Is laparoscopic cholecystectomy safe in late pregnancy?

Gallbladder disease is second to acute appendicitis in pregnancy, which would require surgical intervention. Twelve percent of all pregnancies are complicated by gallstones; 33%-40% fail to resolve by conservative management. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy which was considered to be technically difficult in advanced pregnancy is now the accepted treatment for failed conservative management. We present three cases, successfully managed by laparoscopic surgery in late pregnancy

Frequency of thrombocytopenia in Plasmodium vivax Malaria

Background: Plasmodium vivax is the most widely distributed human malarial parasite. Mild thrombocytopenia is a common feature of acute malaria caused by P. vivax regardless of the severity of infection which may progress to severe thrombocytopenia. The aim of our study was to find the frequency of thrombocytopenia in Plasmodium vivax

Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross sectional study was carried out at Peadiatrics unit, Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore from July, 2013 to November, 2014 comprising of 56 children of both gender age 14 years and below who presented with fever of more than 101o F and Plasmodium vivax rings, trophozoites or schizonts on peripheral blood smear [thick and thin smear]. Full blood counts and platelet counts were done along with other routine as well specific investigations where required. The data was entered in standardized proforma and analyzed on SPSS 17

Results: There were 40 [71.43%] males and 16 [28.57%] females with the mean ages of 6.3 +/- 4.4 and 9.4 +/- 3.3 of males and females respectively with an overall mean age of 7.6 +/- 4.2. The frequency of thrombocytopenia was noted in 46 patients [82.14%]. Mild thrombocytopenia was in 15 patients [26.79%] with mean of 119,000.89 +/- 8,000.76SD, moderate in 23 [41.07%] with mean of 89,210.56 +/- 5637.23 and severe thrombocytopenia was in 8 patients [14.29%] with mean of 29,678.98 +/- 2389.54

Conclusion: Thrombocytopenia is common in P. vivax malaria in our set up and all patients with such malaria must be screened for thrombocytopenia

Frequency and etiology of urinary tract infections in neonatal late onset sepsis

Objective: To determine the frequency and etiology of urinary tract infections in neonatal late onset sepsis

Study Design: Cross-sectional study

Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out in neonatal unit, Shaikh Zayed Hospital, Lahore for six months period from January to June, 2014

Methodology: 175 neonates admitted in Neonatal Unit, Shaikh Zayad Hospital, Lahore through emergency, obstetric unit or outpatient department with late onset sepsis were included. Cases were selected by non-probability sampling technique

Results: Culture proven urinary tract infection [UTI] was present in 21.6% of late onset sepsis. The most common causative organism was Eschericha coli [84.21%] followed by Klebsiella [13.6%]. No male, female predisposition was found in this study

Conclusion: All neonates with late onset sepsis should be investigated for urinary tract infection and most common causative organism is Escherichia coli

Unusual lump in left groin

Pancreatic pseudocyst is a fluid collection contained within a well-defined capsule of fibrous or granulation tissue or a combination of both. It does not possess an epithelial lining, persists for more than four weeks and may develop in the setting of acute or chronic pancreatitis. The cyst can present anywhere from mediastinum to scrotum and pelvis. We present a case of pseudocyst of the pancreas in the groin, which was treated successfully by percutaneous aspiration

Iron and zinc levels in blood of children with PICA

The aim of study was to determine the levels of serum iron and plasma zinc in toddlers with pica. Prospective analytic type of study. Over a span of 6 months. The study was conducted in Pediatrics Outpatient department at Sheikh Zayed Hospital Rahim Yar Khan. The thirty children of both sexes in age group of 1-3 years, presented with anemia and pica were included in study. They had no other apparent cause of anemia other than nutritional deficiencies. They were physically and mentally well. The clinical history, feeding pattern and .clinical examination were recorded. Their blood was evaluated for iron and zinc to find relation of pica with these micronutrients. The Hemoglobin [Hb%]; blood smears were examined for RBCs morphology. Stool samples were examined for occult blood and intestinal parasites. All children were anemic; milk was the main source of nutrition till 3years of age and iron rich food like meat was deficit .They were involved in earth eating [geophagia]. They belonged to poor socioeconomic conditions. The laboratory reports of their blood smears detected microcytic hypochromic anemia, low serum iron and normal plasma zinc. Hb% level was < llg/dl, BUN and urine examination was normal. Stool examination detected intestinal parasites. Pica [Geophegia] in our study is strongly associated with iron deficiency anemia [IDA]. The zinc deficiency was not found in these children