Objective:To assess the Knowledge, Attitude and Practices (KAP) towards diabetes and diabetic retinopathy in the general population of Bin Qasim Town (BQ), Karachi.Methods:An observational, cross-sectional study was approved by Research Ethical Committee of Al-Ibrahim Eye Hospital. It included every third household by stratified sampling in each Union Council of (BQ) Town, in the months of May to July 2013. The interview Questionnaire included 43 questions, of qualitative and quantitative aspects, which were awarded 56 scoring points. SPSS version 20.0 was used to analyze the data.Results: Six hundred ninety two adults one from each household were interviewed. Of the total respondents, 271 (39.2%) had diabetes. Lowest mean knowledge score (5.28 ± 6.09) was seen in illiterate respondents. Male’s Mean Knowledge score (7.61 ± 6.600) was better than female’s (5.46 ± 6.21) with P <0.001. Over all mean score of Attitudes towards diabetes was 5.43 ± 2.57. It was higher (6.62 ± 2.03) in diabetic respondents as compared with non-diabetic respondents (4.70 ± 2.59) with p < 0.000. In Practice module majority of the respondents (69.9%) did not exercise, 49% took high caloric snacks between meals and 87% ate outside home once a month, 56.8% diabetics visited ophthalmologist for routine eye examination; but only 9.2% asked for retinal examination.Conclusion:Lack of knowledge of diabetes was found in the surveyed community, more marked in females, illiterate and the individuals not having diabetes.

Objectives:Primary aim was to review the literature on the prevalence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and Vision threatening diabetic retinopathy (VTDR) in Pakistan.Methods:A search of the bibliographic databases (Medline, Pub med, and Google scholar) was conducted from 1990 to March 2017. Articles about prevalence of DR and VTDR in Pakistan were retrieved and scrutinized. The studies satisfying the inclusion/exclusion criteria were considered for detail review.Results:Forty one articles on prevalence of DR were traced out. Exclusion and inclusion criteria were met in 29 studies. In selected studies (29), pooled Prevalence of DR was found to be 28.78% with a variation of 10.6% to 91.3%. Out of 29 studies, DR was classified in 19 studies. Pooled Prevalence of VTDR in these 19 studies was found to be 28.2% (variation of 4% to 46.3%) of patient with retinopathy and 8.6% of all diabetics.Conclusion:A great variation in the values of DR and VTDR was observed in this study. Researchers suggest a community based study with uniform methodology to find out a comparable value of prevalence of DR and VTDR in all provinces of Pakistan.

Objective:To determine the visual outcome of laser treatment in clinically significant macular edema.Methods:This interventional and qausi experimental study was carried out at Diabetic Association of Pakistan (DAP) during January 2011 and December 2012. Approval was taken from Research Ethical Committee of Isra Postgraduate Institute of Ophthalmology. Records of 925 eyes of 464 patients with “Clinical Significant macular edema” (CSME), treated with laser photocoagulation were analyzed. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) at the time of presentation and at the last follow up, minimum of one year and maximum of 45 months was recorded and compared. SPSS version 20.0 was used to analyze the data.Results:Diabetic retinopathy was found in 20.3% (1777) of 8742 diabetic attending DAP Hospital” amongst whom 39.6% (705) had Sight threatening diabetic retinopathy. Laser was advised in 96.4% (680) individuals, accepted by 70.5% (480) individuals. Amongst 960 eyes of 480 patients who accepted laser, 925 eyes had clinically significant macular edema and 35 eyes had PDR who are not included in this study. Amongst 925 eyes with CSME, Grid laser was done in 913 eyes (99%) and focal laser was done in 12 eyes (1%). After a follow up of 12 to 45 months, it was found that best corrected visual acuity had declined in 2.4% (22) eyes, stabilized in 67% (619) eyes and improved in 30.7% (284) eyes. One line improvement on Snellen’s chart was fond in 21.3% (197) eyes, 2 lines in 8% (74) eyes, 3 lines in 1.2% (12) eyes and 4 lines in one (0.1%) eye with p-value of 0.000.Conclusion:Laser therapy is an effective treatment in stabilizing/improving the vision in diabetic macular edema particularly at those centers where only Argon Laser is available and OCF, FFA facilities do not exist.

Objective: To determine the frequency of color blindness among male professional drivers of Karachi- Pakistan and the difficulties they experience while driving. Study Design and Setting: A cross-sectional study was conducted aomng 300 male drivers with valid driving licenses operating on local and long routes in Karachi. Methodology: The study was done at various locations in the city of Karachi from September to November 2017. The subjects were tested for vision and color blindness with the help of Snellen’s chart and Ishihara chart respectively. A précised questionnaire was developed keeping in view the study objectives. SPSS version 21.0 was used for data entry and its analysis. Each questionnaire was thoroughly studied and seen for missing data or information before entry. A written informed consent about the study was provided to the subjects in the form of a plain language statement attached to the questionnaire. This study was approved by the ethical review board of Karachi Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS). Results: Amongst the 300 participants 7 (2.33 %) of the drivers were found to have complete color blindness while 2 (0.66%) were partially colour blind. They preferred day time driving and experience difficulties in recognizing traffic signals and vehicle lights. Conclusion: The frequency of colour blindness was found to be low but it was observed that colour blind drivers face a lot of difficulties while driving. Therefore, easy and practical changes should be made, like shape-coding of signals, and continuous research-based modifications are required to aid these drivers.

Background and Objective: Pregnant women are the most susceptible group for Iodine deficiency disorder (IDD) whose neonate are at the risk of brain impairment, if they are iodine deficient in utero. The study was carried out to analyze the concerns and effects regarding iodized salt and IDD in women seeking antenatal care in Pakistan Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Obstetrics OPD at Civil Hospital Karachi from April 2017 to January 2018. In this study, antenatal care seeking women (n=360) visiting obstetric outpatient department (OPD) at public sector tertiary care hospital of Karachi were interviewed face to face using a structured questionnaire. Systematic random sampling method was employed. Kruskal Wallis test was applied to assess the significance among study variables. Results: Sixty-three (63.6%) of pregnant women heard about iodized salt. Approximately 40.6% of them received iodized salt related information through mass media. Ninety (90.6%) were ignorant that their unborn child needs iodine for brain development. A statistically significant association was found between the educational status (p<0.001), household income (p<0.001), age (p=0.016), ethnicity (p=0.018), trimester (p=0.005) with the knowledge of study participants regarding iodized salt and IDD. Conclusion: There is an immense need to address the present concerns of women seeking antenatal care by advocacy and health education on individual and at mass level regarding the use of iodized salt among women seeking antenatal care. Advocacy can be done by governmental initiatives, medical personnel and through mass media in all tertiary care hospitals of Pakistan. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.38.8.5220 How to cite this:Shaikh F, Mumtaz SN, Shaikh AA. Concerns of iodized salt and its effects for women seeking antenatal care in Pakistan. Pak J Med Sci. 2022;38(8):---------. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.38.8.5220 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Objective: To identify the health status and well-being of the professional automobile drivers and associated risk factors that affect their health. Study Design and Setting: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 350 professional automobile drivers operating on local and long routes in Karachi, Pakistan Methodology: The study was done at various locations in the city of Karachi from September to November 2017. The subjects were asked for their personal health related complaints and medical illnesses. Further, this research also has the complimentary purpose to measure anxiety and depression among professional drivers. Anxiety was measured using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2 Item Scale (GAD-2) and Patient Health Questionnaire2-Item Depression Module (PHQ- 2) was used to measure, depression. SPSS version 21.0 was used for data entry and its analysis. A written informed consent about the study was provided to the subjects with questionnaire. This study was approved by the Institutional/Ethical review board of Karachi Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS). Results: Amongst the 350 participants 48% were long route and 52% were local route automobile drivers. The result indicate that professional automobile drivers were suffering from backache (56%), Joint pain (36%), Hypertension (44%), Diabetes Mellitus (21%), Anxiety (87%) and Depression (38%). Tobacco addiction was found in (94%) of total respondents. Conclusion: Health status of the professional drivers and their well-being was found unsatisfactory. Multiple factors such as working environment and sociodemographic factors are inevitably linked to their health status and wellbeing

Aim: To assess the concerns of university students regarding COVID-19 lockdown. Methods: A Cross-Sectional online survey was conducted among student population living in different socio-economical areas of Karachi. Information was gathered on their age, gender, education level, occupation status, area of residence, and knowledge about lockdown due to Covid-19. These variables were examined according to the socio-economic status of the area where students reside. Results: A total of 200 subjects above 20 years were interviewed out of which data was analyzed for 160 subjects. The majority of students were between the ages of 20-25 years, females, Muslims, and unemployed. According to 86.9% of students COVID-19 can be prevented by avoiding contact and almost 74.4% students were in favor of lockdown further 37.5% students wanted no gaps between lockdowns. In this study, 31.3% spent time using phones while 15% spent time reading while 22% of the students spent their time in physical activity. Almost 66.3% of students did not develop any psychological problems. About 77.5% did not face any financial problems. Conclusion: Most of the respondents were in favor of lockdown as COVID-19 spread can be prevented by avoiding contact. Study highlighted COVID-19 lockdown had no effect on mental health of the respondents. This study will help in creating awareness regarding lockdown. It will enlighten new arenas for public health experts and stakeholders to develop new strategies, and interventions and predict a preparedness program plan for future Pandemic. Keywords: Covid-19, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Lockdown, Karachi

Aim: To assess the concerns of university students regarding COVID-19 lockdown. Methods: A Cross-Sectional online survey was conducted among student population living in different socio-economical areas of Karachi. Information was gathered on their age, gender, education level, occupation status, area of residence, and knowledge about lockdown due to Covid-19. These variables were examined according to the socio-economic status of the area where students reside. Results: A total of 200 subjects above 20 years were interviewed out of which data was analyzed for 160 subjects. The majority of students were between the ages of 20-25 years, females, Muslims, and unemployed. According to 86.9% of students COVID-19 can be prevented by avoiding contact and almost 74.4% students were in favor of lockdown further 37.5% students wanted no gaps between lockdowns. In this study, 31.3% spent time using phones while 15% spent time reading while 22% of the students spent their time in physical activity. Almost 66.3% of students did not develop any psychological problems. About 77.5% did not face any financial problems. Conclusion: Most of the respondents were in favor of lockdown as COVID-19 spread can be prevented by avoiding contact. Study highlighted COVID-19 lockdown had no effect on mental health of the respondents. This study will help in creating awareness regarding lockdown. It will enlighten new arenas for public health experts and stakeholders to develop new strategies, and interventions and predict a preparedness program plan for future Pandemic. Keywords: Covid-19, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Lockdown, Karachi