The Journal of Middle East and North Africa Sciences

9-14

Authors: Viral Patel; Shereen Henin; Anoud S. Al kaabi; Mohammed Y. Rashid; Anupa Gnawali; Asfa Noor; Alejandrina Cuello-Ramírez; Jihan A. Mostafa

Background. Stroke is a condition of quickly developing clinical signs of focal or global neurological disruption lasting for over twenty-four hours with no visible reason besides a vascular origin. Different risk factors are included for stroke development, like hyperlipidemia, hypertension, diabetes, and smoking. The current study was conducted to determine serum uric acid in acute ischemic stroke patients and evaluate its relationship with stroke severity. Method. An Analytical, Non-interventional Prospective study was conducted among 50 cases of acute ischemic stroke admitted in the medicine ward at Sadhana Kutir Hospital, Kim, India, over six months from August 2020 to January 2021. All patients who presented within twenty-four hours of the onset of stroke and who gave consent were included. Fifty normal healthy individuals are included as controls. Serum uric acid levels, along with other blood routine tests, were done. The GCS score measured stroke severity. Results. The mean age group in cases was 62.39±11.61 and in control was 60.18±14.72. In cases, mean blood uric acid was 5.41±1.26 and in control was 4.82±1.26; this difference was statistically significant at a p-value of 0.021. There was no correlation between the severity of stroke and serum uric acid levels. (p valve-0.2488). Conclusion. This study concludes that serum uric acid can be utilized as neurotic biomarkers in acute ischemic stroke patients. But stroke severity can not be predicted by its level.

26-30

Authors: Asim Chatterjee; Madhuvanti Mukherjee; Priyanka Gupta; Sandali Devireddy

Introduction. In India, the fragmented and heavily under-sourced diversion of resources towards the COVID-19 Pandemic has heavily limited the workings of non-COVID-related health services. Several factors, including the suspension of transport facilities, the shutdown of private facilities, conversion of public-health facilities into COVID-19 treatment centers, and the diversion of medical professionals towards COVID-19 emergency-response have lengthened these restrictions. This has gendered implications for low-income women and girls. A lack of structured social security and healthcare-provision systems obligates these persons to assume the primary caretaker role in their households. Aims. This paper aims to outline the evidence for the lived experiences of low-income Indian women as they strive to balance their paid-work and unpaid-caretaker-obligations during the COVID-19 Pandemic. On a macro level, our work aims to assess the extent to which women’s health, economic, and social empowerment can be achieved through existing programs and policies. Methods. Our findings were drawn from qualitative research conducted in urban and peri-urban regions of Jaipur and Lucknow. A mixed-methods approach was used, combining online surveys with semi-structured interviews and participatory exercises to generate high-quality data. All girls and young women selected for participation were between the ages of 15-24. Results. Interviewees described their caretaking experience as physically and emotionally depleting. As substitute providers of care, they felt unprepared and unfit to administer health procedures. Although many felt that they “needed” to earn some sort of income, their paid work options were few and poorly paid. As a result, most participants could only fulfill their domestic caretaking responsibilities in the most basic capacity. Analysis of participants’ survey reports revealed that women had little knowledge of the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences on their lives. Conclusions. The strengthening of social security measures is of the utmost importance. In the future, policy should take into consideration the costs of womens’ caregiving responsibilities on themselves, their children, and their families. A gendered approach to the political economy must be adopted.