ABSTRACT
Objectives: The aim of this study was to measure the Epicardial Adipose Tissue thickness through echocardiography in healthy adults and coronary artery disease patients and to make its association with age and gender
Methods: It was a case control study. A total of 315 samples including 159 cases of coronary artery disease and 156 asymptomatic individuals for coronary artery disease underwent echocardiography for Epicardial Adipose Tissue thickness measurement
Results: Mean Epicardial Adipose Tissue [EAT] in the study was found to be 15.45 +/- 7.16 mm. Cases had significantly higher EAT 16.77 +/-9.80mm as compared to controls 14.13 +/- 4.52 mm [P=0.02]. EAT thickness increased significantly with age [P=0.004]. There was no significant difference of EAT [P=0.999] in both the genders
Conclusion: The mean EAT thickness is significantly higher in our study population as compared to previous studies. The mean EAT thickness was same in both males and females of our study. There was no significant difference in EAT of both genders
ABSTRACT
Optical coherence tomography [OCT] is a non-contact, non invasive imaging modality that helps diagnosing a variety of diseases involving the eye. It provides quantitative measurements of retinal nerve fiber layer [RNFL], optic nerve head and macular thickness parameters 1, 2 and can be used as a valuable tool in many intraocular surgeries. This article discusses the applications of different OCT systems available commercially for diagnosing and managing various ophthalmic conditions. Furthermore, future directions of OCT technology, clinical uses and benefits are also discussed. Different articles published till year 2014 majorly in between 2005 to 2014, obtained from online search engines Pubmed and Google Scholar were used in preparation of this review. Those articles were included that contained information regarding OCT and its uses in various ophthalmologic conditions and its future advancements. We excluded those articles that did not contain relevant information regarding OCT and its uses. Due to advancements in OCT technology, it is now possible to reveal the structural changes associated with retinal diseases that help in improving early analysis and monitoring of disease progression and response to treatment. Three generations of OCT have been introduced till date. Early versions of this technology i.e. OCT 1 and OCT 2 are relatively slow, limiting both the amount of data to be captured and the quality of image. The older versions required dilation of the pupil but the latest version, the Stratus OCT can be used without dilating the pupil.3 Commercially, OCT is employed in diverse applications including diagnostic medicine, interventional cardiology and art conservation. Ophthalmology is still the most important field of OCT application because of transparent ocular structures
ABSTRACT
The present study was undertaken to investigate the awareness of non qualified dental care providers about the spread of hepatitis B and C. This is a cross sectional analytical study. Study was conducted at different dental clinics of Karachi from March 2007 to June 2007. Fifty roadside dental practitioners [quacks] were interviewed for assessment of their knowledge and practices. The hygienic measures used for the dental instruments were absolutely substandard. All the clinics showed casing sterilization equipments but the quacks neither knew the concept of sterilization nor were they aware of the desired temperature of the sterilization machines [like autoclave]. Most of the quacks were unaware of the diseases like Hepatitis and AID's and their route to spread