Self-Diagnosis of Surgical Site Infections: Lessons from a tertiary care centre in Karachi, Pakistan.

Background And Objective: Surgical site infections (SSIs) usually manifest post-discharge, rendering accurate diagnosis and treatment challenging, thereby catalyzing the development of alternate strategies like self-monitored SSI surveillance. This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of patients and Infection Control Monitors (ICMs) to develop a replicable method of SSI-detection.

Methods: A two-year prospective diagnostic accuracy study was conducted in Karachi, Pakistan between 2015 and 2017.

Outcomes following cardiopulmonary resuscitation in an emergency department of a low- and middle-income country.

Background: Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a key component of emergency care following cardiac arrest. A better understanding of factors that influence CPR outcomes and their prognostic implications would help guide care. A retrospective analysis of 800 adult patients that sustained an in- or out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and underwent CPR in the emergency department of a tertiary care facility in Karachi, Pakistan, between 2008 and 15 was conducted.

Raised levels of IFN-gamma and IL-13 are associated with pre-diabetes amongst newly diagnosed patients with Tuberculosis.

Objective: To investigate pre-diabetes and diabetes in newly-diagnosed tuberculosis patients and to assess the association of serum cytokine levels with diabetes status.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted at Indus Hospital and The Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi from May to November 2015, and included patients of either gender aged 18 years or more with a confirmed diagnosis of tuberculosis who were either newly diagnosed or had received up to 1 month of anti-tuberculosis therapy were included. Patients were enrolled from among those presenting to the clinics at Indus Hospital, Karachi, and the Department of Medicine, Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH), Karachi.

Assessment of diabetes among tuberculosis patients presenting at a tertiary care facility in Pakistan.

Objective/background: Pakistan ranks sixth among high-tuberculosis (TB)-burden countries worldwide and fifth worldwide for diabetes incidence. Although both these factors are independently known, the rate of diabetes among TB patients is not well known. We aimed to determine the prevalence of diabetes among patients with TB presenting at tertiary care health centers in Karachi, Pakistan.