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Background: Poison is defined as any substance that harms, endangers, or even kills a person irrespective of the quality or quantity. Pakistan is a developing country and farming is the major occupation of most of the population. Due to the easy availability and increased use of pesticides, accidental and suicidal poisoning is very common. The objective of the study is to find out the most common poison used by people in the general population and its frequency in our setup. Methods: Casualty Department of the Ayub Teaching Hospital in Abbottabad, served as the site of this retrospective investigation. Registrations between January 1st and December 31st, 2023, provided the data. All cases with a history of poisoning were included. Using SPSS 22, the data was analyzed. Sample was limited to those who were admitted when they were still alive. Ethical permission was taken from hospital administration. Results: The study revealed that poisoning was more common among females and the most common age group affected was 16-22years. 57.8% (52) cases were of suicidal intent while 40% (36) were accidental. Conclusion: Female and young people are more prone to Aluminium Phosphide (wheat pill) poison. It is a dangerous and lethal poison, so healthcare workers at emergency department ought to be prepared for such cases. Furthermore, its routine use as a domestic pesticide has to be strictly prohibited by creating awareness among the public. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among all types of cancers, non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) exhibits the highest mortality rate with a five‐year survival rate below 17% for patients. The Buzhong Yiqi decoction (BZYQD), traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula, has been reported to exhibit clinical efficacy in the treatment of NSCLC. Nevertheless, the underlying molecular mechanism remains elusive. This study aimed to assess the mechanistic actions exerted by BZYQD against NSCLC using network pharmacological analysis and experimental validation. The public databases were searched for active compounds in BZYQD, their potential targets, and NSCLC‐related targets. The protein–protein interaction (PPI) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses were performed to predict the core targets and signaling pathways of BZYQD against NSCLC. After screening, this study validated the results of predictions through in vitro experiments and public databases. We found 192 common targets between BZYQD and NSCLC. KEGG analysis showed that the anti‐NSCLC effects of BZYQD were mediated through the PI3K‐AKT signaling pathway. The results of in vitro experiment indicated that BZYQD could inhibit cell viability and proliferation of A549 and H1299 cells apart from inducing cell apoptosis. In addition, western blot results substantiated that BZYQD could treat NSCLC by inhibiting the activation of the PI3K‐AKT signaling pathway. The current study investigated the pharmacological mechanism of BZYQD against NSCLC via network pharmacology and in vitro analyses. Overall, the results revealed that BZYQD could be a promising therapeutic agent for the treatment of NSCLC in the future. Still, more experimental investigations are needed to confirm the applicability of BZYQD for clinical trials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human rights contribute to peaceful coexistence among citizens, which leads to societal and national progress as well. The present research focused on the analysis of the human rights teaching practices at higher education level in Pakistan. Fifteen (15) heads of departments, 61 teachers, and 419 students of BS programs were selected as a sample from four departments of four public universities of the Punjab (Pakistan). Human Rights (HRs) was considered as an aggregate of nine values; which were here rearranged in descending order of their rank as per their prevalence in teaching practices of the sampled teachers - truth, integrity, respect for human dignity, freedom and responsibility, equality and justice, acceptance/appreciation of diversity, co-operation, accountability, and honesty. 'Truth' was the most focused value, and 'honesty' was the least. Human Rights Values (HRVs) were being taught less than that of the expectations of the students and teachers. Therefore, HRVs should be taught to the university students more frequently. Keeping in view greater importance of civic engagement and citizenship, Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC) can offer a distinct course regarding Human Rights Education in its guiding principles for universities in its sponsorships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: to evaluate management outcomes of post-sternotomy wounds. Study Design: Retrospective longitudinal study. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Plastic Surgery, Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad Pakistan, from Jan 2020 to Dec 2021. Methodology: We reviewed 35 patients who had developed sternal wound infections post-cardiothoracic surgery. Outcomes of the study were measured using the SF-36 Quality of Life questionnaire. Results: Our patients presented with either Pairolero Type-II 11(31.4%) or Type-III 19(54.2%) sternal wound infection. Pre-operatively patients scored 296.667±69.40 in physical functional, 100.00±30.51 in limitations due to physical health, 16.67±37.90 in role limitation due to emotional problems, energy/fatigue scored 43.53±23.70, emotional well-being 163.33±23.54, social functioning as 11.40±11.66, pain score 31.25±19.90 and general health 131.67±35.31. The improvement in scores was noted in all domains postoperatively. Physical functioning mean scored as 790.00±48.07, role limitations due to physical health scored as 310.34±67.32, role limitations due to emotional problems scored as 266.67±47.94, energy/fatigue 284.67±18.71, emotional wellbeing 448.67±18.71, social functioning 185.83±12.60, pain score 164.17±22.01 and general health 316.67±34.95. Thirty-four (97.1%) out of 35 patients recovered well postoperative, with a maximum follow-up of 4 years and a minimum follow-up of 1 year. One patient expired on the sixth day of muscle flap coverage of the wound due to cardiac arrest. Conclusion: A positive prognosis can be obtained by this treatment protocol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate the outcomes following vaginoplasty by pudendal thigh flap. Study Design: Retrospective longitudinal study. Place and Duration of the Study: Plastic surgery Department, Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad Pakistan, from Jan 2010 to Dec 2021. Methodology: Vaginal reconstruction was done using bilateral pudendal thigh flap in 20 patients with vaginal defects during eleven years, 2010-2021. Results: All patients were adults with an age range from 18 to 41 years. Five were married, and 15 were unmarried patients at the time of surgery. Out of the 20 patients, 10(50%) were diagnosed with Mayer Rokitansky Kuster Hauser syndrome, 9(45%) with isolated vaginal atresia and 1(5%) with s/p resection angiosarcoma. The mean vaginal length was 9.0±0.46cm, one year post-operatively. Two patients (10%) developed necrosis of the distal part of the unilateral flap followed by infection, which was managed conservatively, and the other was managed with the McIndoe technique. One patient developed a cutaneous fistula which was excised. All flaps survived completely in the rest of the 19(95%) patients. Conclusion: Vaginoplasty using pudendal thigh flap was a safe and reliable method for vaginal reconstruction and showed adequate functional and aesthetic results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: In older times the prominence of females in medication was high when there was a concept of saint and goddess who used to treat patients. Women were playing an important role and treatment of patient in Greek human advancement, performing medical procedures and were occupied in dealing with patients, with the passage of time it is observed that there is a scarcity of role of female population in adopting Orthopaedics Surgery as their carrier. Between 1800 and 1900 surgery became more defined and started introducing sub-specialties in surgical field. After 1900 despite resistance, women continued to infiltrate in the field of medicine and surgery. After these dramatic changes the ratio of females in medical education increased day by day, now it reached up to almost half of total medical students. Inspite of women account for approximately 50% of the medical students in the United States, only 13% females are orthopedic surgeons and 4% are fellows of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Material and Methods: We reviewed several articles in which surveys are done on the basis of questions that why the females are not choosing orthopedic surgery as their carrier. What are the problems facing them to pursue their career? What are the further professional choices in this field and how do we encourage other female student for pursuing the career. Results: The most common reasons for having chosen orthopaedic surgery were enjoyment of manual tasks 71%, professional satisfaction 54%, and intellectual stimulation 53%. The most common reasons indicated for why women might not pursue this career included inability to have a good work, life balance 78%, perception of too much physical strength is required 74%, and lack of strong mentorship in medical school 69%. Conclusion: We conclude that the reasons why women do not pursue this career. The reasons included inability to have a good work, life balance, perception of too much physical strength is required and lack of strong mentorship in medical school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

31P NMR spectroscopy is a consolidated tool for the characterization of organophosphorus compounds and, more recently, for reaction monitoring. The evolution of organic synthesis, mainly due to the combination of elaborated building blocks with enabling technologies, generated great challenges to understand and to optimize the synthetic methodologies. In this sense, 31P NMR experiments also became a routine technique for reaction monitoring, accessing products and side products yields, chiral recognition, kinetic data, intermediates, as well as basic organic parameters, such as acid‐base and hydrogen‐bonding. This review deals with these aspects demonstrating the essential role of the 31P NMR spectroscopy. The recent publications (the last ten years) will be explored, discussing the experiments of 31P NMR and the strategies accomplished to detect and/or quantify distinct organophosphorus molecules, approaching reaction mechanism, stability, stereochemistry, and the utility as a probe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chalcone represents a vital biosynthetic scaffold owing to its numerous therapeutic effects. The present study was intended to synthesize 17 chalcone derivatives ( 3a - q ) by direct coupling of substituted acetophenones and benzaldehyde. The target chalcones were characterized by spectroscopic analyses followed by their in vitro antimicrobial, and antileishmanial investigations with reference to standard drugs. The majority of the chalcones displayed good to excellent biological activities. Chalcone 3q (1000 µg ml -1 ) exhibited the most potent antibacterial effect with its zone of inhibition values of 30, 33 and 34 mm versus Staphylococcus aureus , Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa respectively. The results also confirmed chalcone 3q to be the most potent versus Leishmania major with the lowest IC 50 value of 0.59 ± 0.12 µg ml -1 . Chalcone 3i (500 µg ml -1 ) was noticed to be the most potent antifungal agent with its zone of inhibition being 29 mm against Candida albicans . Computational studies of chalcones 3i and 3q supported the preliminary in vivo results. The existence of the amino moiety and bromine atom on ring-A and methoxy moieties on ring-B caused better biological effects of the chalcones. In brief, the investigations reveal that chalcones ( 3i and 3q ) can be employed as building blocks to discover novel antimicrobial agents., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2024 The Authors.)