Sociocultural influences on newborn health in the first 6 weeks of life: qualitative study in a fishing village in Karachi, Pakistan.

Background: Given regional variability and minimal improvement in infant mortality rates in Pakistan, this study aimed to explicate sociocultural influences impacting mothers' efforts to maintain or improve newborn health.

Methods: We used a qualitative phenomenological approach. A total of 10 mothers and 8 fathers from a fishing village in Karachi, Pakistan were purposefully sampled and interviewed individually.

Media created violence: a social determinant of mental health.

In today's high technological world, scientific discoveries contribute remarkable development to human life, but it could also have an adverse impact on mankind. Among all these advancements, media is one of the inventions which aims at capturing a countless group of viewers and transmit information via various mediums. Media violence is considered one of the hampering determinants which harms an individual psychologically.

Ray of hope: opportunities for reducing unsafe abortions!

Unsafe abortion is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality and morbidity which impede the nation in achieving the targets of MDG 5. In the developing world, it is estimated that 13% of all maternal deaths are due to unsafe abortions. Despite having certain liberty in the law and religion, Pakistan has a relatively high prevalence of unsafe abortion.

Women trafficking: causes, concerns, care!

Pakistan is both a country of origin and destination as far as women trafficking is concerned. Poverty, gender discrimination, lack of education, and ignorance about legal rights are some of the underlying causes. Available data suggest several areas of concern, like, for instance: direct health effects, maladaptive coping leading to the use of illicit drugs, and inaccessibility to healthcare facilities.

Myths and fallacies about male contraceptive methods: a qualitative study amongst married youth in slums of Karachi, Pakistan.

Pakistan presently has one of the largest cohorts of young people in its history, with around 36 million people between the ages of 15 and 24 years. One of the main reasons for high population growth in Pakistan is almost stagnant contraceptive prevalence rate of 30% nationally and 17.4% amongst youth.

The association between parity, infant gender, higher level of paternal education and preterm birth in Pakistan: a cohort study.

Background: High rates of antenatal depression and preterm birth have been reported in Pakistan. Self reported maternal stress and depression have been associated with preterm birth; however findings are inconsistent. Cortisol is a biological marker of stress and depression, and its measurement may assist in understanding the influence of self reported maternal stress and depression on preterm birth.