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Over the past two and a half decades, rapid urbanization has led to significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes in Kabul province, Afghanistan. To assess the impact of LULC changes on land surface temperature (LST), Kabul province was divided into four LULC classes applying the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm using the Landsat satellite images from 1998 to 2022. The LST was assessed using Landsat data from the thermal band. The Cellular Automata-Logistic Regression (CA-LR) model was applied to predict the future patterns of LULC and LST for 2034 and 2046. Results showed significant changes in LULC classes, as the built-up areas increased about 9.37%, while the bare soil and vegetation cover decreased 7.20% and 2.35%, respectively, from 1998 to 2022. The analysis of annual LST revealed that built-up areas showed the highest mean LST, followed by bare soil and vegetation. The future simulation results indicate an expected increase in built-up areas to 17.08% and 23.10% by 2034 and 2046, respectively, compared to 11.23% in 2022. Similarly, the simulation results for LST indicated that the area experiencing the highest LST class (≥ 32 °C) is expected to increase to 27.01% and 43.05% by 2034 and 2046, respectively, compared to 11.21% in 2022. The results indicate that LST increases considerably as built-up areas increase and vegetation cover decreases, revealing a direct link between urbanization and rising temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study conducted at a hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan examined the prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms among patients with psoriasis. The study included 340 individuals, with 57.1% being women and 42.9% being men, and the average age was 35.2 years. The study found that 25.9% of patients had moderate to severe anxiety symptoms, with factors such as being female, older age, low education, and multiple psoriasis symptoms being associated with these symptoms. The study also found that 31.8% of patients had moderate to severe depression symptoms, with similar factors being associated with these symptoms. The study highlights the psychological impact of psoriasis in Afghanistan and suggests the need for screening and integrated management of both dermatological and psychological factors. However, the study's limitations include its single-center, hospital-based nature. [Extracted from the article]

Yahya Fayaz,1 Shahab Uddin Ahmadi,1 Said Ahmad Sorosh Miri,2 Hussain Mohammadi,1 Wakil Muhammad Wikins,3 Naseer Ahmad Nikzad3 1Department of Stomatology, Khatam AL Nabieen University, Kabul, Afghanistan; 2Department of Prosthodontics, Khatam AL Nabieen University, Kabul, Afghanistan; 3Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, National Curative and Specialized Stomatology Hospital, Kabul, AfghanistanCorrespondence: Yahya Fayaz, Department of Stomatology, Khatam AL Nabieen University, Kabul, Afghanistan, Tel +93706281798, Email Dr.yahyafayaz@gmail.comBackground/Objective: Understanding the patterns and reasons behind the extraction of children’s primary teeth is crucial for improving oral health outcomes. This retrospective investigation aimed to discern the patterns and factors contributing to primary tooth extraction among pediatric patients aged 3 to 5 years treated at the Pediatric Surgery Department of the National Curative and Specialized Stomatology Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan.Materials and Methods: Between January and May 2023, we conducted an extensive review of dental records, focusing on patients aged 3 to 5 years who had undergone primary tooth extraction. Data were collected on patients’ age, gender, specif tooth extracted, and reasons for tooth extraction. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS Statistics version 25.Results: Among 150 subjects reviewed, 53.3% were male. Primary first molars were the most commonly extracted teeth (29.3%). Dental caries was the leading cause of extraction (50%), followed by periodontitis (31.3%) and root resorption (18.7%). Mandibular extractions (58.6%) were more frequent than maxillary extractions (41.4%). No significant differences were found based on age or tooth type. Weak correlations were observed between specific tooth extractions, age, and etiology.Conclusion: This study reveals a higher frequency of extractions in older children, primarily due to dental caries, periodontitis, and root resorption, with a slight male predominance. While no significant differences were noted in extraction patterns based on age or tooth type, understanding these trends is essential for improving pediatric dental care.Keywords: dental extraction, dental caries, root resorption, primary teeth, Kabul

Abstract Over the past two and a half decades, rapid urbanization has led to significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes in Kabul province, Afghanistan. To assess the impact of LULC changes on land surface temperature (LST), Kabul province was divided into four LULC classes applying the Support Vector Machine (SVM) algorithm using the Landsat satellite images from 1998 to 2022. The LST was assessed using Landsat data from the thermal band. The Cellular Automata-Logistic Regression (CA-LR) model was applied to predict the future patterns of LULC and LST for 2034 and 2046. Results showed significant changes in LULC classes, as the built-up areas increased about 9.37%, while the bare soil and vegetation cover decreased 7.20% and 2.35%, respectively, from 1998 to 2022. The analysis of annual LST revealed that built-up areas showed the highest mean LST, followed by bare soil and vegetation. The future simulation results indicate an expected increase in built-up areas to 17.08% and 23.10% by 2034 and 2046, respectively, compared to 11.23% in 2022. Similarly, the simulation results for LST indicated that the area experiencing the highest LST class (≥ 32 °C) is expected to increase to 27.01% and 43.05% by 2034 and 2046, respectively, compared to 11.21% in 2022. The results indicate that LST increases considerably as built-up areas increase and vegetation cover decreases, revealing a direct link between urbanization and rising temperatures.

Researchers and pundits alike regularly describe terrorism as being a theatrical performance that depends on publicity to build recognition, garner attention and command legitimation. Clearly, the mechanical contours of the information environment matter when it comes to determining the opportunities and challenges for both terrorist and counterterrorist success. This article addresses arguably the most singularly significant intermediary for information access in modern society: web search engines. These information gatekeepers play a crucial role in guiding both government and non-state approaches to terror. That said, these tools are associated with bias and malperformance on a number of fronts. This study examines the degree to which different search engine usage might present a differential view of terrorism to different users. I turn to agent-based digital infrastructure as a basis for studying divergent information experiences with a major terrorist incident, specifically the suicide bombing and subsequent small arms attacks on the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, Afghanistan on August 26, 2021. The results are striking, confirming that there is substantial and clear variation in the outputs based around a host of factors—variable queries and query styles, information orientations and subsequent personalization, geographic location and, of course, search engine choice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article will trace the interrelations between Kabul's constructed spatiality and the implications of women's walks through the landscape in two primary texts – Taran Khan's Shadow City: A Woman Walks Kabul and Samira Makhmalbaf's At Five in the Afternoon – to trace the unique discourse and modalities of women's resistance that they generate against oppressive state-sponsored narratives of history. The first part of this article will attempt to delineate the changes in the spatio-geographical landscape of post-2001 Kabul, which I argue was a twofold project of both architectural and epistemic violence. The subsequent sections will interrogate how the walks of the female protagonist in the texts become an agential assertion of resistance against this project of cultural effacement, as they attempt to reinscribe the history of Kabul in manifold different ways which radically challenge state-sponsored authoritarian narratives. Finally, I will argue how both these women, through their urban presence and walks, inhabit as well as set into motion a 'third space', after Bhabha's theorisation of the same, which repurposes existing spatio-ideological markers and multiplies them with new meaning and radical potentialities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction method in developing countries is different from that in developed countries. Afghanistan, being a developing country, has faced enormous urban problems. This paper studies the prevalent construction methods in Kabul city. It explains how the apartment housing is built without the involvement of professionals. Additionally, it analyses the problems of apartment housing by using the post-occupancy evaluation methodology. The data collected from the interviews and questionnaire survey, as well as a survey of the physical measurement and observation of the houses, revealed that there was a high level of dissatisfaction with the typical houses built by the constructor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

East Asian Buddhist pilgrims portrayed Turk Shahi as Buddhist rulers - they regularly made offerings, provided Buddhist feasts, built monasteries on their donations. However, archaeological evidence shows a more complex situation. Under Turk Shahi reign Brahmanical cults spread through the region, while esoteric Buddhism steadily gained popularity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The last US drone strike during its occupation of Afghanistan took place in Kabul on 29 August 2021. The target was identified as an Islamic State-Khorosan (ISIS-K) cell preparing to attack Hamid Karzai International Airport while the United States and its allies conducted a large-scale non-combatant evacuation and the Taliban advanced into the capital. Although the strike was the culmination of intensive aerial surveillance, it killed only innocent civilians. In comparing the official account of events provided by the Pentagon to explain the catastrophic mistake with an alternative narrative established by investigative reporters, it becomes clear that the strike was prompted by a performative series of assumptions and inferences that fastened on every observed action as suspicious and ultimately hostile. A further comparison with a US airstrike in Uruzgan on 21 February 2010 shows that this chain of misinterpretation and miscalculation has been a constant in civilian casualty incidents for many years. This prompts a series of reflections on the architecture of aerial violence and its implications for civilians caught up in the battlespaces of later modern war. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study delves into the patterns of urban expansion in Kabul, using Landsat and Sentinel satellite imagery as primary tools for analysis. We classified land use and land cover (LULC) into five distinct categories: water bodies, vegetation, barren land, barren rocky terrain, and buildings. The necessary data processing and analysis was conducted using ERDAS Imagine v.2015 and ArcGIS 10.8 software. Our main objective was to scrutinize changes in LULC across five discrete decades. Additionally, we traced the long-term evolution of built-up areas in Kabul from 1973 to 2020. The classified satellite images revealed significant changes across all categories. For instance, the area of built-up land reduced from 29.91% in 2013 to 23.84% in 2020, while barren land saw a decrease from 33.3% to 28.4% over the same period. Conversely, the proportion of barren rocky terrain exhibited an increase from 22.89% in 2013 to 29.97% in 2020. Minor yet notable shifts were observed in the categories of water bodies and vegetated land use. The percentage of water bodies shrank from 2.51% in 2003 to 1.30% in 2013, and the extent of vegetated land use showed a decline from 13.61% in 2003 to 12.6% in 2013. Our study unveiled evolving land use patterns over time, with specific periods recording an increase in barren land and a slight rise in vegetated areas. These findings underscored the dynamic transformation of Kabul’s urban landscape over the years, with significant implications for urban planning and sustainability.

ABSTRACT: Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and molecular characteristics of community methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) nasal carriage among students at Kabul University. Methods: Nasal swabs were collected from anterior nares of 150 healthy non-medical students at Kabul University. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed on all S. aureus isolates, and all detected MRSA isolates were then confirmed by mecA/mecC polymerase chain reaction and characterized using DNA microarray. Results: A total of 50 S. aureus strains were isolated from the anterior nares of the 150 participants. The prevalence of S. aureus and MRSA nasal carriage among Kabul students was 33.3% and 12.7%, respectively. Seven (36.8%) MRSA isolates and 8 (25.8%) methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) isolates were multidrug-resistant (i.e. resistant to at least three different antimicrobials tested). All MRSA isolates (n = 19) were susceptible to linezolid, rifampicin, and fusidic acid. Seven MRSA clones, belonging to four clonal complexes (CCs), were identified. The most commonly identified clone was CC22-MRSA-IV TSST-1-positive, which accounted for 63.2% (12/19) of MRSA isolates. SCCmec typing showed that most MRSA strains harboured SCCmec type IV (94.7%). Thirteen (68.4%) MRSA isolates carried the TSST-1 and 5 (26.3%) PVL genes. Conclusion: Our findings revealed the relatively high prevalence of MRSA nasal carriers in the community in Kabul, with the predominance of the CC22-MRSA-IV TSST-1-positive clone and frequent multidrug resistance among these isolates.

Cities in arid and semiarid regions face the dual challenges of managing urban floods and water shortages, threatening their sustainability. Urban areas are particularly vulnerable to flooding despite minimal rainfall and are prone to drought. This is evident in the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul, where groundwater decline and urban floods pose severe challenges. This study investigates the possibility of utilizing rainwater harvesting (RWH) to manage urban floods and recharge groundwater. The research examines various aspects of rainfall patterns, such as variability, rainy days, seasonality, probability, and maximum daily precipitation. The analysis of precipitation statistics reveals that rainfall exceeding 30 mm occurs approximately every 3–4 years. Rainfall in Kabul follows a seasonal pattern, with a coefficient of variation of 127% in October and 46% in February during the wet period. The study then assesses the potential of RWH in Kabul City as a solution for stormwater management and groundwater recharge. Based on the typology of land use and land cover, implementing a rainwater harvesting and recharge system (RWHRS) could increase mean annual infiltration from 4.86 million cubic meters (MCM) to 11.33 MCM. A weighted Curve Number (CN) of 90.5% indicates impervious surfaces' dominance. The study identifies a rainfall threshold of 5.3 mm for runoff generation. Two approaches for collecting rainwater for groundwater recharge are considered: RWHRS for a residential house with an area of 300m2, which yields approximately 88m3/year, and RWHRS for a street sidewalk to collect water from streets and sidewalks. These findings highlight the potential of RWHRS as an effective strategy for managing urban floods and recharging groundwater artificially. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Happiness has been studied from philosophical, social, religious, cultural, and economic perspectives. According to global statistics, Afghanistan was ranked as the saddest country in the world in 2021 and 2022. The current study aims to study social happiness and the factors that have affected it among people in Kabul in the age range of 15–40 with academic degrees since the Taliban returned to power. It is based on an applied survey conducted with quantitative methods. The data were obtained by means of the Oxford Happiness questionnaire and analyzed through the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Social happiness among this population is significantly related to the variables of gender, ethnicity, occupation, income, household, religiosity, social hope, and anomie. However, marital status, ethnicity and occupation do not appear to play a central role. The general level of happiness was found to be below average (47.5), which is influenced by the overall situation in Afghanistan. Regression analysis indicates that gender, household, income, religiosity, and social hope significantly affect social happiness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study delves into the patterns of urban expansion in Kabul, using Landsat and Sentinel satellite imagery as primary tools for analysis. We classified land use and land cover (LULC) into five distinct categories: water bodies, vegetation, barren land, barren rocky terrain, and buildings. The necessary data processing and analysis was conducted using ERDAS Imagine v.2015 and ArcGIS 10.8 software. Our main objective was to scrutinize changes in LULC across five discrete decades. Additionally, we traced the long-term evolution of built-up areas in Kabul from 1973 to 2020. The classified satellite images revealed significant changes across all categories. For instance, the area of built-up land reduced from 29.91% in 2013 to 23.84% in 2020, while barren land saw a decrease from 33.3% to 28.4% over the same period. Conversely, the proportion of barren rocky terrain exhibited an increase from 22.89% in 2013 to 29.97% in 2020. Minor yet notable shifts were observed in the categories of water bodies and vegetated land use. The percentage of water bodies shrank from 2.51% in 2003 to 1.30% in 2013, and the extent of vegetated land use showed a decline from 13.61% in 2003 to 12.6% in 2013. Our study unveiled evolving land use patterns over time, with specific periods recording an increase in barren land and a slight rise in vegetated areas. These findings underscored the dynamic transformation of Kabul's urban landscape over the years, with significant implications for urban planning and sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background Vitamin D is one of the most important fat-soluble vitamins necessary for normal growth and development of the human body. According to a study done in Kabul shows that economic, racial, and social concerns are thought to be the main impediments to receiving appropriate amounts of this vitamin through dietary sources in countries like Afghanistan. Hypovitaminosis D, on the other hand, is now recognized as a pandemic in both industrialized and developing countries. Methods To find out how common hypovitaminosis D is in children aged one month to eighteen years in afghan children Kabul, Afghanistan. Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are defined as serum levels of less than 20 ng/mL and 20 to 30 ng/mL, respectively. Children aged between 1 month to 18 years attending our hospital, AMC (Ariana Medical Complex) for health examination were checked for their 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D]. Age, gender and address were recorded. 25(OH)D were determined using immunoassay auto analyzers. According to their serum 25(OH)D, the 25(OH)D were categorized into five categories: sufficiency: ≥ 30-100 ng/mL; insufficiency: ≥ 20-29 ng/mL; deficiency: 150 ng/mL. Participants who were intoxicated with vitamin D were excluded from the study. Results A total of 4008 children aged 1 month to 18 years participated in this cross-sectional study. Hypovitaminosis D was found to be prevalent in 62.5 percent of the population. When compared to boys, female children were 1.2 times more likely to be vitamin D deficient. When compared to children of illiterate women, the odds of hypovitaminosis D were 1.4, 1.9, and 5.8 times lower in children with mothers educated up to primary school, graduation, and post-graduate. The average vitamin D level was 23 ng/mL, with a median of 15 ng/mL and maximum and minimum values of 135 ng/mL and 3 ng/mL, respectively. In all, 2500 (62.5%) of the children had low levels of vitamin D in their serum. Only 400 (16%) of the patients were sufficient, whereas 917 (36.7%) were severely deficient, 733 (29.3%) were deficient, and 450 (18%) were insufficient. With a female to male ratio of 1.2:1, the majority of those, 1335 (53.4%), were females and 1165 (46.6%) were males. Patients were 8.14 years old on average, with a median age of 7 years. The majority of the patients, 2152 (86.1%), were urban, while 348 (13.9%) were rural. Conclusion The prevalence of hypovitaminosis D was very high in Afghan children. Female sex, higher socio economic status, higher educational status of the mother and living at urban areas were the factors with strong positive association with hypovitaminosis D.

Traffic on overland routes connecting the Indian subcontinent to the Iranian Plateau and Central Asia increased from the fifteenth to the sixteenth centuries. This led to the formation of strong states in the Kabul-to-Delhi region—namely, the state ruled by the later Lodīs in north India, the embryonic Mughal state in Kabul, and the Arghūn state in Qandahar (1479–1522). This article will especially investigate the latter. Since there is no mercantile archive for this period, I will make use of narrative sources, especially the little-used "court history" of the Arghūns, the Nuṣratnāmā-i Tarkhān (completed circa 1565) in search of political and economic information. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the case of changing climate and water crises, the design of every hydraulic structure requires hydrological modeling to investigate the effects of climate change in the region. For this purpose, climate data are the key factor in making a model. However, data scarcity is an issue in developing countries and remote areas. Satellite-based and remote sensing data are an alternative option to be used instead of ground-based meteorological data. Various satellite-based data sets are available to be employed in modeling; nevertheless, the researchers face the challenge of choosing the most precise and reliable data set that should be well suited to the targeted area. In this study, three satellite-based precipitation datasets were investigated using Soil & Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) to analyze their accuracy in the hydrological modeling of the Shakardara watershed, located in the Northwest of Kabul city in Afghanistan. In this research, hydrological modeling was performed using precipitation data from Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM_3B42), Climate Hazards Group InfraRed Precipitation with Station data (CHIRPS_v2), and NASA Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resource (NASA POWER) datasets separately. The models were calibrated and validated based on observed river discharge. The acquired result shows the TRMM_3B42 as the most precise and compatible with the region than CHIRPS_v2 and NASA POWER data sets. This research can be used as a reference for hydrologists and water infrastructure designers in the area and other data-scarce regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extensive reading as a technique of learning is suggested by many education researchers. It assists English language learners to overcome learning English as a foreign language. Second language learners tackle various challenges. They come to the classroom, learn new vocabulary, expressions, and conversation up to the end of the school day, but when they leave the classroom, they stop thinking in English. Extensive reading is a learning technique that increases learner autonomy. Therefore, selecting reading material suitably is a must in conducting extensive reading program. Keeping this in mind, this paper aims to use extensive reading technique to find out its effect on learners’ autonomy development in learning the English Language. In order to find whether extensive reading promotes learners’ autonomy, the technique was implemented across the course curriculum. This paper would report learners’ and teachers’ perceptions regarding reading extensively. A semi-structured interview was conducted to present the results of qualitative approach and it came up with a descriptive result. Data came from semi-structured interview records and notes. The participants were randomly selected among second semester of the medicine faculty, English language classes and English teachers at Kabul University of Medical Sciences. Outcomes and results were discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Vitamin D is one of the most important fat-soluble vitamins necessary for normal growth and development of the human body. According to a study done in Kabul shows that economic, racial, and social concerns are thought to be the main impediments to receiving appropriate amounts of this vitamin through dietary sources in countries like Afghanistan. Hypovitaminosis D, on the other hand, is now recognized as a pandemic in both industrialized and developing countries. Methods: To find out how common hypovitaminosis D is in children aged one month to eighteen years in afghan children Kabul, Afghanistan. Vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency are defined as serum levels of less than 20 ng/mL and 20 to 30 ng/mL, respectively. Children aged between 1 month to 18 years attending our hospital, AMC (Ariana Medical Complex) for health examination were checked for their 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D]. Age, gender and address were recorded. 25(OH)D were determined using immunoassay auto analyzers. According to their serum 25(OH)D, the 25(OH)D were categorized into five categories: sufficiency: ≥ 30-100 ng/mL; insufficiency: ≥ 20-29 ng/mL; deficiency: < 20 ng/mL; severe deficiency: < 10 ng/mL; and intoxication: > 150 ng/mL. Participants who were intoxicated with vitamin D were excluded from the study. Results: A total of 4008 children aged 1 month to 18 years participated in this cross-sectional study. Hypovitaminosis D was found to be prevalent in 62.5 percent of the population. When compared to boys, female children were 1.2 times more likely to be vitamin D deficient. When compared to children of illiterate women, the odds of hypovitaminosis D were 1.4, 1.9, and 5.8 times lower in children with mothers educated up to primary school, graduation, and post-graduate. The average vitamin D level was 23 ng/mL, with a median of 15 ng/mL and maximum and minimum values of 135 ng/mL and 3 ng/mL, respectively. In all, 2500 (62.5%) of the children had low levels of vitamin D in their serum. Only 400 (16%) of the patients were sufficient, whereas 917 (36.7%) were severely deficient, 733 (29.3%) were deficient, and 450 (18%) were insufficient. With a female to male ratio of 1.2:1, the majority of those, 1335 (53.4%), were females and 1165 (46.6%) were males. Patients were 8.14 years old on average, with a median age of 7 years. The majority of the patients, 2152 (86.1%), were urban, while 348 (13.9%) were rural. Conclusion: The prevalence of hypovitaminosis D was very high in Afghan children. Female sex, higher socio economic status, higher educational status of the mother and living at urban areas were the factors with strong positive association with hypovitaminosis D. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human-centered transportation (walking and biking) has been the cheapest, healthiest, and most convenient mode of transportation throughout history. In the new global economy, walking and biking have become common modes of transportation for low-income groups of people. Kabul is the biggest city in Afghanistan with scattered space organizations and currently is unfavorable for walking and biking due to insufficient attention to pedestrian and bicycle routes in city planning and poor road network and sidewalk conditions, which are among the issues that affect this 4-5 million population city. The purpose of this research is to analyze the current traffic situation in Kabul and identify the role and share of citizens' use of human-centered transportation (walking and biking) for transportation. This research also aims to investigate the relationship between the economic scope of low-income workers and the use of walking and biking for transportation. The statistical population of the current study was selected from three municipal districts as travel zones. Using cluster sampling, a sample participant of 929 people was obtained. It was observed that in the broad context, due to increasing cost and insufficient public transportation, low-income workers use bicycles and walking as a reliable mode of transportation. Finally, it is suggested that the spatial organization of Kabul is redefined and designed based on the new space organization, and the local organization and formulation of urban transportation strategies in urban strategic plans for pedestrian and bicycle transportation systems are strengthened, especially for roads leading to employment locations. Furthermore, in planning, priority is to be shifted to human-centered transportation (walking and biking).

Ahmad Khalid Aalemi,1,2 Abdul Ghafar Hamdard,2 Ahmad Shekeb Sobat3 1Department of Oral Medicine, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, 1001, Afghanistan; 2Department of Dermatology, Maiwand Teaching Hospital, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, 1001, Afghanistan; 3Department of Oral Surgery, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, 1001, AfghanistanCorrespondence: Ahmad Khalid Aalemi, Department of Oral Medicine, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, 1001, Afghanistan, Tel +93704923443, Email aalemi_100@yahoo.comBackground: Psoriasis is a common skin disease that affects physical, psychological, and social well-being of patients. Several studies have assessed health-related quality of life of patients with psoriasis in different populations with large variations.Objective: To investigate, for the first time, the impact of psoriasis on quality of life of Afghan patients with psoriasis.Methods: This is a prospective observational study conducted at the dermatology department of Maiwand Teaching hospital in Kabul City during April 2018 to May 2019. Patients with plaque psoriasis with age ≥ 16 years were included in the study. Psoriasis Disability Index was used for the assessment of health-related quality of life. Psoriasis Area and Severity Index was used to define the severity of disease. Appropriate tests were performed using Statistical Package for Social Science.Results: A total of 174 patients with psoriasis were included in the study, 89 of them were male (51.1%) and 85 of them were female (48.9%). The mean age of the patients was 27.7 years with 13.2 years SD, and the average duration of the disease was 3.2 years with 4.7 years SD. The mean of PASI score was 13.3 with 7.8 SD, while the mean of total PDI was 9.6 with 3.7 SD; there was a strong correlation between total PDI and PASI score (r=0.751, p< 0.001). The mean of total PDI was higher among moderate-to-severe psoriasis, female patients, younger age, and those who were single.Conclusion: Our study highlighted that psoriasis disability index was highly correlated with psoriasis area and severity index. Furthermore, the quality of life was more affected among female patients, patients younger than 40 years, and those patients who were single.Keywords: psoriasis, correlation, quality of life, PASI, PDI, Kabul

The stock market, as a symbol of the capital market, is one of the most important sectors of the economy of any country and, unlike the money market, is responsible for the long-term financing of corporate capital. The capital market collects funds from surplus sectors and channels them to institutions that need financing. This study investigates the feasibility of establishing a market for the Kabul Stock Exchange. It is a survey in terms of nature and descriptive method and is applied in relation to the purpose. For the feasibility study of the present study, six platforms were identified using Delphi method. Non-random and purposive sampling was used, and according to Morgan’s table, 180 people were selected from three groups of university professors, experts from the ministries of Finance, Economy, Trade and Industry, the Central Bank and a number of people in Kabul. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire was confirmed by Delphi method and Cronbach’s alpha test. SPSS statistical software was used to analyze the data. From the results of one-sample t-test, it can be seen that all H1’s sub-hypotheses were confirmed in relation to the six platforms, which means that in the current situation, Kabul city is not in a favorable situation in terms of infrastructure and requirements for legal, economic, technical and technological, cultural, social and human capital platforms for the establishment of the stock market, and the conditions for the establishment of Kabul Stock Exchange do not exist. The Friedman test showed that the degree of readiness for the establishment of Kabul Stock Exchange depended on the human capital, economic, legal, cultural, technical and technological or social platforms.

Abdul Wahed Sediqi,1,2 Arash Nemat,3 Nahid Raufi,4 Abdullah Asady3 1Department of Cardiology, Ariana Medical Complex, Kabul, Afghanistan; 2Department of Cardiology, Ali Abad Teaching Hospital, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 3Department of Microbiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 4Department of Dermatology, Maiwand Teaching Hospital, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, AfghanistanCorrespondence: Arash NematDepartment of Microbiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, 3rd District, Kabul, 1001, AfghanistanTel +93 706 717 987Email dr.arashnemat@yahoo.comAbstract: The COVID-19 is an ongoing global pandemic that has put the world in a devastating situation. The virus is able to attack multiple body systems and cause a variety of clinical problems ranging from asymptomatic to critical cases. Although young individuals are more likely to suffer milder forms of the disease, critical cases also might happen. Recent literature has revealed that, along with other clinical symptoms, skin manifestations have also progressively grown. In Afghanistan where COVID-19 has entered into a third wave, many people do not take the initial mild symptoms seriously to prevent further spreading in the community. We report symptoms of skin rash, fatigue, muscle pain, dry cough and fever at the onset of the disease, followed by rapid lung damage in a 23-year-old young adult, who did not have any preexisting risk factors. This case highlights the importance of urgent skin assessment of the COVID-19 patient complaining of any skin symptoms.Keywords: COVID-19, skin rash, SARS-CoV-2, Kabul, case report

Rohullah Roien,1 Sayed Hamid Mousavi,1 Akihiko Ozaki,2,3 Sayed Abulqasem Baqeri,1 Sayed Mohammad Reza Hosseini,1 Shoaib Ahmad,4 Sunil Shrestha5,6 1Medical Research Centre, Kateb University, Kabul, Afghanistan; 2Department of Breast Surgery, Jyoban Hospital of Tokiwa Foundation, Iwaki, Fukushima, Japan; 3Medical Governance Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan; 4Department of Pediatrics, District Head Quarters Teaching Hospital, Faisalabad, Pakistan; 5Department of Pharmaceutical and Health Service Research, Nepal Health Research and Innovation Foundation, Lalitpur, Province Bagmati, Nepal; 6Nobel College Faculty of Health Sciences, Pokhara University, Kathmandu, Province Bagmati, NepalCorrespondence: Rohullah Roien; Sayed Hamid Mousavi Email Rohullahroien@kateb.edu.af; Dr.mousavi@kateb.edu.afBackground: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a serious public health issue around the world. Health care workers (HCWs) are at high risk of HBV infection because they have direct contact with HBV infected blood and body fluids in their work.Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) of HCWs towards hepatitis B infection in Kabul, Afghanistan.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 502 HCWs, between November 2018 and January 2019 by a simple random sampling method. The data was collected through a self-administered structured questionnaire. Using this questionnaire, demographic characteristics and KAP of HCWs was assessed. In addition, descriptive and inferential analyses was conducted on the collected data using SPSS 16 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA).Results: The overall KAP scores of HCWs were found to be 86.58%, 34.73%, and 61.22%, respectively. Most of the participants correctly recognized the HBV infection. Among the participants, only 77.45% had undergone screening for HBV, and 56.37% had received HBV vaccine (p < 0.0001). Moreover, only 6.77% had completed the three doses of vaccination for HBV. Among the HCWs, the group with higher education level had better knowledge than the group with lower education level. However, the attitude of most of the participants towards HBV prevention was found to be inadequate (53.98%).Conclusion: This study shows that HCWs in Kabul, Afghanistan are at high risk of HBV infection due to low vaccination coverage and inadequate infection control. Therefore, we strongly encourage providing an accessible and compulsory vaccination program for all HCWs to improve their attitude and awareness towards HBV infection and to achieve effective infection control.Keywords: hepatitis, hepatitis B virus, Kabul, health care worker

This study examined the role of centralized national, decentralized supranational, and multiplied Foucauldian powers in a century of urbanization and urban planning in Afghanistan’s capital city. Centralized domestic and decentralized foreign powers are framed as vertical planning and technical rationality, whereas the multiplied Foucauldian power is framed as participatory planning and discursive rationality. Within this theoretical framework, the available urban planning literature concerning Afghanistan’s urbanization process from 1919 to 2020 is surveyed. The period starting from 1919 to 1921 marks the country’s independence and first major undertaking of urban development, whereas the period of 2018–2020 denotes the urban design framework preparation and tendency of its application for Kabul City. Three distinct paradigms; namely, biopower, complementary, and sporadic urban planning and development can be demonstrated by tracing the role of power and the political system in scope, method, vision, and authorization of urban plans for the country. In complementary and sporadic planning paradigms, the decentralized supranational powers guide urban development and planning, whereas the centralized domestic power guides urban development in the biopower paradigm. Within these paradigms, despite the claims and leaps of democratic political regime exercises, a few traces of participatory planning in upgrading projects of unplanned settlements occurred only recently. However, the urban planning regime has lacked discursive rationality and has not accepted meaningful citizen participation in the planning process.

Aziz Rahman Rasib,1 Arash Nemat,2,3 Mahmoodullah Azimi,4 Naqeebullah Zaki,5 Mohammad Faiq Sediqi,6 Nahid Raufi,7 Abdullah Asady2 1Department of Neuropsychiatry, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 2Department of Microbiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 3Department of Cardiology, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 5Department of Public Health, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India; 6Department of Histology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 7Department of Dermatology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, AfghanistanCorrespondence: Abdullah AsadyDepartment of Microbiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, AfghanistanTel +93 731087928Email asady_abdullah@yahoo.comPurpose: This study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety among residents of Kabul during the present COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional, community based survey was conducted in Kabul, Afghanistan, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected from July 11, 2020, to July 16, 2020. A bilingual (Dari and English) questionnaire was used for data collection. The first section of the questionnaire collected sociodemographic information of the respondents and the second comprised a self-report standardized scale, i.e. Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) to assess symptoms of anxiety. The survey form was distributed through online platforms. All residents of Kabul who used social apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook were eligible to participate in the study and participation was voluntary and non-commercial.Results: Altogether 1135 complete responses were received. The majority of them were males and aged 18– 34 years. Almost 18% were healthcare workers. Overall, 28.2% of the respondents reported symptoms of moderate to severe anxiety, 38.8% reported symptoms of mild anxiety, and nearly one third of the respondents reported no symptoms. Female participants reported significantly higher levels of anxiety compared with males (39.7% versus 25.6%; p = 0.0001). No significant association was noted between anxiety levels and age groups, occupations, and healthcare workers versus non-healthcare workers.Conclusion: The findings suggest that a gender-specific psychosocial protocol needs be integrated into the public health emergency plans to fight against the current pandemic.Keywords: anxiety, mental health, capital of Afghanistan, Kabul, COVID-19 pandemic

Land use change and land cover are considered as some of the important and effective factors of global environmental change. Therefore, understanding and predicting the causes, processes, and consequences of land use change has become a major global challenge. Kabul is the most populated city in Afghanistan. The face of Kabul has changed after a relatively peaceful period since 2001. The purpose of this study is to analyze land use change in Kabul from 2001 to 2019. We used the quantitative approach to analyse data provided by satellite images of Kabul in 2001 and 2019 from Landsat 8 and 7. Data was processed in ERDAS IMAGINE and Arc Map software to results in the final output. Urban land cover was classified into four classes, namely built-up area, green area, empty space, and mountain, and land cover changes were detected. The results of the image comparison between 2001 and 2019 show that the aggregated built-up area and empty space land cover increased by 69.1749 sq km and, correspondingly, 45.2538 sq km, whereas the green area decreased by 113.4216 sq km. We concluded that land cover has changed improperly. The rate of urban green space per individual is currently very low. These results indicate that the city is in a critical urban situation and the government should provide a comprehensive plan for controlling urban growth and fixing the problems caused by improper land use change in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Nitrate is a common pollutant in most of Asian countries, notably in underdeveloped countries like Afghanistan. From the very first hydrochemical studies, high nitrate level was of great concern. Also, multiple investigations have approved the concern as they showed dangerous content of nitrate in water resources in Afghanistan. Water projects have so far focused mainly on Kabul and then its chemical composition more defined rather than other main cities. The major source of nitrate in Kabul city is domestic sewage, including cesspits and latrines. Moreover, growing population is another major concern because more than 5 million live in the city, while the city's potential is less than 2 million. Kabul city has suffered from an ineffective sewage network, and this imposed a high load of nitrate into the Kabul's groundwater system. Studies showed that high percentage of samples—on average approx. 30%—had nitrate concentrations exceeding World Health Organization and Afghanistan National Drinking Water Standard limits, which is 50 mg/L. Then, this leads to a set of public health problems in Kabul's residents. Hydrogeochemically, NO3 formation processes and following hydrogeochemical reactions are completely explained. In terms of denitrification, based on Kabul city condition and comprehensive assessments, permeable reactive barrier technique is highly recommended. The review provides a solid and knowledge-based framework for further projects and researchers. It increases public and global awareness concerning the extent of nitrate pollution in Kabul city and can serve as valuable reference for similar areas around the globe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ahmad Khalid Aalemi,1,2 Mohammad Barin Bahain,3 Abdul Ghafar Hamdard2 1Department of Epidemiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 2Department of Dermatology, Maiwand Teaching Hospital, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, Afghanistan; 3Department of Pharmacology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, AfghanistanCorrespondence: Ahmad Khalid AalemiDepartment of Epidemiology, Kabul University of Medical Sciences, Kabul, 1001, AfghanistanTel +93747947581Email aalemi_100@yahoo.comBackground: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease that is not limited to the skin. Recently, numerous studies have shown a positive association between metabolic syndrome and psoriasis.Objective: The current study aimed to examine the association of metabolic syndrome with psoriasis in an Afghan population.Methods: This was a case– control study including 114 patients with psoriasis and 114 controls aged ≥ 18 years admitted to the dermatology department of Maiwand Teaching Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan. Height, weight, blood pressure, and waist circumference were measured in all subjects. Blood glucose, triglyceride, cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were tested following overnight fasting. The modified National Cholesterol Education Program – Adult Treatment Panel III criteria were used for the diagnosis of metabolic syndrome.Results: In total, 51.8% of the cases and 44.7% of the controls were male. The average age of participants was 33.4± 13.1 years in the case group and 41.1± 15.4 years in the control group. The average duration of disease for psoriasis was 4.2 years with 5.6 years SD. The average PASI was 10.8 with 5.1 SD. More than half of the cases (62.3%) had moderate to severe psoriasis and 37.7% had mild psoriasis. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was higher among patients with psoriasis compared to controls (36.8% vs 21.1%) with OR of 2.18 (p=0.009). In addition, overweight/obesity was more prevalent among cases compared to controls (65.8% vs 41.2%) with OR of 2.74 (p< 0.001), whereas the waist circumference was not significantly different between the two groups. Furthermore, the mean levels of total cholesterol, triglyceride, and fasting blood glucose were also higher among patients with psoriasis compared to controls.Conclusion: The results of the study confirm the association between psoriasis and metabolic syndrome. Hence, screening psoriatic patients for metabolic syndrome should be considered.Keywords: psoriasis, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, dyslipidemia, obesity, case–control study, Kabul

Self-medication with antibiotics (SMA) is a common cause of antibiotic resistance, a major public health problem. This research aimed to identify the prevalence of SMA and explore reasons for practicing SMA among people living in Kabul, Afghanistan. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from May to November 2017 in 12 community pharmacies operating across Kabul, Afghanistan. Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to identify the factors associated with the use of SMA. Out of 385 participants, 282 (73.2%) practiced SMA during the last year. Overall, 241 (62.6%) were 'very concerned' about the use of SMA, and 156 (40.5%) highlighted it is bad to practice SMA. The top three antibiotics used for self-medication were penicillin (ATC class: J01C), metronidazole (ATC: P01AB01), and ceftriaxone (ATC: J01DD04). Economic problems, lack of time to visit doctors, and ease of use were cited as the main reasons for practicing SMA. Furthermore, female participants were less likely to practice SMA compared to male counterparts. While efforts should be directed to enforce strict drug regulations system and awareness programs, priority should be given to provide accessible, affordable, and quality health care services to increase citizen's compliance to appropriate drug prescriptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract. Caesarian section is defined as a surgical procedure carried out on the abdomen and uterus of the mother to deliver one or more than one fetus and most of the time it is carried out when the survival of mother or fetus is in danger and sometime it is carried on mothers own choice. Aim: The aim of this study is to know the prevalence of caesarian section among the primigravida women visiting shahrara teaching hospital. Method. This research was done as descriptive cross sectional study such that the prevalence of caesarian section among primigravid women who visited shahrara teaching hospital at the first six months of the year 1396. Result: In this research caesarian section was done on 29 women making 38.15 % with gestational age of 28 weeks out of total 76 primigravid women. Median age was 23.34±4 (±SD), age range was 17-35 years, and majority of the case was at ages 21-25 years. Average age of the newborn was 3.88±0.436(0.436(±SD) kilogram, and weight range was 2-4.5 kilgram. Among 75.86% of primigravid women caesarian section was done on emergency bases and about 3.44 percent of women experienced hemorrhage during surgery. The percentage of babies with low APGAR score 13.79 percent. 27.58 percent of women had oligohdromnios and 17.24 percent had premature rupture of amniotic membrane (PROM). Incidence of breech presentation was about 6.89% and 24.13 percent had cranio pelvic disproportion (CPD). 3.44percent had twin pregnancy. Conclusion: It was concluded in this research that the prevalence of caesarian section among primigravid women was 38.15 percent and the incidence increases at age range of 21-25 years. Although caesarian section is considered a lifesaving procedure for mother and newborn it must be carried out on logical and appropriate bases among the primigravid women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the role of centralized national, decentralized supranational, and multiplied Foucauldian powers in a century of urbanization and urban planning in Afghanistan's capital city. Centralized domestic and decentralized foreign powers are framed as vertical planning and technical rationality, whereas the multiplied Foucauldian power is framed as participatory planning and discursive rationality. Within this theoretical framework, the available urban planning literature concerning Afghanistan's urbanization process from 1919 to 2020 is surveyed. The period starting from 1919 to 1921 marks the country's independence and first major undertaking of urban development, whereas the period of 2018–2020 denotes the urban design framework preparation and tendency of its application for Kabul City. Three distinct paradigms; namely, biopower, complementary, and sporadic urban planning and development can be demonstrated by tracing the role of power and the political system in scope, method, vision, and authorization of urban plans for the country. In complementary and sporadic planning paradigms, the decentralized supranational powers guide urban development and planning, whereas the centralized domestic power guides urban development in the biopower paradigm. Within these paradigms, despite the claims and leaps of democratic political regime exercises, a few traces of participatory planning in upgrading projects of unplanned settlements occurred only recently. However, the urban planning regime has lacked discursive rationality and has not accepted meaningful citizen participation in the planning process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy planning and solar plant site selections are vital strategic decisions and one of the most complex executive challenges in the interconnected procedures. It is essential to study the potential renewable energy sources in Afghanistan to select the most sustainable sites for solar power production in populated cities. This study is based on the combination of a Geographic Information System, Remote sensing, and multi-criteria decision-making technique to evaluate the optimal placement of photovoltaic solar power plants in the Kabul province, capital of Afghanistan. Two models, Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Analytical Network Process (ANP), were used to select suitable areas for establishing a solar power plant. The application of the proposed model has been made possible by integrating four constraints such as climate, environmental, topography, and economical which comprised twelve criteria: solar radiation, yearly average rainfall, land slope, aspect, land use, dust, geology and proximity to faults, main roads, Normalized difference vegetation index, urban areas river and water bodies. The findings indicate that there is no considerable difference between the results of both models since both models identified more than 20% of the total area of Kabul province in suitable classes. Outputs maps conclude that northern and southern parts of Kabul city and the eastern part of Kabul province came to the range of suitable areas. It can be concluded that Kabul province is a source of sufficient potential for producing solar electricity. The results of this study can support the plans of the Afghanistan government in solar energy production and the implementation of photovoltaic power plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Windows have the potential to save energy in a significant way. Therefore, the analysis and optimization of the Window-to-Wall Ratio (WWR) play an important role in improving energy efficiency in buildings. Windows are always beneficial to utilize daylight and reduce lighting energy demand. However, solar heat gain is advantageous during cold days and disadvantageous on hot days. As the configuration of the window areas varies according to the geographical location, the objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of WWR on the energy performance of buildings in the cold semi-arid climate of Kabul, Afghanistan. In this study, various energy simulations were conducted for three types of building shapes (Square, Rectangle, and “L”-Shape) to determine the most energy-efficient proportion of windows and overhang sizes in different cardinal directions. Based on the simulation results, windows on south façades have notable energy-saving potential in Kabul's climatic conditions. However, increasing the window size on north, east, and west façade leads to an increase in the total heating and cooling energy consumption. The optimal WWR of the south façade window for square, rectangular, and “L”-Shaped is 0.7, 0.55, and 0.55, respectively. Additionally, the findings indicate that overhangs in all orientations slightly affect the total energy demand as they only reduce cooling load. The study concludes that optimizing the windows on the south façade reduces energy demand by up to 8.13% if no windows are provided in other directions, while the total energy consumption rises by up to 36% as the WWR on the north, east, and west façades increase from 0 to 0.8.

Amaç: Bu çalışma, tip 2 diyabetli bireylerde hastalığı kabul düzeyinin glisemik kontrol ile ilişkisinin belirlemesi amacıyla yapılmıştır.Gereç ve Yöntem: Tanımlayıcı tipteki araştırmaya 156 tip 2 diyabetli birey katılmıştır. Veriler, Hasta Tanılama Formu ve Hastalığı Kabul Ölçeği ile elde edilmiştir. Bulgular: Bireylerin yaş ortalaması 63.30±8.44 yıl olup, üçte ikisine yakınının (%64.8) HbA1c düzeyi %7’nin üstündedir. Bireylerin Hastalığı Kabul Ölçeği puan ortalaması 25.01±6.20 (alınabilecek puan min=8, max=40)’dir. Çalışmada HbA1c düzeyi %7 ve altında olan bireylerin hastalığı kabul düzeyinin HbA1c düzeyi %9’un üzerinde olan bireylere göre daha yüksek olduğu ve hastalığı kabul düzeyinin HbA1c düzeyi üzerinde anlamlı bir yordayıcı olduğu saptanmıştır. Bireylerin hastalığı kabul düzeyi tek başına HbA1c düzeyindeki toplam varyansın yaklaşık %6’sını açıkladığı tespit edilmiştir. Ayrıca çalışmada 36-64 yaş arası, erkek, ilköğretim ve ortaöğretim eğitim düzeyine sahip ve başka kronik hastalığı bulunmayan bireylerin hastalığı kabul düzeylerinin daha yüksek olduğu belirlenmiştir.Sonuç: Tip 2 diyabetli bireylerin hastalığı kabul düzeylerinin orta düzeyde olduğu, hastalığı kabul düzeyi ile glisemik kontrol arasında ilişki olduğu, hastalığı kabul düzeyi yüksek olan bireylerin glisemik kontrolünün iyi olduğu belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca yaşın, cinsiyetin, eğitim durumunun ve başka kronik hastalık varlığının da hastalığı kabul düzeyi ile ilişkili olduğu tespit edilmiştir.

The constitutional history thread woven through Faiz Ahmed's Afghanistan Rising: Islamic Law and Statecraft between the Ottoman and British Empires unites Afghan, Indian, Ottoman, Islamic, modernist, and other strands of analysis. Hanifi's essay addresses issues relevant to the comparative study of Afghanistan, namely, epistemology, class, culture, and empire. It explores how urban Persianate state elites in Kabul exploited imperial opportunities, especially educational opportunities, over the century since constitutional independence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid urbanisation of Afghan cities without proper construction regulation has exposed their population to a high risk of damage from disasters such as earthquakes. With the growing construction of local non-engineered buildings and an existing level of hazard of 0.8 g, a high risk of casualties and building damage threatens Kabul in the event of a disaster. This study reports and evaluates a recent retrofitting project in Kabul City by ‘Project for City Resilience’, carried out under the supervision of the United Nation Human Settlements Program (UN-Habitat) for 48 retrofitted sun-dried clay brick masonry buildings in Kabul. The project was executed by local masons and welders who were trained as a part of the project, and the main tasks included installation of an additional steel frame, additional reinforced concrete foundation ring, ceiling replacement and wall strengthening (via mesh and plaster). After a visual assessment of retrofitted buildings considering the original retrofitting design and actual work done, a vulnerability index for retrofitted buildings was developed based on a behaviour modifier factor, which was assigned to each retrofitting activity using a combination of values and a proportion of scores for each retrofitting activity. The results indicate that training of local masons and welders to undertake retrofitting activities could decrease the damage ratio by 15% – 20% for peak ground acceleration values of 0.3 g and higher. The methods mentioned in this study can be used to make existing sun-dried clay brick masonry buildings sufficiently resistant to earthquakes of moderate-to-severe intensity.

Background: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common malignant tumor of the kidney. This tumor originates from the epithelial cells of the renal tubules and is located mainly in the cortical region of the kidney. It constitutes approximately 90% of all kidney malignancies and 2% of all cancers in adults. Objectives: The present study was conducted to determine the prevalence of RCC and its histological subtypes in samples sent to the Pathology Department of Kabul University of Medical Sciences and City Laboratory. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of 81 nephrectomy and partial nephrectomy samples registered in the laboratory of the Pathology Department of Kabul University of Medical Sciences and City Medical laboratory database from March 2016 to August 2020. Results: A total of 81 samples were included in this study. The mean and standard deviation (SD) age of the patients was 44.4 ± 20.5. Of 81 samples, 62 (76.6%) were malignant kidney tumors, 13 (16.0%) were inflammatory kidney disease, 4 (4.9%) were polycystic kidney disease, and 2 (2.5%) were benign kidney tumors. Among 62 cases of malignant kidney tumor, 53(85.48%) were RCC. The high incidence of RCC was in the age group of 56 to 65 years with a mean of 52.2 years; 56.60% of RCC cases were male and 43.39% were female. Based on the histological studies, 75.47% were clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) type, followed by18.86% papillary renal cell carcinoma (PRCC), and 6% chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (ChRCC). Conclusions: Most common malignant tumor of the kidney in the samples included in this study was RCC in the age group of 56 to 65 years and it was more frequent among men compared to women, whereas the most common histological subtype was ccRCC. The findings are in concordance with international literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular features and the antibiotic resistance profile of 98 clinical Staphylococcus aureus isolates collected during 6 months in two hospitals of Kabul, Afghanistan. For all isolates, antimicrobial resistance patterns were determined by the disc diffusion method (including methicillin resistance which was detected using cefoxitin). The presence of the mecA/mecC genes was detected by PCR. Strains were then extensively characterized using microarray analysis. Of the 98 S. aureus isolates, methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) prevalence was high at 66.3%. Antibiotic susceptibility testing also revealed a high resistance rate to penicillin (100%), erythromycin (66.3%), ciprofloxacin (55.1%), and cotrimoxazole (40.8%). Resistance to tobramycin was detected in 25.5%, to gentamicin in 16.3%, to chloramphenicol in 34.7%, and to doxycycline in 23.5% of the isolates. All the MRSA isolates were mecA-positive and none of them harbored mecC. Isolates were grouped into twelve clonal complexes and twenty-seven distinct clones. The most frequently detected clones were the Southwest Pacific clone (CC30-MRSA-IV PVL+) (21/65 MRSA, 32.3%), the CC22-MRSA-IV TSST-1+ clone (11/65 MRSA, 16.9%), and the Bengal Bay clone (ST772-MRSA-V PVL+) (11/65 MRSA, 16.9%). The PVL genes were found in 59.2% (46/65 MRSA and 12/33 methicillin-susceptible S. aureus, MSSA) and tst1 gene in 16.3% of isolates. This molecular study highlights the high prevalence of MRSA and the large genetic diversity of the S. aureus isolates circulating and detected in two hospitals of Kabul, with the presence of multiple virulence and antibiotic resistance genes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The essay examines four files from the U.S. National Archives dealing with information management in Afghanistan at the onset of the Cold War. The files describe the structure of information dissemination by the U.S. in Kabul, providing considerable detail about the materials distributed, their varying appeal to local communities and constituencies, and their function in the larger ideological competition with the Soviet Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This research aimed to explore love and belonging or social needs, of young adults with hearing loss in Kabul, Afghanistan. Method: A qualitative research method specifically, the phenomenological approach, was adopted to conduct this research. An in-depth semi-structured interview was used to interview ten participants. Conclusion: Overall, two themes and four sub-themes were derived from thematic analysis. The finding indicates that social support from family members and people in the surrounding, and a sense of belonging are fundamental social needs of people with hearing loss. Further research is needed to investigate the reasons behind the unmet social needs of people with hearing loss. Limitation: The major limitations of the study were - lack of official data regarding people with hearing disability in Afghanistan, non-availability of sign language interpreters, and cultural constraints faced by female study participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kabul was the seat of Mughal power during the first half of the sixteenth century, and—it is argued here—provided inspiration for the better-known Mughal metropoles of Hindustan. Sources suggest that the topography of Kabul was already well established, along with its major landmarks, decades before Babur made it the seat of his court in 1504. Among these landmarks were three remarkable royal gardens (all Timurid foundations), which performed complementary functions. The one known today as Bagh-i Babur acquired funerary connotations with the burial of Babur's mother there in 1505, if not earlier. The Bagh-i Shahrara hosted the governor as well as distinguished guests, including widowed or divorced princesses and imperial visitors. The Chaharbagh was the seat of the court. Its functional units included residential quarters for the ruler and the harem, a courtyard of audience, administrative quarters, and service provisions. In this study, Kabul and its gardens are compared with Mughal counterparts in Hindustan, and (more briefly) with Timurid Herat and Safavid Isfahan. This comparison contributes to an understanding of the unique position occupied by gardens in the Timurid realm and in the courts of their Mughal and Safavid successors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]