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Objective: To evaluate the frequency and severity of conductive hearing loss in patients with nasopharyngeal obstruction, admitted in tertiary care setup of Karachi. Methods: It was a descriptive cross-sectional type of study. The study was conducted in the department of otorhinolaryngology and head and neck surgery Dr. Ruth K. M. Pfau, Civil Hospital, Karachi. The study continued for 6 months from September 8th, 2021, to March 8th 2022. Both males and females were included in the study, with ages ranging between 15 and 40 years. The data was collected using a questionnaire. Questions were asked to all the patients with nasal/nasopharyngeal obstructive pathologies who were admitted in the ENT ward for different managements, including their gender, age, cause and duration of nasal/ nasopharyngeal obstruction. Assessment of degree and type of hearing loss was done using Pure Tone Audiogram (PTA). Data analysis done using SPSS version 23. Results: - The patients' average age was 28.23 ± 8.23 years. All patients with nasopharyngeal blockage suffered from conductive hearing loss (100%). The degree of conductive hearing loss in patients with nasopharyngeal blockage was mild loss in 51 (52.58%), moderate loss in 36 (37.11%), moderately severe loss in 9 (9.28%), and severe loss in one (1.03%). Conclusion: This study suggests that there is a strong link between obstructive nasal and/or nasopharyngeal lesions and conductive hearing loss. If the study could be conducted on a larger scale, the role of eustachian tube obstruction in the formation and disease course of otitis media would become clearer, and its management would be more beneficial in the treatment of otitis media. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper gives the estimation of the bacterial density in the Karachi Harbour region. The study was conducted recently to determine the coliform pollution level of waters in the Karachi harbour. Twenty one stations were selected, analysis was conducted for pH, temperature, salinity, Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and turbidity. The bacteriological quality was monitored by using Total Coliform Count (TCC) and Total Faecal Coliform (TFC). The excessive level of faecal indicators noticed in the harbour waters showed high contamination by indiscriminate discharge of crudely treated and non-treated wastewater of domestic and industrial origin. The flora and fauna is on threat by the faecal pollution, ultimately affecting the human health and economic situation. By proper resource management the grave marine pollution can be harnessed by implementation of stringent policies. The higher dilution rate in the offshore waters of Karachi can help to dilute and disperse sewage quickly and semidiurnal tidal behaviour transports the diluted sewage water to open sea without harming the coastal community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deterioration of Karachi coast and the marine environment near to it cannot be ignored. Effluents from industries and untreated sewage discharge into the coastal waters through Malir and LyariRivers and this ultimately have a negative impact on marine life and also to human health. The toxicants present in the industrial wastewater play a vital role in declining the marine population and also cause contamination. The knowledge of flushing and residence times of estuaries and creeks is very important. However, the estimated flushing time by using the freshwater fraction method ranges 15-20 days at both sites. The freshwater fraction method is considered to be a reasonable estimation method as in this method salinity variation in the estuary and open sea are also incorporated in the calculation. Discharging the effluents in the estuary results the destruction of the ecosystem of the area. Thus the discharge of polluted water directly in the deep offshore water certainly improves the quality of life in the coastal areas. Therefore, submarine outfall construction is an effective way to discharge the sewage far away from the coast where diffusion, dispersion and dilution are enhanced. This paper deals with the estimation of flushing time scales and marine environmental parameters in the offshore waters of HawkesBay and Gizri creek/DHA coastlines. The outfall model, DESCAR, is used to determine the spreading and dilution of pollutants under different oceanographic and meteorological forcing. The other outfall parameters such as Initial dilution and Froude numbers and return back travel time are also estimated by using USEPA spread sheet and the ocean-atmosphere archived data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To assess the diagnostic yield of FNAC in patients presenting with cold thyroid nodules and to identify features that might be useful for making practical decisions about their management. Study Design: Retrospective, descriptive. Place and Duration of Study: Department of Ear, Nose, Throat, Head & Neck Surgery, Dow University of Health Sciences and Civil Hospital Karachi during 2008 to 2010. Subjects and Methods: Total of 90 cases who presented with thyroid nodule in out patient department was included in this study. Out of 90 cases, 30 were excluded from the study either because histopathological confirmation could not be obtained or the aspirate sent for cytopathological study was unsatisfactory for diagnosis. Remaining 60 cases were included in this study. These cases were subjected to radio-isotope scanning and FNAC was performed on those showing cold nodules. The yield of FNAC was later correlated with the histopathological reports of the excised thyroid specimens. Results: Out of 60 cases included in the study 08(13.3%) were males and 52(86.6%) were females. The cases were divided into 6 groups according to age with peak incidence in Group II comprising 33.3% and least incidence in Group VI comprising 3% of the subjects. The accuracy of FNAC was determined as a percentage of correct diagnosis made by this technique compared to the final diagnosis established on histopathology report. In this study accuracy of FNAC was found to be 96.6%. Sensitivity was 91.6% and specificity was 81.6%. Conclusion: FNAC of thyroid nodule is sensitive, specific, accurate, rapid, minimally invasive and cost effective. It is the first line procedure in the evaluation of thyroid nodules. FNAC sample results accurately predict the diagnosis and are suggestive of appropriate treatment in most cases. However, atypical FNAC results need to be considered in combination with clinical presentation, imaging data and individual patient risk factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective The purpose of this study was to find the relationship between weather conditions (temperature, humidity, and precipitation) and frequency of occurrence of dengue fever in Karachi from 2005 through 2009. Methodology This descriptive epidemiological study was conducted from April to June 2010. Weather data of Karachi (temperature, humidity, precipitation) from 2005 to 2009 was obtained from Pakistan Meteorological Department, Karachi, whereas dengue fever patients' data was collected from Provincial Dengue Fever Surveillance Cell, Ministry of Health, Government of Sindh. Correlation between occurrences of cases of dengue fever during understudy 5 years with variations in weather conditions was analyzed to find any relationship. Results A significant relationship existed between weather and frequency of dengue fever. There were 77% cases of dengue fever occurring in September-November period when humidity is around 80% and temperature 30-32°C. Preceding months of July and August are usual recipient of monsoon rains. Conclusion The ambient temperature, humidity and breeding areas post monsoon results in increased mosquito activity with consequential higher incidence of dengue cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the analysis of the extreme sea level was carried out by using 10 years (2007–2016) of hourly tide gauge data of Karachi port station along the Pakistan coast. Observations revealed that the magnitudes of the tides usually exceeded the storm surges at this station. The main observation for this duration and the subsequent analysis showed that in June 2007 a tropical Cyclone "Yemyin" hit the Pakistan coast. The joint probability method (JPM) and the annual maximum method (AMM) were used for statistical analysis to find out the return periods of different extreme sea levels. According to the achieved results, the AMM and JPM methods erre compatible with each other for the Karachi coast and remained well within the range of 95% confidence. For the JPM method, the highest astronomical tide (HAT) of the Karachi coast was considered as the threshold and the sea levels above it were considered extreme sea levels. The 10 annual observed sea level maxima, in the recent past, showed an increasing trend for extreme sea levels. In the study period, the increment rates of 3.6 mm/year and 2.1 mm/year were observed for mean sea level and extreme sea level, respectively, along the Karachi coast. Tidal analysis, for the Karachi tide gauge data, showed less dependency of the extreme sea levels on the non-tidal residuals. By applying the Merrifield criteria of mean annual maximum water level ratio, it was found that the Karachi coast was tidally dominated and the non-tidal residual contribution was just 10%. The examination of the highest water level event (13 June 2014) during the study period, further favored the tidal dominance as compared to the non-tidal component along the Karachi coast. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]