Overseas Pakistanis seeking medical education in Pakistan

Background: Pakistanis migrated to western countries face difficulty in letting their children get higher education from abroad. It has been observed that many overseas Pakistanis feel secured to send their children to Pakistan to acquire higher education. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the reasons for overseas Pakistani students seeking medical education in Pakistan. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from October 2010 to May 2011 recruiting overseas Pakistani students studying in different medical colleges of Sindh, Pakistan. Cluster of 8 medical colleges were selected and a convenient sample [n=700] was recruited. Of the 700 administered questionnaires, 530 [76%] were returned and 25 were incomplete and therefore, rejected. A total of 505 [72%] were included in the analysis. Results: A statistical significance was found when origin of students was compared with the economic aspect of medical education in Pakistan [p=0.01]. Overall 71% students agreed that the cost of medical education in Pakistan is much less then their respective countries of origin. Another highly significant difference was observed [p<0.001] between student's origin and their reasons behind taking medicine as a career. Conclusion: The study establishes that Pakistan as a country offers quality medical education in minimum possible costs and more foreign students can pursue medical education in Pakistan

Sebaceous cell carcinoma of scalp – A rare presentation

Sebaceous cell carcinoma of the skin is a rare malignancy of the skin appendages. Most commonly noticed in the orbital region. Extra orbital sebaceous cell carcinoma is extremely rare. The aggressive behavior of this tumor is still a matter of controversy. We present a case of sebaceous cell carcinoma in scalp region in young women.

Clinical pattern of heart diseases in children

This study was done to determine various causes and clinical presentation of heart disease in children. It was a prospective hospital based study conducted in Department of Paediatrics Civil Hospital, Karachi from August 1995 to February 1996. In this study, 70 patients of heart disease upto 12 years of age were inducted. There were 33 [47.14%] cases of congenital heart diseases and 37 [52.85%] cases of acquired heart diseases. The age distribution showed that heart disease was more frequent between 0-11 months of age [41.42%]. Congenital heart diseases were also frequent between 0-11 months [28.57%]. On the other hand acquired heart diseases were more common between 6-12 years [22.85%]. In this study the males were predominantly involved, the male to female ratio was 1.05:1. In congenital heart diseases it was 1.3:1 and in acquired heart diseases it was 0.85:1. Ventricular septal defect was the commonest congenital lesion reported [20%]. Rheumatic fever and viral myocarditis were two frequently occurring acquired heartdiseases 17.14% each. The common presentation of heart diseases were respiratory distress [94.28%], fever [90%], feeding difficulty [57.14%] and failure to thrive [34.28%]. In case of rheumatic fever, chorea was present in 8.57%, arthritis in 11.42% and S/C nodules [2.85%] cases respectively. The early management of the problem may help in decreasing morbidity and mortality due to these diseases in children. Prenatal detection of congenital cardiac lesions by fetal echocardiography in high risk pregnancies,early intervention in neonatal period and counselling of the parents may help in prevention of congenital heart diseases in children. Primary prevention of rheumatic fever can be achieved by early diagnosis and treatment of streptococcal throat infection

Helicobacter pylori - A correlation between symptomatology and endoscopy in children

Helicobacter pylori is a well known cause of peptic ulcer disease in adults, but its role in gastrointestinal diseases in children is not fully established. This is a retrospective study conducted in the Department of Pediatrics, Civil Hospital, Karachi from February 1995 to February 1997. The endoscopies record was reviewed to find out the correlation between symptomatology and endoscopic findings of 70 children tested for presence of H. pylori by urease, histopathology and/or culture of biopsy specimens. Among these children, 29 were found to be positive for H. pylori. The most frequent symptoms found in these children were, pain in epigastrium [17], followed by vomiting [10] and heartburn [9]. Other symptoms observed were, abdominal distention [3] hemetamesis [4] malena [2], diarrhea [2] and failure to thrive [1] children. Abnormal findings on endoscopy were found in 19 children: These included duodenal ulcer in majority of children 11[57%], gastritis in 3, gastric ulcer, duodenitis and gastric erosions were present in 2 children each. It was concluded that a significant correlation exists between symptomatology and endoscopy finding in peptic ulcer disease of Helicobacter pylori positive children