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Biomedical subjects

S Ahsan

Publications and source records attributed to S Ahsan.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Use of some natural and waste materials for waste water treatment.

A fundamental study was conducted to assess removal and filtration capacity of waste and natural indigenous materials as treatment mediums e.g., shell, limestone, waste paper mixed with refuse concrete, refuse cement, also processed nitrolite, charcoal-bio and charcoal. Under room temperature condition removal of phosphoric, nitric and ammonium-ions, filtration of suspended substance (SS) together with removal of COD in waste water was investigated. Influence of particle size effect for all treatment mediums except for waste paper was pursued. Significant improvement of waste water quality with respect to SS, phosphoric ions and decrease in COD is possible by treating with these filtration mediums. With specific reference to some treatment mediums NO3-N and NH4-N showed reasonable improvement in quality, although generally removal effect was not very significant. Efficacy of treatment was dependent on the particle size of treatment mediums in general, however, nitrolite for NH4--N, charcoal-A for SS and COD, refuse cement mixed with waste paper for PO4 ion removal showed insignificant variability on the particle size effect. Results of this fundamental study demonstrate effectiveness and feasibility for applied application of these proposed waste and naturally available treatment ingredients at lower cost.

Charcoal↗
PubMed2001

A case notes analysis of hysterectomy performed for non-neoplastic indications at Liaquat National Hospital, Karachi.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the indications, associated morbidity, mortality and histopathological findings in women who underwent hysterectomy for non-neoplastic indications at Liaquat National Hospital Karachi. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This is a five year retrospective case note study of 143 women who underwent hysterectomy, excluding all those performed for benign or malignant pelvic neoplasms (excluding fibroids) and hysterectomy following childbirth for postpartum haemorrhage. RESULTS: Menorrhagia was the commonest indication for performing hysterectomy. The majority of the patients were in their forties; the commonest post operative complications were pyrexia, urinary tract and wound infections in 16% of the patients. There was no mortality associated with the procedure. The histopathology of the specimens revealed adenomyosis followed by leiomyoma to be the commonest pathology. CONCLUSION: It appears that adenomyosis is a common pathology in women from various ethnic and social backgrounds in Karachi, who are suffering from menorrhagia. Early diagnosis with high-resolution ultrasound is possible and hysterectomy may be offered earlier to these women, as they do not usually respond to medical treatment.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Absence of esophageal injury in pediatric patients after hair relaxer ingestion.

OBJECTIVE: To review the initial signs, symptoms, and endoscopic findings in children admitted to the hospital for ingestion of caustic hair relaxer. DESIGN: Retrospective medical chart review of all children admitted to the hospital with a diagnosis of caustic ingestion from January 1, 1992, to June 30, 1997. Demographics, admission signs and symptoms, and operative findings were recorded from the medical records. SETTING: An urban tertiary care children's hospital. PATIENTS: Fifty-nine children (<3 years old) admitted to the hospital for ingestion of hair relaxers. RESULTS: Two hundred nine patients were evaluated for possible caustic ingestion. Only 163 medical charts were available for review. Of these, 59 (36.2%) ingested hair relaxers. Initial signs and symptoms ranged from none to drooling and vomiting and second-degree oral cavity bums. Fifty-six patients (95%) underwent endoscopy, which revealed normal esophageal mucosa in 53 of them, mild erythema of the distal esophagus in 2, and mild esophagitis in 1. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, hair relaxer ingestion makes up a significant proportion of all children admitted to the hospital for caustic ingestion. No significant esophageal injury was associated with hair relaxer ingestion, suggesting that endoscopy may not be necessary in these patients. Alternative management is suggested. We believe that patients who ingest hair relaxer should be admitted to the hospital for observation if parents are thought to be unreliable, and should undergo endoscopy if they cannot tolerate oral intake. Asymptomatic patients may be cared for as outpatients if they demonstrate adequate oral intake.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1997

Interactions between interleukin-1 beta, nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2 in the rat ovary: effects on steroidogenesis.

It has been reported that interleukin (IL)-1 beta induces the synthesis of both nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin (PG)E2 in cultures of dispersed ovarian cells and exerts cytotoxic effects on these cells. Since PGE2, NO and IL-1 beta have been implicated as modulators of steroidogenesis, experiments have been undertaken to determine how IL-1 beta-induced NO and PGE2 production may affect steroidogenesis in cultures of ovarian dispersates obtained from untreated adult oestrous rats and to compare the action of IL-1 beta in cultures of granulosa/luteal (GL) cell-only cultures and GL cells co-cultured with peritoneal macrophages. IL-1 beta significantly increased the production of NO (assessed by nitrite measured in the culture medium) and PGE2 in cultures of ovarian dispersates but had no effect on cultures of GL cells in which NO production was typically very low and PGE2 production was undetectable. In contrast both NO and PGE2 were high in co-cultures and were not significantly altered by the addition of IL-1 beta. The NO donor sodium nitroprusside inhibited steroidogenesis in cultures of ovarian cells in a dose-dependent manner while PGE2 had a stimulatory effect. Concomitant inhibition of NO production with aminoguanidine and PG production with indomethacin resulted in a significant enhancement of basal progesterone production in these cultures. Finally, IL-1 beta inhibited progesterone responses to forskolin and PGE2 in ovarian dispersates: an effect not observed in GL cell-only cultures nor in co-cultures in which forskolin-induced progesterone production is always inhibited. No cytotoxic effects of IL-1 beta during the 48 h period of culture were observed. A comparison of the steroidogenic NO and PGE2 responses to IL-1 beta in the three culture models suggests that (i) the response to IL-1 beta observed in ovarian dispersates could be due to cytokine activation of resident and infiltrating macrophages or that the action of IL-1 beta requires some other heterologous cell-cell contact, and (ii) IL-1 beta acts indirectly on signal transduction pathways which stimulate steroidogenesis.

Animals↗
PubMed1996

Incidence of postdural puncture headache following spinal anaesthesia for lower segment caesarean section with the 25 gauge polymedic spinal needle.

The incidence of postdural puncture headache (PDPH) was studied in in-patients after spinal anaesthesia with 25 gauge Polymedic needle (Sprotte-like), for lower segment caesarean section (LSCS). A total of 281 women who underwent LSCS were studied, at the maternity unit of St. Peter's Hospital, Chertsey, Surrey, U.K. Of these, 125 women had a spinal, 93 general and 63 epidural anaesthesia. All the women were questioned about the presence of headache between the second and fourth post-operative day. Its severity was assessed with a visual analogue scale. Women who had an epidural or a general anaesthesia were used as controls. Out of 281 women studied, none complained of PDPH. Four women in the spinal anaesthetic group, complained of headache which did not have the characteristics of PDPH. The 25 gauge Polymedic spinal needle appears to be safe and satisfactory for performing spinal anaesthesia for LSCS.

Adult↗