Health Sciences

OBJECTIVE:

To explore the experiences of social consequences among women suffering from secondary infertility.

METHODS:

Descriptive case series of 400 women with secondary infertility attending tertiary care hospitals in Karachi, Pakistan.

RESULTS:

More than two thirds (67.7%) of women stated that their inability to give live births or give birth to sons had resulted in marital dissonance. The respondents had been threatened for divorce (20%), husband's remarrying (38%) or to be returned to their parent's home (26%) by their in laws or husbands. Majority (68%) of the women threatened did not have any live births. However, those who had live …