Abstract Background The craniovertebral angle is a measure for assessing head and neck posture. A reduced angle has been observed in people with neck pain and is associated with more forward head posture and greater impact on daily activities. Objective To determine the relationship between forward head posture (craniovertebral angle-CV Angle) and static balance in undergraduate medical students primarily and to find the impact of forward head posture and neck pain on activities of daily living. Methodology A cross-sectional observational analytical study was conducted on 211 participants, both male and female undergraduate medical students from a private medical college in Lahore, Pakistan were included on a predefined eligibility criterion. The CV angle was measured with universal goniometer and static balance was assessed using one leg stand test for both sides three times for thirty seconds. The Northwick Park Neck Pain Questionnaire was used to find the impact on neck pain on daily living. A linear regression was used to express the effect of FHP on the NPQ score and correlation analysis was applied to determine the relationship between FHP and OLST based on the data’s normality. The statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Results The mean age was 21.49 ± 1.87 years. The incidence of forward head posture in study population was found to be 91.4%. Neck pain was found to be mildly impacting the daily living activities of medical students. CV angle had an inverse but significant relation with performance of daily living activities of medical students. Conclusion Forward head posture was observed in the majority of the study participants; a mild degree of neck pain was found in more than half of them. With increasing forward head posture, activities of daily living were mildly compromised. Additionally, the study found a weak correlation between static balance and forward head posture.
Background: Dental caries remains one of the most common chronic childhood oral diseases and disproportionately affects children living in socioeconomically disadvantaged communities where access to preventive care and oral health education is limited. Objective: To determine the caries burden among school-going children from underserved communities in Lahore, Pakistan, and to evaluate the association of brushing frequency, fluoridated toothpaste use, and parental supervision with dental caries experience. Methods: This retrospective analytical cross-sectional study included 270 children aged 5–15 years screened in community-based outreach camps. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and clinical oral examination. Caries status was assessed using DMFT and deft indices, and oral hygiene was evaluated using plaque, gingival, and calculus indices. Descriptive statistics were computed, while group comparisons were performed using independent-samples t-test, one-way ANOVA, chi-square test, and Pearson correlation analysis in SPSS version 26, with p < 0.05 considered statistically significant. Results: The mean DMFT was 2.85 ± 1.70 and the mean deft was 3.12 ± 1.90, indicating moderate caries burden. Children who brushed twice daily had lower mean DMFT scores (2.34 ± 1.30) than those brushing once daily (3.12 ± 1.80) or irregularly (3.68 ± 1.90) (F = 4.36, p = 0.014). Supervised brushing was associated with lower mean DMFT than unsupervised brushing (2.41 ± 1.40 vs 3.18 ± 1.80; t = 2.97, p = 0.003). Plaque index showed a strong positive correlation with DMFT (r = 0.78, p = 0.001). Conclusion: Poorer oral hygiene practices, especially reduced brushing frequency and lack of parental supervision, were associated with higher dental caries burden in underprivileged children. Preventive strategies integrating school-based oral health promotion and caregiver engagement may help reduce caries in underserved populations.
Cervical cystic hygroma, or lymphatic malformation, is a rare congenital anomaly that can present as a life-threatening airway emergency in neonates. Prompt recognition and timely management are critical for survival. While surgical excision has traditionally been the mainstay of treatment, extensive lesions involving vital neck structures carry significant operative risks in the neonatal period. We report a full-term neonate presenting at birth with a giant cervical cystic hygroma causing airway compression and respiratory distress. Due to high surgical risk, emergency ultrasound-guided intralesional bleomycin sclerotherapy was performed, resulting in a marked reduction in lesion size. At the six-month follow-up, there was no recurrence. This case underscores the role of image-guided intralesional sclerotherapy as a safe, effective, and minimally invasive life-saving alternative for neonates with giant cervical cystic hygroma.
Background: Carpenters perform repetitive and forceful upper-limb activities that may increase the risk of lateral Background: Dexmedetomidine and propofol are frequently used intravenous sedatives with distinct molecular targets and effects on arousal networks. Although both agents can achieve clinically comparable sedation, their electroencephalographic manifestations differ in spectral composition, spatial organization, processed index behavior, functional connectivity, and emergence dynamics. These differences are clinically important because simplified depth-of-sedation indices may not represent equivalent neurophysiological states across drug classes. Objective: This structured narrative review aimed to critically synthesize contemporary evidence regarding the raw and processed electroencephalographic signatures associated with dexmedetomidine and propofol sedation in adults. Methods: PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and CENTRAL were searched for English-language human studies and relevant reviews published principally between January 2014 and May 2024. Foundational earlier studies were considered when necessary to explain established propofol EEG mechanisms. Literature selection prioritized direct comparative studies, controlled volunteer investigations, prospective clinical studies, secondary EEG analyses, and mechanistically informative reports addressing spectral power, spectral edge frequency, bispectral index, entropy, coherence, functional connectivity, and emergence trajectories. Findings were organized through a structured thematic synthesis rather than statistical pooling. Results: Dexmedetomidine was commonly associated with increased slow-delta activity accompanied by frontal spindle- or alpha-range oscillations and relative preservation of selected coherence measures. Propofol produced prominent slow-wave activity with concentration- and state-dependent frontal alpha oscillations, reduced faster-frequency activity, and greater disruption of selected long-range cortical interactions. At comparable clinical sedation levels, bispectral index and spectral edge frequency values frequently differed between agents. Evidence concerning entropy, connectivity, and emergence trajectories was informative but less extensively replicated. Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine and propofol produce distinct, context-dependent EEG profiles that should not be interpreted through interchangeable processed-index thresholds. Drug-specific EEG interpretation may improve sedation assessment, but standardized prospective studies linking electrophysiological patterns with patient-centered outcomes remain necessary
