KARACHI- The 2nd Annual Symposium on ‘Emergency Medicine: An Emerging Specialty in Pakistan,’ was recently hosted by Dr Ziauddin Hospital and Ziauddin University, shedding light on the increasing number of deaths, occurring due to trauma cases.
Whilst addressing the audience, Prof. Syed Minhas, Consultant Orthopedics, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center (JPMC) stated that, “There are 43% of deaths in children aged 1-4, 52% of deaths in children aged 5-14, 76% of deaths in children aged 15-24 and the biggest reason of sudden deaths among youngsters are mostly injuries. Males are more likely to sustain injuries than females, with a fatal injury rate 2.5 times higher.”
He informed regarding the number of trauma cases their hospital receives, pertaining to women with long scarves or coverings, leading to accidents.
It was also revealed that 46% of road traffic deaths are seen in cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians, where as 48% are car occupants.
Prof. Dr Pirzada Qasim Raza Siddiqui, Vice Chancellor, Ziauddin University, in his welcoming address talked about the aim of this event, which was to inculcate awareness regarding the importance of Emergency Medicine as an emerging specialty in Pakistan.
Dr. Asim Hussain, Chief guest of the conference, stated that the specialty of Emergency Medicine (EM) is an important component of medical field, which is rapidly developing worldwide.
Focused on the recognition, steadiness and treatment of life and limb-threatening conditions, EM is now well established in Pakistan and has accomplished many of the landmarks of EM development within a period of 10 years.
Whilst discussing the new trends in managing stroke and transient ischemic attack (TIA) in the emergency medicine setup, Prof. Nadir Ali Syed, Consultant Neurologist, South City Hospital highlighted that one in five people suffer from stroke, which requires a CT scan to finalize diagnosis.
He stressed upon providing proper training to the emergency medicine physicians, in order to save numerous lives within time.
Assistant Professor Medicine and Diabetologist, Dr Ali Raza, Ziauddin University, talked about his field of expertise, during which he informed that Diabetes and Ketoacidosis are life threatening conditions, Insulin being the prime issue.
He added that 25% of patients miss their dose even after knowing about the consequences; whereas 13 % of diabetic patients get wrong prescriptions because of fake doctors, devoid of training and skill.
Furthermore, he added that the initial 5 hours of severe diabetic patients are very important. They should be given 8 liters of water in early 5 hours, with a balanced intake of potassium, to fight the disease.
Other speakers notified that worldwide, Trauma is the number one cause of death in people aged between 1 - 46, Stroke being second most common cause, followed by Cancer.