Early diagnosis of dengue virus infection in clinically suspected cases

Objective: Comparison of real time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction [RTPCR] and immunoglobulin M [IgM] capture enzyme linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA] for diagnosis of dengue virus infection in first week of illness in clinically suspected patients of dengue fever

Study Design: Cross sectional study

Place and Duration of Study: Department of haematology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology [AFIP] Rawalpindi from Jan 2013 to Nov 2013

Material and Methods: A cross sectional study including 68 clinically suspected patients of dengue fever according to the World Health Organization [WHO] criteria. IgM capture ELISA and RT PCR for dengue virus ribonucleic acid [RNA] was performed on samples collected from patients having fever for 1 to 7 days. These were divided into two groups. Patients in group 1 presented with fever of 4 days or less, patients in group 2 had fever of 5 to 7 days duration

Results: In group 1, 72% of the patients were positive by RT PCR while 31% were positive by IgM capture ELISA. In group 2, 43% of the patients were positive by RT PCR while 97% were positive by ELISA

Conclusion: RT PCR can be used for early detection of dengue virus infection in the first few days of fever while IgM ELISA is diagnostic afterwards

Practice nurses and pharmacists: a perspective on the expectation and experience of nurses for future collaboration

To explore the nurses' expectations and experience about pharmacists in private sector hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan. A cross-sectional study was conducted from June to September 2012 in five private sector hospitals of Karachi, Pakistan. A convenient sample of nurses [n=377] were enrolled in this study. Data was obtained through a previously validated questionnaire. Responses were statistically analyzed using SPSSv.17. Questionnaires were returned giving a response rate of 63.6% of which 20 were unusable [n=240]. Out of the remaining 220, 24.1% [n=53] responded that they never or rarely interacted with a pharmacist. Respondents who expect pharmacists to collaborate with nurses to solve drug related problems were 45% [n=99]. Nurses' experience of pharmacists was not substantial as only 44.5% [n=98] respondents consider pharmacists as a reliable source of clinical drug information. The role of pharmacists is not well appreciated among nurses in Pakistan. Hence, pharmacists must bridge the observed gap and use a more strategic and consistent approach to build a more positive image in line with other healthcare professionals and in providing patient-centred pharmaceutical care. This research would impress upon the pharmacists the need to redefine their role in the healthcare settings

Multiple uterine fibroids in an young adult

Uterine leiomyoma's are noncancerous growths of the uterus1 and represent the most common benign tumors of the female reproductive tract. Fibroids affect 20-50% of women of reproductive age, while its presence in the adolescent population has not been well documented. The etiology of uterine fibroids is unclear; however, their growth is regulated by ovarian steroids, and growth factors. Multiple uterine leiomyoma's represents a great challenge for diagnosis and therapy. Several new therapies show promise, but are still at the experimental stage 2. This report illustrates the case of a 22 year old woman presenting to the gynecology department with an 8-month history of progressively increasing abdominal size associated with pain. There was no history of nausea, vomiting, weight loss, loss of appetite or menstrual irregularities. Physical examination and ultrasound pelvis suggested multiple enlarged uterine fibroids. A myomectomy was performed and multiple fibroids were resected weighing 4.5kg. The patient's postoperative evolution was uneventful and she was discharged from the hospital on the fourth postoperative day

Constituents of garlic [allium sativum] and their efficacy in diabetes mellitus

Diabetes affects a large number of populations worldwide and the prevalence of this disease is rapidly increasing

Despite the availability of allopathic medications for diabetes, traditional remedies are desirable and are currently being investigated. Garlic [Allium sativum] has been reported to have antidiabetic activity. Evidences suggest that garlic has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiglycative properties due to which it plays an important role in preventing diabetes progression and the development of diabetes-related complications. Large scale clinical studies with diabetic patients have been carried out to confirm the usefulness of garlic in the treatment and prevention of this disease. This article briefly reviews on the above stated subjected and the papers have been collected from internet resources including Pubmed, American Journal of Medicine, New England Journal of Medicine, Google Scholar and Journal of Medicinal Plant Research