Objective Theological beliefs play an important role in cultural norms and could impact women’s prenatal and postpartum decisions in South Asia, which has a high burden of disease in children and pregnant women. The aim of this study is to identify any associations religion may have in affecting a woman’s decision-making ability, and how that in turn affects maternal and child health, at a group level in multiple South Asian countries. Study design Cross-sectional study utilizing secondary data analysis. Methods We used Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) between 2014 and 2018 in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. Not every country’s survey asked about religion, so we imputed these results based on Census data. We assessed maternal and child health through a composite coverage index (CCI), which accounts for family planning, attendance of a skilled attendant at birth, antenatal care, BCG vaccinations, 3 doses of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, measles vaccine, oral rehydration therapy, and seeking care if the child has pneumonia. The relationship between religion, women’s empowerment, and CCI was assessed through linear regression models. Results The sample included 57,972 mothers who had children aged 12–23 months. CCI is observed to be affected by family income, in addition to religion and country. CCI was higher in Hindus (2.8%, 95% CI: 2.4%, 3.1%) and Buddhists (2.0%, 95% CI: 1.2%, 2.9%) than Muslims. Mother’s age, education, income, decision-making autonomy, and attitude towards beatings were all related to CCI. In a model stratified by religion, age, education, and income were significant predictors of CCI for both Muslims and non-Muslims, but were more impactful among Muslims. Conclusion Though multiple imputation had to be used to fill in gaps in religion data, this study demonstrates that maternal and child health outcomes continue to be a concern in South Asia, especially for Muslim women. Given the importance of religious beliefs, utilizing a simple indicator, such as the CCI could be helpful for monitoring these outcomes and provides a tangible first step for communities to address gaps in care resulting from disparities in maternal empowerment.

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common and disabling constant Musculoskeletal Disorder that causes significant weight on individual, Health Care Systems, and social economy. With the maturing of the populace and the commonness of undesirable way of life practices, the predominance and disease burden of OA are expanding day by day. Objective: To find the prevalence of knee osteoarthritis and quality of life among middle-aged adults. Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted at the major hospitals and physical therapy clinical setups of Pakistan from April to July 2019 (4 months) after approval of IRB/ERC (SRMCH/MS/20/12/41) Suleman Roshan medical college hospital, Tando Adam. The total sample was n=300 selected using non-probability convenience sampling. The middle-aged adults (40-65 years) having moderate to severe knee pain, both male and female were included. According to the American college of rheumatology the criteria for assessing OA by using history, physical examination, and radiographic findings: pain in the knee and one of following over 50 years of age, less than 30minutes of morning stiffness crepitus on active motion and osteophytes and quality of life assessed according to WHOQOL-100 score. The results of the study are presented as frequency, percentages, and mean ±SD. The data were analysed through SPSS 21.Results: The mean age of the study participants (n=300) was a 48.96±6.804 year. The majority of the participants were female (n=208) and the remaining n=92 were male. The prevalence of OA in the middle aged adults (n=300) n=170 (56.7%). The significantly reduced QoL among patient having knee OA (37.19±23.22 ver 42.51±22.69, p<0.05) as compare to those having knee pain without Knee OA.Conclusion: The prevalence of knee pain in middle-aged adults is high and their quality of life is moderately affected. Key words: Knee, Middle-aged, Osteoarthritis, Prevalence, Quality of life.

Depending on the cause, neck pain can persist anywhere from a few days to several years; Osteoarthritis, spinal stenosis, ruptured disc, pinched nerves, emotional and physical stress, strain, bad posture, tumor, and other disorders are among the most common causes acupressure on local and distal acupuncture sites may provide drowsiness and relaxation, which may help to relieve chronic neck discomfort. Objective: To compare the effects of therapeutic massage and acupressure on neck pain. Methods: ISRA University Hospital Karachi conducted a randomized clinical trial. A total of n=30 individuals were between the ages of 20 and 35, with neck discomfort ranging from 3-6 on the VAS scale. The n=30 participants were separated into two groups: therapeutic massage (n=14) and acupressure (n=15). The data was analyzed using the SPSS version 22.0. Results: Mean age of study participants was 24.34± 4.3 years. A total of n=12 were female, and the remaining n=18 were male. The analysis showed that pain and neck disability significantly improved in both groups (p<0.05). When compared in both groups, the intensity of pain was not significantly different in both groups, but neck disability was significantly improved in the acupressure group as compared to the massage group after six weeks of intervention. Conclusion: The study concluded that both techniques benefit neck pain and disability and found significant results. But results show that acupressure was found to be more beneficial and significant than the therapeutic massage.