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Introduction: Despite a recent increase in the representation of female authors in scientific literature, a significant gap persists concerning the inclusion of women in research. This necessitates the analysis of published literature from a gender perspective. This study aimed to provide gender distribution in authorship in the 100 most-cited articles on food-borne pathogen outbreaks from 1990 to 2020. Methods: Bibliometric analysis was conducted using the Scopus database. Two reviewers were selected to search the database. We included the 100 most-cited articles on foodborne outbreak investigations. The analysis was conducted using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 and Microsoft Excel version 2016. The citation data, including total citations, citations per year, and representation of women as first and senior authors, was analyzed in terms of frequencies, mean, median, and interquartile range. The correlation between journal impact factor and the representation of women in high-impact factor journals was determined. A p-value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results: Most of the top-cited articles were published between 2001 and 2010 (n=47). The top 3 most-cited articles were from the USA. Of the total 100 articles, women were the first and last authors in 46% and 28% of the articles, respectively, reflecting a significant gender gap. However, the proportion of females as principal investigators gradually increased from 25% (n=10/30) to 52% (n=24/47) during the period 2001-2010 and to 92% (n=12/13) during 2011-2020. The USA had the highest number of included articles (n=48), and women were principal authors in 56% (n=27) of them. The lowest representation of women was observed in Austria, Denmark, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. Conclusion: Women are under-represented in published literature on food-borne pathogen outbreaks. Although the representation of women as principal authors has recently increased, disparities still exist at the senior-author level, calling for women's advancement in academic science.
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Introduction Spinal cord injury (SCI) can lead to severe disability and neurogenic shock, arrhythmias, autonomic dysfunction, pressure ulcers, etc., of the autonomic nervous system. Therefore, in these patients, cardiovascular problems should be investigated frequently. This study was conducted to evaluate the electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities in patients with spinal cord injury having inappropriate lipid profiles and their relationship with each other. Materials and methods This cross-sectional study was held in the Internal Medicine Department of Mayo Hospital, Lahore, for a one-year duration from May 2020 to May 2021. It included 58 patients with spinal cord injury, 35 of whom had paraplegia, and 23 had tetraplegia. Fasting blood samples were taken for lipid profile analysis. Twelve-lead ECGs three times a day for one month were taken and analyzed in the context of previously available ECGs. Results Out of 58, the lipid profiles were found abnormal in 47 patients, 18 of whom had a normal ECG. The lipid profile was normal in 12, of which only one patient had ECG abnormalities. Cholesterol levels were found normal in 39 patients and deranged in 19 patients; low-density lipoproteins in nine patients, triglycerides in 18 patients, and high-density lipoprotein values in one patient were abnormal. Conclusions Sinus bradycardia was the most common ECG abnormality found in SCI patients with deranged lipid profiles. Further studies are needed in the future to validate the findings of this study.
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Background Malnutrition is a significant public health concern and a leading contributor to the global burden of children's diseases, affecting 50 to 150 million children under the age of five years worldwide. Globally, undernutrition accounts for approximately 33% of the deaths among under-fives. South Asia alone contributes to 50% and 38.8% of the world's population of wasted and stunted children, respectively. In Pakistan, malnutrition is the leading cause of childhood mortality, accounting for nearly 35% of all deaths under five years of age. Severe acute malnutrition (SAM), the most severe form of malnutrition, is often associated with electrolyte imbalances. This study aimed to determine the frequency of electrolyte imbalance in children with SAM admitted at a tertiary care hospital. Methods This cross-sectional study includes 184 patients with SAM aged between 6 and 60 months, who were admitted at the inpatient Department of Pediatrics, Dr. Ruth K. M. Pfau, Civil Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan, from January 17, 2017 to July 16, 2017. Weight and length/height were measured, and weight-for-height was calculated. Children were labeled to have SAM when weight-for-height was below -3 standard deviation (SD). Blood samples for serum electrolytes were drawn and sent to the lab. Descriptive statistics were calculated, and stratification was performed using the chi-square test. A p-value of ≤0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results The mean age of participants was 22.63 ± 12.71 months. Of the 184 patients with SAM, 172 (93.5%) patients had electrolyte imbalance. Hypokalemia was present in 79.9%, whereas hypocalcemia, hyponatremia, and hypomagnesemia were present in 71.7%, 48.9%, and 13.6%, respectively. Post-stratification results showed a significant association of electrolyte imbalance with gender (p = 0.005) and educational status of parents (p = 0.001). Conclusions Electrolyte disturbances are common in SAM. Serum electrolytes of every malnourished child admitted should be assessed and corrected to avoid fatal outcomes. We suggest that more research with better study designs should be conducted to develop policies and strategies for successfully combating malnutrition in Pakistan. In the meantime, we recommend adopting national guidelines for the management of acute malnutrition to reduce morbidity and mortality.
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Amoebiasis is a common infection widely prevalent in tropical countries with low income and poor sanitation. The clinical picture is usually nonspecific; however, invasion of the liver by Entamoeba histolytica could lead to an amoebic liver abscess (ALA). It is relatively uncommon in women and children. Though rare, extension of ALA into the lungs, pleural cavity, and pericardium may prove fatal. Pericardial amoebiasis is a rare complication which, if not treated early, could result in cardiac tamponade and subsequent death. The standard management option is eradication with metronidazole along with the drainage of fluid from the liver abscess and pericardial effusion. Herein, we present a case of a seven-year-old male child with ALA, who developed signs and symptoms suggesting pericardial effusion within a few days of hospital admission. Early diagnosis of pericardial complication and successful management of abscess resolved the pericardial effusion.
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Von Gierke's disease, also known as glycogen storage disease (GSD) type 1A, is an autosomal recessive disease in which there is an inability to cleave glycogen to glucose because of a glucose 6 phosphate deficiency resulting in hypoglycemia and lactic acidosis. The patient may present with hepatomegaly and signs and symptoms of hypoglycemia. We diagnosed a case of Von Gierke's disease in a seven-month-old female infant who was admitted for abdominal distension, vomiting, and lethargy for a duration of four months with characteristic rounded doll's face, fatty cheeks, protuberant abdomen, and massive hepatomegaly. Lab investigations showed low hemoglobin, low blood sugar level, lactic acidosis, hyperlipidemia, hyperuricemia, mild elevation of liver enzymes, and high anion gap metabolic acidosis. The diagnosis was confirmed with a liver biopsy and dietary treatment was started. This case report highlights the value of dietary therapy in improving the quality of life and survival and minimizing complications.
