Background: Soft tissue vascular malformations are not uncommonly encountered in clinical practice and are often mistaken for other pathologies. Vascular anomalies are divided into vascular tumors and malformations. Vascular malformations progressively increase in size with increasing age and are classified into low-flow (venous, lymphatic, veno-lymphatic, capillary and capillary venous) and high-flow malformations (arteriovenous malformations (AVM) and arteriovenous fistula (AVF)) depending on the presence or absence of arterial flow. Aim: Aim of this study is to evaluate the Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features of the soft tissue vascular malformations and to classify the lesions depending on flow pattern. Materials and Methods: A total of 52 patients of soft tissue vascular malformations were included in this study over a period of 3 years. All patients underwent detailed clinical examination and dynamic post contrast MRI evaluation. Doppler and ultrasound were done as an adjunct. Results: There were 31 females and 21 male patients with age ranging from 9 to 34 years. In total 33 venous, 11 lymphatic, 8 veno-lymphatic malformations were seen. No case of high-flow malformation was seen. Majority of the lesions involved the head and neck region and the extremities. Fat saturated T2WI, STIR, and 3D dynamic post contrast sequences were found to be the most useful MRI sequences. Conclusion: MRI is the modality of choice for evaluating the soft tissue vascular malformations. It depicts the extent of the lesion, classifies the lesions into low or high flow and helps in treatment planning.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to assess the infection control practices among dental trainees and house-officers. The use of method of sterilization, to figure out that whether the dental trainees are vaccinated against Human Immuno-Deficiency Virus (HIV), Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), Hepatitis B and C, the color-coded waste segregation protocols implementation in dental hospitals. METHODOLOGY: A comparative study was conducted in Sardar Begum Dental Hospital (SBDH), Peshawar. The total number of the participants was 150 dental practitioners (75 training medical officers and 75 house officers) including both genders from different departments of SBDH. A questionnaire was designed to obtain the data on infection control practices, method using for sterilization, vaccination of the trainees and waste segregation protocols. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 21.0. RESULTS: Training medical officers (TMO) and house-officers (HO) are following the infection control practices in dental units (p<0.01). The autoclave methods are preferred for sterilization in dental hospital by both trainees (p-value<0.01). Furthermore, TMO’s were vaccinated as compared to the HO’s. Similarly, the TMO’s were more following the color-coded waste disposal protocols. CONCLUSION: Despite the information and practices of infection control there is a need for further developments in this area. The authorities should monitor the infection control practices and vaccinations of the trainees and arrange seminars or workshops for them. KEYWORDS: Equipment, Disinfectant, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), Sterilization