METHODS: Retrospective analysis of medical records of patients in the COVID-19 wards of three tertiary care hospitals to assess antibiotic use during the sixth COVID-19 wave.

RESULTS: A total of 284 patients were included, most were male (66.9%), aged 30-50 years (50.7%) with diabetes mellitus the most common comorbidity. The most common symptoms at presentation were cough (47.9%) and arthralgia-myalgia (41.5%). Around 3% were asymptomatic, 34.9% had mild, 30.3% moderate, and 23.6% had severe disease, with 8.1% critical. Chest X-ray abnormalities were seen in 43.3% of patients and 37% had elevated white cell counts, with 35.2% having elevated C-reactive protein levels. Around 91% COVID-19 patients were prescribed antibiotics during their hospital stay, with only a few with proven bacterial co-infections or secondary bacterial infections. Most antibiotics were from the 'Watch' category (90.8%) followed by the 'Reserve' category (4.8%), similar to previous COVID-19 waves.

METHODS: The quasi-experimental study was conducted in Tharparker and Umerkot districts, Sindh, Pakistan, in 2013-14, and comprised pregnant women in their earlier weeks of pregnancy. The enrolment and follow-up phase entailed 3 visits to each subject. Areas covered by lady health workers were designated as intervention areas, and those with non-LHW population were labelled as non-intervention areas.

RESULTS: Of the 1204 subjects, 600(49.8%) were in the intervention group and 604(50.2%) were in the nonintervention group. By the end of the follow-up phase, significantly more women had increased number of meals in the intervention group compared to the non-intervention group (p<0.001). There was a significantly higher increase in mean haemoglobin levels and body mass index of women in the intervention arm after 3 and 6 months of interventions (p<0.05). Significantly higher mean birth weight was recorded in intervention areas compared to nonintervention areas (p<0.05).

METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 27 May 2020 to 17 June 2020 using the convenient sampling technique in the general population of Pakistan. Data were collected by designing an online questionnaire consisting of demographic information, knowledge, attitude perceptions, barriers, utilization, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on telemedicine.

RESULTS: Of the 602 participants included in the study, 70.1% had heard about telemedicine, 54.3% had a good understanding of the definition of "telemedicine," 81.4% had not used telemedicine in the past, 29.9% did not know that telemedicine was available before the COVID-19 pandemic, and 70.4% responded that the COVID-19 pandemic had changed their attitudes toward telemedicine. Gender (p = 0.017) and family income (p = 0.027) had a significant association with the perception of the benefits of telemedicine.

METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted in October-November 2017 at five government and two private schools in Bhakkar, Punjab, Pakistan. It comprised children aged 11-12 years. World Health Organisation standards and the modified International Caries Detection and Assessment Systems methods were used were used to determine the dental caries status of each subject. Results of the two methods were compared at all cut- offs where appropriate, using SPSS 17.

RESULTS: Of the 183 subjects, 101(55.2%) were boys. Those aged 12 years were 112(61.2%) while 71(38.8%) were aged 11 years. There was no statistically significant difference in values of the Decayed Missing and Filled Surface / Decayed Missing and Filled Teeth index as well as the prevalence of dental caries between two methods (p>0.05 each). Intra-examiner reproducibility was higher with the World Health Organisation method compared to the other index used (p<0.05).

METHODS: The cross-sectional study was conducted from January to May 2016 in seven schools of Bhakkar district in the Punjab province of Pakistan, and comprised of school children aged 11-12 years. Diet diaries were used to assess the frequency of sugar intake while caries was assessed using the Modified International Caries Detection and Assessment System. Bivariate analysis was used to assess the association of sugar consumption and early carious lesion with selected sociodemographic variables, and regression analysis was performed to evaluate the factor that matters most in caries occurrence.

RESULTS: Of the 226 subjects, 115(51%) had early carious lesion. Mean frequency of sugar intake was 5.2±3.2 times per day. Children who consumed sugar between main meals (p=0.01) and within two hours before bedtime (p=0.04) had significantly higher history of having caries. Cariogenic intake before bedtime was significantly associated with overall caries risk (p=0.02).