Diagnostic accuracy of Typhidot in patients of Typhoid Fever

Objective: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of Typhidot test in patients with acute febrile illness taking blood culture as gold standard

Study Design: Cross-sectional validation study

Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at Combined Military Hospital Kohat, from Mar 2016 to Oct 2016

Material and Methods: In this study 211 patients with acute febrile illness were included. All patients had Typhidot IgM test done along with blood cultures, blood counts, chemistries and relevant diagnostic tests. Patients were divided into two groups based on blood culture results and both groups were compared in terms of positivity for Typhidot. Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated using SPSS v 20. Chi square was applied to assess the association between Typhidot and blood culture results

Results: Out of total 211patients, 49 patients had typhoid fever [culture positive] and 162 had non-typhoidal illnesses [culture negative]. Typhidot IgM was positive in 47 [95.9percent] cases of typhoid fever and in 155 [73.5percent] cases of non-typhoidal fevers. The sensitivity of Typhidot for diagnosis of typhoid fever was 95.9percent and specificity was 26.5percent

Conclusion: Our study reveals that Typhidot IgM has high sensitivity for typhoid fever but specificity and diagnostic accuracy are very low. Nevertheless, a high negative predictive value means it can help rule out the disease in suspected cases

Awareness of AIDS related public health facts in medical students: a survey in a medical college of Rawalpindi - Pakistan

The incidence of HIV infection is rising and Pakistan is considered a high-risk country. The key intervention to this threat, at present, is increased awareness of the population. This study was designed to assess awareness of medical students about HIV infection It was a cross sectional survey conducted on students of a Medical College of Rawalpindi in December 2005. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to assess awareness levels. A total of 648 students responded. Out of these 242 [37.35%] were males and 406 [62.65%] were females. A total of 595 [91.8%] students agreed that AIDS is a national threat. Six hundred and twenty five [96.4%] students were sure about HIV transmission modes. Four hundred and twenty eight [66%] students considered close contact safe, 544 [84%] knew that sharing swimming pools was not a risk and 511[78.9%] students knew that mosquitoes have no role in HIV transmission. A total of 321 [79.1%] female students were aware that condoms acted as barrier to HIV transmission compared to 217 [89.7%] males, [p < 0.05]. Cumulative awareness on AIDS was 83.9%, and observed difference between groups' overall level of awareness was not significant [p > 0.5]. Although students demonstrated a high level of knowledge concerning AIDS and HIV, considerable misconceptions were also noted. A need was felt to enhance awareness programs among students in medical colleges on AIDS

Serum alt; clinical significance of borderline high levels

To assess the cases of borderline high serum ALT. To find out underlying pathology causing borderline high serum ALT cases using noninvasive methods, and to evaluate their significance. A total of 30 patients fulfilling the selection criteria were included at convenience. This was an observational study. This study was conducted in PMA hospital Kakul during 2004. The results of the study showed that fatty liver was present in 36.6% of the cases. Hepatitis C infection was detected in 13.4%, while in most of the patients [50%] no specific cause could be detected. On the basis of these observations it was concluded that in patients detected to have borderline high serum ALT on routine evaluation the chances of diagnosing steatohepatitis were more than chronic hepatitis and that the possibility of serious underlying liver disease was uncommon