This Regular Feature explores the role of health science librarians in the coronavirus pandemic. COVID-19 has spread rapidly all over the world. All major cities around the globe are in lockdown. In Pakistan, the first case was diagnosed on 26 February 2020, and currently, there are more than 2039 diagnosed cases and 26 deaths as on 31 March 2020. Across the country, there are further 12 000 suspected cases. This will undoubtedly increase if precautionary measures are not taken. Pakistani universities, colleges and schools were in lockdown. The role of university librarians in this emergency included raising awareness through public health education, providing support to medical staff, researchers and providing ongoing traditional services to regular library patrons in Pakistan. The Regular Feature also provides links to useful resources.JM.

Objective: to assess the frequency of De Quervain's tenosynovitis and its association with SMS texting. Method: a cross-sectional survey was conducted among undergraduate students studying in different physical therapy schools of Karachi belonging to both public and private sectors. Sample size was 300 students which were selected through convenience sampling. Data was collected through self-administered questionnaire and severity of the pain was assessed through Universal Pain Assessment Tool and De Quervain's tenosynovitis was diagnosed through Finkelstein test. Data entry and analysis were done using computer software SPSS version 20. Frequency and percentages were taken for categorical variable. Chi-square was applied to determine association between different variables and Finkelstein test. P value < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: male/female ratio was 1:4. Regarding the use of cell phones, majority 165 (55%) were using regular cell phones, another 89 (30%) were using touch screen and 38 (13%) were using QWERTY key pads. Almost half of the students were frequently using cell phones for texting, out of them 132 (44%) texted less than 50 messages per day. Another 96 (32%) did texting between 50-100 texts. Out of 300 students who filled the questionnaire 125 (42%) students were experiencing pain in the thumb/wrist. Finkelstein test when done on students almost half (n=149) showed positive results. It was noted that as frequency of mobile phone usage increased progressively more and more people showed positive Finkelstein Test (p value 0.000). Conclusion: the result of the study concluded that almost half of the students use their mobile phones for texting more than 50 S.M.S per day and because of their mobile key pads and high speed of texting they experienced pain and weakness over the base of the thumb/wrist which shows the De Quervain's positive in that students and there is a positive association between the thumb pain and frequent text messaging.

The main purpose of this paper is to highlight the important information sources of the Public Health awareness used by the library and information sources in this Pandemic situation. Social distancing phase Information professional used a different medium to connect with their patron and try to serve the best manner. The role of the information professional in health information and health literacy is very vital. Information professional public health awareness information with the library patrons and the general public. In this paper, the researchers provide a brief introduction to different information channel support in information dissemination.

Purpose. To determine the diagnostic accuracy of contrast enhanced FLAIR sequence of MRI brain in the diagnosis of meningitis. Subjects and Methods. A prospective study of 57 patients with signs and symptoms of meningitis, referred to the radiology department for MRI examination. Out of these, there were 30 males and 27 females. They underwent MRI brain with contrast including postcontrast T1W and FLAIR sequences. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis obtained by lumbar puncture after MRI was considered the “reference standard” against which MRI findings were compared. Results. Of 57 patients, 50 were diagnosed as having meningitis on subsequent CSF analysis. Out of these 50, 49 were positive on postcontrast FLAIR images and 34 were positive on postcontrast T1W images. One patient was labeled false positive as CSF analysis showed malignant cells (leptomeningeal carcinomatosis). In the diagnosis of meningitis, the sensitivity of postcontrast FLAIR sequence was 96% and specificity 85.71%, whereas the sensitivity of postcontrast T1W sequence was 68% and specificity 85.71%. Conclusion. Contrast-enhanced FLAIR sequence is more sensitive and specific than contrast-enhanced T1W sequence in the diagnosis of meningitis. It should be routinely used in suspected cases of meningitis.

The main purpose of this paper is to assess and examine the possible application of Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in Pakistani academic libraries, particularly those areas of library technical and library user services where AI could be applied in the near future. A secondary purpose is to bring the library perspective on AI to the forefront of the scholarly world. This is a self-exploratory study, in which a qualitative approach interview has been conducted with 10 chief librarians/library heads (5 public + 5 private sectors) from universities regarding their views on the adoption of artificial intelligence tools in Pakistani academic libraries. Results are tabulated in a descriptive format. Librarians are aware of AI technologies. Services based on Natural Language Processing (NLP) are used in libraries, e.g. Google Assistant, Voice Searching, and Google Translate. Pattern recognition methods, such as text data mining, are also used to retrieve library material and conduct online searching. Big data is accessed via services such as cloud computing, OneDrive, and Google Drive. There is a very low level of awareness of robotics and chatbots. This study provides librarians with suggestions as to how AI tools could be used in libraries which either have yet to adopt AI technologies or wish to implement more advanced tools. Pakistani library schools could collaborate with computer science departments to establish AI Labs in the respective library and information science (LIS) departments/libraries. AI challenges funding and technological skills are the key problem to implement with AI in the University Libraries.

The last decade has seen the emergence of academic social networking sites as a vehicle for scholars to promote their research and communicate with other scholars in their field. Given the small number of studies on the use of such sites by Pakistani academics, the authors conducted an exploratory study of social science faculty members at five Karachi (Pakistan) public sector universities. Analysis of the 68 valid responses revealed that the primary reason for accessing an academic social networking site was to search for articles on the site. Results also showed that accruing citations was the main reason for which respondents uploaded their own publications. The findings validate a role for librarians to support academics in their creation of effective online academic profiles.

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Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to analyse the research performance of Pakistani library and information science (LIS) scholars, using the altmetrics provided by ResearchGate. Design/methodology/approach-Purposive sampling was used to collect profiles between 15 January 2015 and 30 April 2016 of all members of ResearchGate who had self-identified as an LIS scholar of Pakistani nationality. Additional demographic data was obtained through a small survey administered via Google Docs. Resultant data was analysed in SPSS version 21. Findings-Study results were broadly consistent in terms of demographical data with previous studies of this cohort. There was a positive correlation between publications, reads and citations for scholars who had recorded at least one publication. The majority of publications had not been published in a high impact factor journal. Academic networking site profiles create the potential for collaboration, building connections, and exchanging information. Research limitations/implications-Some scholars eliminated from this study may have published at least one output but neglected to upload details to ResearchGate. It is a purposive, exploratory study that provides insights into future research. Practical implications-The paper produces findings of relevance to researchers in other countries and / or disciplines who may wish to conduct a similar study of a defined cohort. Originality/value-There have been no previous published research studies on altmetrics associated with Pakistani LIS scholars.