[en] Aim: To translate and validate Leicester cough questionnaire in Urdu language for patients with Cystic fibrosis. Methods: It is a cross-cultural linguistic study. 150 participants were included in the study and Non probability convenient sampling was used. Inclusion criteria includes parents of children with CF, who understand Urdu, and have symptoms of chronic cough. Children with severe respiratory exacerbations were excluded. Data was entered using SPSS version 25 and same software was used for data analysis. Results: It took 6 months to achieve an Urdu version of LCQ, which proved to be satisfactorily acceptable when administered to 150 subjects. The questionnaire showed acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha =0.916), test-retest reliability by Pearson correlation ranged from 0.203 to 0.99 and intraclass correlation coefficient value 0.2 to 0.9 showed high reliability. Conclusion: Leicester Cough Questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool for assessing the impact of cough on quality of life in patients with Cystic fibrosis. (author)

[en] Background: Lead remains a considerable occupational and public health problem, which is known to cause a number of adverse effects in both men and women. Conflicting reports have appeared on lead induced nephrotoxicity in experimental studies in the past. There is hardly any work on its teratogenic effects on kidney. Present study was therefore designed to investigate the effects of lead acetate on developing kidney. Methods: Twelve mice were used as experimental model and were divided into two groups of six animals each; group A served as control group and B was used as an experimental group. Lead acetate (10 mg/kg) dissolved in 0.02 ml of distilled water was administered as a single daily dose orally to group B whereas weight related amount of distilled water was given to group A for the entire period of experiment. On 18 day of gestation foetuses were dissected free of uterine wall under the dissecting microscope and were sacrificed; kidneys were removed and fixed in 10% formalin, dehydrated in ascending grades of alcohol, cleared in xylene and infiltrated with filtered paraffin. The paraffin blocks were made and five micron thin sections were obtained using a rotary microtome. The sections were stained with Hematoxylin and eosin and, PAS; these were examined under light microscope. Results: Significant decrease in cortical thickness was observed which varied from 578.6 +- 1.4 mu m in group A to 515.6 +- 5 mu m in group B (p<0.001). Diameter of renal corpuscles varied from 57.7 +- 0.07 mu m in group A to 50.5 +- 0.07 mu m in group B (p<0.001). Moderate cortical tubular atrophy showing thickening of endothelial basement membrane in glomeruli, desquamated epithelium with degenerated nuclei in proximal and distal tubules were observed in group B in contrast to group A. Conclusion: The results of the investigation indicated that lead acetate administration to the dams produced deleterious effects on the developing kidney in mice. (author)

[en] Background: Advancements in medical science, including Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) and Mirror Therapy (MT), are being utilized to treat Cerebral Palsy (CP), a non-progressive condition that impacts neuromuscular development. Objective: To compare the effects of tDCS and MT for rehabilitation of spastic quadriplegic CP Methods: A Double-Blind Randomized Clinical Trial(IRCT20231227060542N1) was conducted at the Department of Physical Therapy, Ghurki Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan. Thirty CP patients were randomly assigned by sealed envelopes to three equal groups: Group A (tDCS, MT), and routine Physical Therapy (RPT)), Group B (tDCS and RPT), and Group C (MT and RPT). Participants underwent tDCS with MT for 30 minutes per session, five times weekly for two weeks. RPT was also provided for 20 minutes per session, five times weekly for 10 weeks^. Motor development (MD) was assessed using the Shoaib Sensorimotor Development Tool (SMDT), motor control (MC) by Fugl-Meyer Assessment (UE, LE), and Muscle Performance(MP) by isokinetic dynamometer at baseline, after two weeks, and after ten weeks of follow-up. Results: Group A demonstrated a more significant impact on rehabilitation in terms of motor development, motor control, and muscle performance compared to Groups B and C, based on mean comparisons after two and ten weeks. There was a statistically significant difference between the groups in MD (P = 0.01), MC (P = 0.02), and MP (P = 0.04). Conclusion: Transcranial direct current stimulation, either alone or in combination, has a more consistent impact on the rehabilitation of spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy patients. (author)

[en] Aim: The objective of this study is Translation and validation of autism spectrum screening questionnaires in Urdu. Methods: This was a cross-cultural validation study conducted at the Rising Sun Institute in Lahore utilizing convenient sampling. Twenty pediatric rehabilitation experts and parents of children with autism spectrum disorders, ranging in age from 6 to 17, were included in the study. Two different translators translated the original English edition of ASSQ into Urdu (forward translation). One of the translators was a technological expert, while the other was a medical professional. These interpreters could communicate well in both English and Urdu. The Urdu version of the ASSQ was subsequently translated into English (backward translation). This was carried out by a healthcare expert who had been blinded to the original English version of the ASSQ. The final version was given to an expert panel for assessment after both scales were compared. Panel created the final translated Urdu version of the data. The guardian's approval was obtained in advance, and anonymity was guaranteed. The data was entered into and analyzed using the SPSS version 21 application. The variables in the study were represented using descriptive statistics such as tables, graphs, and percentages. Results: For reliability statistics, the mean age of the participants was 54.87, with a standard deviation of 0.7648. The translated ASSQ questionnaire had a Cronbach's alpha of 0.584. After testing and re-testing on parents of Autism patients, the inter item correlation (Pearson Correlation) varied between (0.510-0.845). After translation of ASSQ, the intra-class correlation varied from 0.345 to 0.484. Conclusion: Urdu version of autism spectrum screening questionnaire is a valid and reliable tool for autism children. (author)