OBJECTIVE: This study investigated direct costs attributed to rehabilitation treatment of poliomyelitis among Pakistani patients and reported its duration along with the socioeconomic status of poliomyelitis survivors.
CONCLUSION: The cost of poliomyelitis rehabilitation in Pakistan is high; it has an economic effect on the lives of patients and their families. Despite good education, polio survivors in Pakistan appear to have low socioeconomic status, lower chances of employment and marriage, as well as fewer children. Further research is recommended to explore the burden of disease on society, i.e., indirect costs and suffering.
METHODS: A questionnaire-based cross-sectional survey was conducted. Nine hundred and twenty three female adolescents attending general out-patient departments of Mohtarma Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Hospital Quetta, Balochistan, was approached for data collection. Based on the objectives of the study, descriptive analysis was conducted and SPSS v. 21.0 was used for the data analysis.
RESULTS: Demographic characteristics revealed that the mean age of the respondents was 15 years. Mothers' (67%) were the main source of menstruation-related information. Majority (77.7%) of our respondents never had a class or session regarding menstruation-related education in their schools. About (44%) knew that menstruation is a physiological phenomenon while 60.2% knew that menstrual blood comes from the vagina. Nearly 40% of our study respondents missed their schools because of menarche. The use of absorbent material was frequent (90%) among the adolescent females and (68.7%) used commercially available sanitary napkins/pads. Although majority of the respondents (58.2%) were not taking baths during menstruation, 80.5% do cleaned their genitalia with water during menstruation.
CONCLUSION: Female adolescents of our study had certain misconception regarding menstruation because of poor access to health-related education. Education can be provided at healthcare facilities, residential area as well as religious centers. Adolescent reproductive health should be included in the school curriculum; this will influence general reproductive health of females.
METHOD: The 5D itch scale was translated from English into Urdu following translation guidelines for translation. Face and content validity was determined by a panel of experts and piloted. For retest, the Urdu version of the 5D itch scale was administered at baseline and two weeks.
RESULTS: A total of 50 participants with end stage renal disease were recruited, and of these, 64% were males. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that the 5D-IS had 2-factor loadings: "Pattern and activity" and "Distribution" with Kaiser-Mayer-Olkin (KMO) = 0.802, Bartlett's test of sphericity was significant (df = 28, p Pakistan.
METHODS: This web-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs (N = 398) from Punjab Province of Pakistan. The generalized anxiety scale (GAD-7), patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9), and Brief-COPE were used to assess anxiety, depression, and coping strategies, respectively.
RESULTS: The average age of respondents was 28.67 years (SD = 4.15), with the majority being medical doctors (52%). Prevalences of anxiety and depression were 21.4% and 21.9%, respectively. There was no significant difference in anxiety and depression scores among doctors, nurses, and pharmacists. Females had significantly higher anxiety (P = 0.003) and depression (P = 0.001) scores than males. Moreover, frontline HCWs had significantly higher depression scores (P = 0.010) than others. The depression, not anxiety, score was significantly higher among those who did not receive the infection prevention training (P = 0.004). The most frequently adopted coping strategies were religious coping (M = 5.98, SD = 1.73), acceptance (M = 5.59, SD = 1.55), and coping planning (M = 4.91, SD = 1.85).
CONCLUSION: A considerable proportion of HCWs are having generalized anxiety and depression during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings call for interventions to mitigate mental health risks in HCWs.
DESIGN: Prospective cohort study.
SETTING: The study included 317 ICUs of 96 hospitals in 44 cities in 9 countries of Asia: China, India, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
PARTICIPANTS: Patients aged >18 years admitted to ICUs.
RESULTS: In total, 157,667 patients were followed during 957,517 patient days, and 8,157 HAIs occurred. In multiple logistic regression, the following variables were associated with an increased mortality risk: central-line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI; aOR, 2.36; P < .0001), ventilator-associated event (VAE; aOR, 1.51; P < .0001), catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI; aOR, 1.04; P < .0001), and female sex (aOR, 1.06; P < .0001). Older age increased mortality risk by 1% per year (aOR, 1.01; P < .0001). Length of stay (LOS) increased mortality risk by 1% per bed day (aOR, 1.01; P < .0001). Central-line days increased mortality risk by 2% per central-line day (aOR, 1.02; P < .0001). Urinary catheter days increased mortality risk by 4% per urinary catheter day (aOR, 1.04; P < .0001). The highest mortality risks were associated with mechanical ventilation utilization ratio (aOR, 12.48; P < .0001), upper middle-income country (aOR, 1.09; P = .033), surgical hospitalization (aOR, 2.17; P < .0001), pediatric oncology ICU (aOR, 9.90; P < .0001), and adult oncology ICU (aOR, 4.52; P < .0001). Patients at university hospitals had the lowest mortality risk (aOR, 0.61; P < .0001).
CONCLUSIONS: Some variables associated with an increased mortality risk are unlikely to change, such as age, sex, national economy, hospitalization type, and ICU type. Some other variables can be modified, such as LOS, central-line use, urinary catheter use, and mechanical ventilation as well as and acquisition of CLABSI, VAE, or CAUTI. To reduce mortality risk, we shall focus on strategies to reduce LOS; strategies to reduce central-line, urinary catheter, and mechanical ventilation use; and HAI prevention recommendations.
METHODS: This prospective observational study was conducted at a a PMDT unit in Multan, Punjab, Pakistan. A total of 271 eligible culture positive DR-TB patients enrolled for treatment at the study site between January 2016 and May 2017 were followed till their treatment outcomes were recorded. World Health Organization's (WHO) defined criteria was used for categorizing treatment outcomes. The outcomes of cured and treatment completed were collectively placed as successful outcomes, while death, lost to follow-up (LTFU) and treatment failure were grouped as unsuccessful outcomes. Multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was employed for getting predictors of unsuccessful treatment outcomes. A p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
RESULTS: Of the 271 DR-TB patients analysed, nearly half (51.3%) were males. The patient's (Mean ± SD) age was 36.75 ± 15.69 years. A total of 69% patients achieved successful outcomes with 185 (68.2%) patients being cured and 2 (0.7%) completed therapy. Of the remaining 84 patients with unsuccessful outcomes, 48 (17.7%) died, 2 (0.7%) were declared treatment failure, 34 (12.5%) were loss to follow up. After adjusting for confounders, patients' age > 50 years (OR 2.149 (1.005-4.592) with p-value 0.048 and baseline lung cavitation (OR 7.798 (3.82-15.919) with p-value <0.001 were significantly associated with unsuccessful treatment outcomes.
CONCLUSIONS: The treatment success rate (69%) in the current study participants was below the target set by WHO (>75%). Paying special attention and timely intervention in patients with high risk of unsuccessful treatment outcomes may help in improving treatment outcomes at the study site.
METHOD: This study used micro-level household datasets from multiple indicator cluster surveys (MICS) to estimate the DMI. To find out how different the DMI scores were, the inequality ratio and slope were used. This study further utilized spatial autocorrelation tests to determine the magnitude and location of the spatial dependence of the clusters with high and low mortality rates. The Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) model was also applied to examine the spatial impact of socioeconomic, environmental, health, and housing attributes on DMI.
RESULTS: The inequality ratio for DMI showed that the upper decile districts are 16 times more prone to mortalities than districts in the lower decile, and the districts of Baluchistan depicted extreme spatial heterogeneity in terms of DMI. The findings of the Local Indicator of Spatial Association (LISA) and Moran's test confirmed spatial homogeneity in all mortalities among the districts in Pakistan. The H-H clusters of maternal mortality and DMI were in Baluchistan, and the H-H clusters of child mortality were seen in Punjab. The results of GWR showed that the wealth index quintile has a significant spatial impact on DMI; however, improved sanitation, handwashing practices, and antenatal care adversely influenced DMI scores.
CONCLUSION: The findings reveal a significant disparity in DMI and spatial relationships among all mortalities in Pakistan's districts. Additionally, socioeconomic, environmental, health, and housing variables have an impact on DMI. Notably, spatial proximity among individuals who are at risk of death occurs in areas with elevated mortality rates. Policymakers may mitigate these mortalities by focusing on vulnerable zones and implementing measures such as raising public awareness, enhancing healthcare services, and improving access to clean drinking water and sanitation facilities.