PAKISTAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH SCIENCES

UNVEILING THE SILENT THREAT: AIR POLLUTION AND SMOG IN RESOURCE-LIMITED SETTINGS

Iqbal Haider — 2025-12-15

Air pollution and smog are pervasive threats that have serious impacts on public health around the world. This editorial delves the scope of this threat and an assessment of the problem, with a focus on resource-limited countries like Pakistan. Health professionals need to be aware of the seriousness of the problem in order to contribute effectively to prevention strategies.

A Complex mixture of particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulphur dioxide (SO2), ozone (O3), and carbon monoxide (CO) encompasses this variant of pollution. Pollutant levels can be determined using measurement tools like air quality monitoring stations and satellite technology which can provide real time data but in resource scarce country like ours, cost effective monitoring is crucial.

Anthropogenic activities like industrial emissions, vehicular exhaust, and biomass burning are the deep roots of the causative phenomenon. A portmanteau of smoke and fog, the smog is the synergistic product of all these activities particularly in the densely populated regions. The intricate interplay of pollutants poses unique challenges for healthcare professionals in understanding their diverse health implications and making the prevention difficult.

Air pollution and smog have been linked to a myriad of health problems. The spectrum includes respiratory diseases, cardiovascular disorders, and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable population in resource-limited countries like Pakistan. Its impact can be imagined from the fact that air pollution alone is thought to cut the life span of every Pakistani by four years. The icing on top is the strained healthcare infrastructures which has to deal with the burden of preventable diseases associated with air pollution at an alarming level.

Karachi, the hub of Pakistan for its industrial value and Lahore which is no less are both hotspots for this pollution. Peshawar is also included in the top ten most air polluted cities of the world. The smog experienced in this belt is a health challenge persistently contributing to the worsening of the status.
Implementing and enforcing stringent emission standards, promoting public awareness, and investing in green technologies are essential steps when we talk about the solutions for tackling this issue. The realization of this being a national cause, will bring the authoritative bodies to collaborate and brainstorm for the practical solutions and hence the brighter tomorrow.

Government bodies hold a strong ground when it comes to policy formulation and enforcement for social issues. Another stake holder which has to be highlighted is the industrial sector which have to agree to adapt eco-friendly pathways. The health sector would obviously go hands in hands for raising awareness regarding its health implications and preventative strategies. All of us together can ensure public participation for accepting the change and become the strongest link in reducing individual carbon foot prints.Remedial Measures to manage this menace can be stratified as:

1.Regulatory Measures: Stringent regulations on industrial emissions and vehicular standards.

2.Promotion of Green Technologies: Incentivizing and adopting renewable energy sources.

3.Public Awareness Campaigns: Educating the public on the health hazards of this silent killer and preventive measures.

4.Investment in Healthcare Infrastructure: Strengthening healthcare facilities to cope with the rising health burden particularly for the preventable causes.

The battle against air pollution and smog has to be a joint venture of all stakeholders. The role of advocacy, prevention and mitigation has to be played well by the front liner, the health care sectors. For a sustainable future, we need to review our priorities and focus to pave the way for our generations to follow

Frequency of Congenital Heart Diseases in Pediatric Population with Pneumonia at Bacha Khan Medical Complex Swabi

Haroon Nawaz — 2025-12-15

Leishmaniasis is an infec on that results from the bites of vectors
and is caused by different species of intra-macrophage protozoa.
Most regions of the tropics, subtropics, and the Mediterranean
region are fully representa ve of this disease, which is o en
ignored. Many epidemiological factors of human leishmaniasis are
environmental factors, the socioeconomic status, age distribu on,
and behavioral pa erns. The incidence of leishmaniasis is
increasing day by day throughout the world, and the primary
reason is the occurrence of several factors which are undoubtedly
anthropogenic in nature such as migra on, deforesta on,
urbaniza on, and immunosuppression. Number of factors are
associated with leishmaniasis emergence or reemergence risks. But
for control and preven on purpose surveillance and monitoring of
each risk factor should be made having expert opinions working at
the Global forums and organizations.

EXOPHIALA SPECIE: A Case of Rhino Cerebral Mucormycosis in Diabetic Woman

Dr. Fatima Ali — 2025-12-15

42 year old woman, newly diagnosed diabetes mellitus, presented
with complaint of le side facial pain and numbness over the lips.
These symptoms were sudden in onset associated with fever,
diplopia at le eye on seeing toward lateral side and le side
hyposmia. Had some relief in pain with oral medica on and
aggrevated with jaw movements, CT PNS (computed tomography
Para nasal sinus) showed sinusi s with le orbital celluli s and le
level II(upper jugular group) lymphadenopathy , underwent FESS
(func onal endoscopic sinus surgery) procedure and ssue biopsy
specimen were taken which showed ssue invasive fungal infec on
morphologically sugges ve of Mucormycosis , ssue culture had
heavy growth of exophiala species. She had 2 nasal washes during
this whole course of illness was treated ini ally with injec on
amphotericin 50mg ll the arrival of culture report and then
switched to capsule Itraconazole for 6 months with regular
surveillance. Her symptoms grossly improved.

Innovations in Telemedicine for Chronic Disease Management

Sarah Shams — 2025-12-16

Background: Types of diseases like diabetes, BP and heart diseases in chronic diseases also lead to high mortality rates in the world. The only way that advocates of telemedicine have found to be able to monitor a patient frequently instead of having to spend huge amounts of time visiting physically is through the use of this technology. The advancements like the current use of AI and wearable technologies can be said to encourage optimal outcomes of chronic disease management. In this series 100 patients with chronic conditions were followed for

six months using wearable technology and telemedicine through artificial intelligence. The findings pointed towards an improvement

of the quality of patents on the wards. There was a mean reduction in blood glucose level of 12.5 mg/dL (SD = 4.2, p < 0.01 and mean reduction in systolic blood pressure of 8.3 mmHg (SD = 3.1, p < 0.05). The advancements in telemedicine especially wearable devices and Artificial intelligence (AI) analytics have shown an improvement in chronic diseases. These technologies do not only increase the efficiency of health interventions and improve the health status of the population but also make patients happier due to the possibility of timely individual interventions.

PREVALENCE OF ANTIBIOTIC-ASSOCIATED DIARRHEA

Rahmat Al — 2025-12-16

Antibiotic Associated Diarrhea is a common complication of antibiotics treatment. The aim of this study was to find the prevalence of Antibiotic Associated Diarrhea. During the study of 90 days duration, 134 patients admitted in Medical Ward BKMC (Bacha Khan Medical Complex Swabi) were randomly selected for the study. 102 (76.1%) were males and 32 (23.9%) were females. The mean age of the patients was 42.46 years and SD was 13.37.
A prevalence of 29.1% of AAD was found in the patients on the basis of clinical and laboratory findings Majority of the patients belonged to the age group of 45 years to 75 years. AAD is more prevalent in 45 to 75 years age group. AAD is statistically significant with age (p=0.0001) and not statistically significant with gender (p=0.139). Preventive policies must be put in place in all hospitals and healthcare units to prevent the development of AAD in patients receiving antibiotics.

Exploration of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) on Bullying Management Strategies Among K-12 Teacher

Raihama Khan — 2025-12-16

Introduction:
Bullying is a commonly occurring problem in schools which can lead to many adverse consequences. The present study aimed to explore the knowledge,
attitudes, and practices (KAP) model on bullying management strategies among K-12 teachers, to understand the current awareness about bullying and its
effect among K-12 teachers and to explore the extent to which both genders are bullied.
Methodology:
This study utilizes an exploratory research design. A purposive sampling technique was used and N=20 (10 males and 10 females) K-12 teachers teaching in
six different governments and private schools of Islamabad were selected to be interviewed using a semi-structured interview protocol. The collected data
was then analyzed through the thematic analysis scheme.
Results:
Eleven major themes were identified: teachers' awareness of the term bullying, the impact of knowledge about the term bullying, different trends of bullying,
the attitude of teachers toward bullying, perception of teachers regarding bullying, the harm done by bullying, practices to reduce bullying, the importance of
bullying management strategies, suitable students' responses to bullying according to teachers, the reaction of teachers toward acts of bullying teachers and,
knowledge of teachers about the extent to which both genders are bullied. Conclusion: The findings of this study help experts from educational departments,
policy- makers and psychologists to understand bullying and develop effective training programs for teachers and interventions for students.