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Background: Heart failure is a leading cardiac morbidity prevalent across the globe. Its incidence is rising in direct proportion to increasing longevity all over the world. Demographic variables are important predictors of quality of life, morbidity, rehospitalization, and mortality due to systolic heart failure. The objective of our study was to assess the association of demographic variables with quality of life of systolic heart failure in patients presenting at Cardiology Out Patient Department, Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar. Our study aims to inform policy making as it highlights some important demographics factors associated with quality of life. Methods: A cross sectional method was employed in the study to examine systolic heart failure and its prevalence across various demographic variables such as age, gender, marital status, activity, number of children, education, employment status, and BMI at cardiology OPD of a medical teaching institution in Peshawar. Consecutive sampling was used and data were collected through a structured questionnaire from 368 Systolic Heart Failure patients. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. Results: We had 368 participants, a majority of whom (n=290; 78.8%), were in NYHA class III. The rest (n=78; 21.2%) were in class IV. Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHFQ) was used to categorize quality of life into 'Good', 'Moderate' and 'Poor'. Most participants were in the 'poor' category with MLHFQ scores >45 (n=193; 52.4%). Those who had scores between 25 -45 were categorized as 'moderate' (n=116; 31.5%), and participants who scored < 24 were categorized as having a 'good' quality of life (n=59; 16%). Reliability of tools was checked by Cronbach alpha which was 0.86 Conclusion: It was concluded that demographic variables have a significant effect on the overall morbidity of heart failure patients and heart failure related quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVE: To assess the knowledge, attitude and practice regarding hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection among nurses working in a public hospital of Peshawar, Pakistan. METHODS: This descriptive, cross sectional was conducted on 100 (96 females, 4 males) staff nurses of Haytabad Medical Complex, Peshawar, Pakistan, from 15th November 2010 to 15th January 2011. The sampling technique was simple random sampling. Qualitative variables were analyzed by calculating means and standard deviations. Quantitative variables were analyzed by calculating frequencies and percentages. RESULTS: The mean age of the respondents was 34.8±9.5 years. Sixty one percent had job duration >4 years. Previous source of knowledge about HBV, during nursing training school was 91% through workshops. Knowledge about HBV infection was 94%. 95% responded that it spread through blood transfusions. Ninety-six percent responded that they do not have separate dressing sets for hepatitis B patient. The practice of vaccination against HBV in nurses was 66% and use of disposable gloves while handling hepatitis B patient was 45%. Increase in duration of job was significantly associated with knowledge about hepatitis B virus and its spread (p-value <0.001). Intravenous cannulas and syringes were properly discarded with increasing job experience (p-value <0.001). Nurses with job duration of more than four years used gloves while handling hepatitis B patient (p-value <0.001). CONCLUSION: Knowledge of hospital staff nurses regarding HBV infection was adequate. The attitude of the hospital staff nurses regarding HBV infection was good. The practices of the hospital staff nurse regarding HBV infection were very poor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to assess the usage of the internet among medical and dental students at Gandhara University during COVID-19. It was a cross-sectional study, carried out from December 2020-February 2021. The sample size was 430 students from Sardar Begum Dental College and Kabir Medical College. 2nd, 3rd and final-year students were selected. The questionnaire was designed with closed-ended questions regarding internet usage. An ethical report was obtained from Gandhara University. Data was collected and analysed through SPSS version 26.0. A total of 430 students, 247 Medical and 183 dental students participated in this study. During COVID-19 searching the internet for fun on an hourly basis, searching the internet for health information and the use of the internet on an hourly basis were significant according to our study. During COVID-19 the use of the internet has increased drastically. It was concluded that the use of the internet was in access in all the respected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]