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Monkeypox (Mpox) is an emerging public health concern globally as well as in Pakistan, with over 100 000 confirmed cases reported across 120 countries as of July 2024.
To assess healthcare professionals’ knowledge and preparedness regarding Mpox and examine its association with demographic factors.
Quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional study.
Conducted in tertiary care public sector hospitals of Rawalpindi district, Pakistan, from October 2024 to February 2025.
A total of 230 healthcare professionals of either gender, aged over 18 years, currently working in the public sector tertiary care hospitals of Rawalpindi district for at least 6 months were included.
The mean age of the respondents was 29.13±6.55 years. The majority were women (147, 63.9%), post-graduate trainees (106, 46.1%), with 1–5 years of experience (184, 80%) and from medicine and allied disciplines (131, 57%). Most participants had an average level of knowledge regarding Mpox (137, 59.6%), with only a few demonstrating good knowledge (40, 17.4%). Half of the participants reported that their healthcare facilities lacked proper protocols for managing Mpox cases (97, 42.2%). Significant associations were observed between Mpox knowledge scores and participants’ field of specialty (p=0.007); notably, respondents from basic sciences had a higher proportion of good knowledge scores.
Overall, the level of knowledge and preparedness regarding Mpox among healthcare professionals was average. There is an urgent need for standardised Mpox preparedness protocols, outbreak response planning and comprehensive training programmes to enhance readiness for future outbreaks.
While previous studies have shown an association between anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) levels and endometriosis, there are limited data on the relationship between AMH levels and age among women with endometriosis.
The present study aimed to investigate the associations between age and AMH levels in women with and without endometriosis.
A cross-sectional, population-based study using data from the ongoing Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study.
A total of 1005 eligible reproductive-age women were selected. These participants were categorised into two groups: women with confirmed endometriosis (n=305) and controls (n=700).
None.
Association between AMH levels and age among women with endometriosis and healthy controls, using linear, quadratic and segmented regression analyses.
A total of 1005 women aged 18–48 years participated in the study, including 305 (30.3%) with endometriosis and 700 (69.7%) healthy controls. Women with endometriosis had significantly lower AMH levels compared with healthy controls (1.99±1.42 vs 2.30±1.61 ng/mL; p=0.029). In healthy controls, an increase of 1 year was associated with –0.15 ng/mL of AMH (95% CI: –0.17 to –0.14). Segmented regression identified a threshold at 27 years (1.92), with a sharper decline below this age (slope: –0.35, 95% CI: –0.47 to –0.23; p
Our study showed that women with endometriosis had significantly lower AMH levels compared with healthy controls and did not demonstrate the age-related threshold observed in the control group, where AMH levels declined more sharply before 27 years of age. These findings suggest that endometriosis may alter the typical pattern of AMH, indicating that clinicians should interpret AMH levels with caution in this population. Further research is needed to validate these results in other populations and explore alternative biomarkers or strategies for more accurately assessing ovarian reserve in women with endometriosis.
by Unwaniah Abdull Rahim, Marami Mustapa, Nik Noorul Shakira Mohamed Shakrin, Armania Nurdin, Nursiati Mohamad Taridi, Yasmin Anum Mohd Yusof, Mariam Firdhaus Mad Nordin, Nur Aishah Che Roos
Cervical cancer ranked fourth most common malignancy among women worldwide despite the establishment of vaccination programmes. This systematic review evaluates the anti-cancer properties of turmeric and ginger bioactive compounds, specifically curcumin, 6/10-gingerol, and 6/10-shogaol, and their combination in cervical cancer through in-vitro and in-vivo models. A comprehensive electronic search was performed using Science Direct, PubMed, and Scopus from inception until the second week of June 2024 for studies published in English. Only studies investigating the effects of curcumin, gingerol, shogaol, and/or their combination in human cervical cancer cell lines and/or rodent animal models implanted with cervical cancer xenografts were included. Altogether, 27 studies were included in this review. The evidence gathered indicated that curcumin, 6/10-gingerol and 6-shogaol exert their anticancer action through modulation of cell signalling pathways, including AMPK, WNT, PI3K/AKT, and NF‐κB pathway, and mediators including Bax/Bcl2, TNF‐α, EGFR, COX‐2, caspases‐3, ‐9, p53, and pRb. However, the synergistic effect of these bioactive compounds is not known due to lack of evidence. In conclusion, curcumin, 6/10-gingerols, and 6-shogaols hold promise as therapeutic agents for cervical cancer. Yet, further research is essential to understand their combined efficacy, emphasising the need for additional studies exploring the synergistic anticancer effects of these bioactive compounds. Additional factors to explore include long-term effects and susceptibility of chemoresistant cervical cancer cells towards curcumin, shogaols, and gingerols.Patients with chronic limb-threatening ischaemia (CLTI) are at risk of foot infections, which is associated with an increase in amputation rates. The use of antibiotics may lead to a higher incidence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in subsequent episodes of ischaemic foot infections (IFI). This retrospective single-centre cohort study included 130 patients with IFI undergoing endovascular revascularisation. Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa were the two most common pathogens, accounting for 20.5% and 10.8% of cases, respectively. The prevalence of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and multi-drug resistance did not significantly increase between episodes (10.2% vs. 13.4%, p = 0.42). In 59% of subsequent episodes, the identified pathogens were unrelated to the previous episode. However, the partial concordance of identified pathogens significantly increased to 66.7% when S. aureus was identified (p = 0.027). Subsequent episodes of IFI in the same patient are likely to differ in causative pathogens. However, in the case of S. aureus, the risk of reinfection, particularly with S. aureus, is increased. Multi-drug resistance does not appear to change between IFI episodes. Therefore, recommendations for empirical antimicrobial therapy should be based on local pathogen and resistance statistics without the need to broaden the spectrum of antibiotics in subsequent episodes.
FreshRSS 