Streptococcus pyogenes (S. pyogenes) is the main agent of acute pharyngitis and skin infections that may result in the late complications of glomerulonephritis and rheumatic fever. Infection with streptococcus group A is a global health problem, which is most common in children and adults. This study was conducted to investigate the rate of S. pyogenes throat carriers and its main risk factors among healthy students of Kabul university. In the present study pharyngeal swabs of 260, [155 (59.6%) were male and 105 (40.4%) were female] asymptomatic university students aged between 19-30 years, were collected and immediately transported to the laboratory for detection of S. pyogenes following standard microbiological procedures. Production of beta hemolytic colonies on blood agar, sensitivity to bacitracin antibiotic, gram stain positivity, catalase negativity test and streptococcal grouping latex kit (ProlexTM) tests were used to identify and differentiate S. pyogenes from other streptococcus spp. Statistical analysis of data was performed using SPSS 21, Chi-square and Logistic regression tests were applied for the categorical data analysis. A P value equal to or less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Totally 61 (23.5%) beta hemolytic streptococci were isolated from 260 samples. Among 61 beta hemolytic isolates, 44 (16.9%) were identified as S. pyogenes. The colonization rate of S. pyogenes was higher in male 25 (56.8%) than female 19 (43.2%), which was not statistically significant (p=0.678). Age, residence of the students at hostel and shared utensil use were not statistically significant (p=0.088, p= 0.449, p=0.241 respectively), but the number of children in the family was an important risk factor. People with 1-3 children had a 23-fold higher risk (p˂0.05), and people with 4-6 children had a 27-fold higher risk of carrying S. pyogenes, than those who did not had any children (p˂0.05). In the present study the asymptomatic throat carriage rate of S. pyogenes among Kabul University students, was high. Among all risk factors the number of children in the family was significantly associated with S. pyogenes throat carriage.

Background: SARS-CoV-2 is a novel member of human coronavirus that is newly identified in Wuhan, Hubei, China. The COVID-19 pandemic has spread to over 213 countries and affected more than 33 million individuals and caused 999000 deaths worldwide.Methods: This cross-sectional study conducted on 124 symptomatic COVID-19 patients in Kabul, Afghanistan. Demographic and clinical data collected using a standard form.  Nasopharyngeal/oropharyngeal swab sample collected for viral detection. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS statistics (version 21) software.Results: Out of 124 patients, 88 (71%) were male and 36 (29%) were female. The mean age of patients was 41.2±17.07 years and the majority of patients 32 (25.8%) were in the age group of 20 – 29 and minority 3 (2.4) was over 79 years. On clinical presentation, most patients had ageusia (71.3%), fever (69.4%), headache (69.4%), sore throat (66.1%), myalgia (66.1%), cough (64.5%), weakness (63.7%), dyspnea (38.7%), and the fewer symptom was diarrhea (31.5%). 19 (15.3%) patients had Hypertension, 16 (12.9%) had cardiovascular disease, 8 (6.5%) had diabetes, 5 (4.0%) had cancer, 4 (3.2%) had chronic pulmonary disease, and 3 (2.4%) had liver disease. The mean duration for the presence of symptoms was 13.3±6.3 days. The fatality rate was 4%.Conclusion: Our study reveals that males are more affected by COVID-19 than females and the young generation is more affected than elders.  The most common symptoms are ageusia, fever, headache, sore throat, and myalgia, and the less common symptom is diarrhea.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections are one of the world's health problems that annually kill about 500,000 to 1,200,000 people. Investigation of HBV DNA in the person infected with HBV is a definitive indicator of activation and replication of HBV.Objectives: The aim of this study is to investigate the DNA of HBV in HBsAg positive patients and to study the risk factors for virus activation. Methods: This study was conducted on 106 HBsAg positive patients from January 2020 to July 2020 in Kabul. After informed consent, 3 to 5 milliliters of blood was collected for the HBV-DNA testing using the Real-time PCR method.Result: Out of 106 HbsAg positive patients, 74 (69.8%) were males and 32 (30.2%) females. The patients were aged between 11 and 65 years. Hepatitis B virus DNA was positive in 58 (54.7%) of the samples, 41 (70.7%) were male and 17 (29.3%) were female. The viral DNA load was in the range of 9.85 x 102 to 9.3 x 108 copies/ ml. Most of the patients were aged between 20 and 30 years. Conclusion: From 106 HbsAg positive patients, 23(39.7%) were in the age group of 20 – 30 years, and males were more infected than females. The majority of the patients were married and had an informal job with education below grade 12. No specific differences were found in the availability of HBV DNA between patients who received hepatitis B treatment before and those who did not.  

Background: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common malignant tumor of the kidney. This tumor originates from the epithelial cells of the renal tubules and is located mainly in the cortical region of the kidney. It constitutes approximately 90% of all kidney malignancies and 2% of all cancers in adults. Objectives: The present study was conducted to determine the prevalence of RCC and its histological subtypes in samples sent to the Pathology Department of Kabul University of Medical Sciences and City Laboratory. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of 81 nephrectomy and partial nephrectomy samples registered in the laboratory of the Pathology Department of Kabul University of Medical Sciences and City Medical laboratory database from March 2016 to August 2020. Results: A total of 81 samples were included in this study. The mean and standard deviation (SD) age of the patients was 44.4 ± 20.5. Of 81 samples, 62 (76.6%) were malignant kidney tumors, 13 (16.0%) were inflammatory kidney disease, 4 (4.9%) were polycystic kidney disease, and 2 (2.5%) were benign kidney tumors. Among 62 cases of malignant kidney tumor, 53 (85.48%) were RCC. The high incidence of RCC was in the age group of 56 to 65 years with a mean of 52.2 years; 56.60% of RCC cases were male and 43.39% were female. Based on the histological studies, 75.47% were clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) type, followed by 18.86% papillary renal cell carcinoma (PRCC), and 6% chromophobe renal cell carcinoma (ChRCC). Conclusions: Most common malignant tumor of the kidney in the samples included in this study was RCC in the age group of 56 to 65 years and it was more frequent among men compared to women, whereas the most common histological subtype was ccRCC. The findings are in concordance with international literature.