Abdominal cocoon or sclerosing encapsulating peritonitis is a rare condition. A 46 year old Malay woman with adenomyosis and leiomyomata of the uterus and ovarian endometriotic cyst in association with abdominal cocoon is reported.
The incidence of deep vein thrombosis is believed to be rare in Asians. During recent years, a few reports have appeared with high incidence in orthopaedic patients comparable to Western studies. This study was carried out to find out the incidence of post-operative deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after major surgical procedures in general surgical patients in an Asian population. In a prospective study of 45 consecutive Asian patients after major general surgery, colour-flow duplex scan of the legs as an initial screening was done twice within two weeks. Mean age of the patients was 54 years 5 months and 87% of patients were included in the moderate and high risk group for deep vein thrombosis. Ascending venography was used to confirm deep vein thrombosis on patients with equivocal or positive results from colour flow duplex scan. One patient showed positive evidence of post-operative deep vein thrombosis on colour flow duplex scan which was further confirmed by ascending venography; giving an incidence of 2.2%. The incidence of post-operative deep vein thrombosis in general surgical patients is lower than the Western studies.
In practice, asthmatic patients whose metered-dose inhaler (MDI) technique is inefficient are either corrected or changed to dry powder breath-actuated or spacer device that is easier to handle. Based on ‘real life clinic circumstances’, we studied 15 symptomatic asthmatic patients whose MDI techniques were inefficient that either received correction in their technique (n=9) or were changed to turbohaler (n=6). For comparison, we also studied a similar group of symptomatic asthmatic patients (n=6) with appropriate MDI techniques that were treated by doubling of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) dose. After 4 weeks, FEV1 and symptom scores in the turbohaler group was significantly improved from baseline but not in the corrected MDI group. The group whose ICS dose was doubled also showed significant improvement in symptom scores but not in FEV1. We question the benefit gained by correcting MDI technique in some asthmatic patients compared to that of switching over to more user-friendly devices such as turbohaler. In our study, the improvement observed with turbohaler appears to be more than a mere doubling of drug delivery to the lungs and may relate to the recognized greater consistency of drug delivery by turbohaler compared to MDI device.
The aim of the study was to define dyslipidaemic pattern among type 2 diabetic patients using American Diabetes Association guidelines for the classification of lipoprotein concentrations into CVD risk categories. The total number screened was 211 type 2 diabetic patients who were on treatment between 2001 – 2002 for diabetes at the Outpatient Diabetes Clinic in HUSM Kubang Kerian. Fasting venous blood samples were analysed for plasma glucose, glycated hemoglobin and serum lipids. Type 2 diabetic patients with high, borderline, and low risk LDL cholesterol level were 62 %, 25 %, and 10 %, respectively. There were 26 % patients in the high risk HDL cholesterol group, 31 % were in the borderline risk group, and 43% were in the low risk group. Only 3 % and 25 % of patients had triglycerides concentration in the high and borderline risk categories, respectively, but 72% had low risk triglycerides levels. More female and younger subjects than men and older subjects had HDL cholesterol in high and borderline risk categories. The percentages of patients with triglycerides values at high and borderline high risk category were higher in poor and acceptable glycaemic control groups than good glycaemic control group. The most prevalent dyslipidaemia pattern was an isolated LDL cholesterol increase, which was observed in 35 % of the patients. The second most common pattern of dyslipidaemia was a combination of LDL cholesterol above goal with HDL cholesterol below target, which was observed in 30 % patients. Patients with established dyslipidaemia will require advice regarding diet, exercise and improvement in glycaemic control. An active strategy of early detection and drug treatment for dyslipidaemia is needed for type 2 diabetic patients.
MeSH terms: Blood Glucose; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2; Fasting; Female; Goals; Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated; Humans; Lipoproteins; Cholesterol, HDL; Cholesterol, LDL; Male; Outpatients; Risk; Triglycerides; United States; Prevalence; Control Groups; Dyslipidemias
The School of Medical Sciences has been a leader and continues to maintain leadership in research at Universiti Sains Malaysia. The amount of grant funds in Ringgit Malaysia received by the SMS received through 6th -8th Malaysia Plan thus far (up to July 2003) supported 145 long term projects under the Intensified Research in Prioritized Areas (IRPA), 296 short term projects, 6 Fundamental researches under the Fundamental Research Grants Scheme (FRGS), 29 incentive grants and 51 projects were funded by external grants, out of which 37 were from companies participating in clinical trials. There are a total of 223 lecturers of the School of Medical Sciences as of July 2003, the majority is in the rank of lecturers, comprising 152 persons. Out of the total numbers of academic staff, the non-contract lecturers make up 73.5%. Almost all of these non contract lecturers are holding or have held research grants and a total of 49.4% are principal investigators. Only 17.1% of the contract lecturers are or were participating in research. There is an impressive increasing trend of the number of grants held by the academic staff during the period through the 6th and 8th (up to July 2003) as depicted in Figure 7. The trend is similar to the increase in the number of academic staff in SMS (Figure 8). The medical school is proud to house seven of the 13 young scientist awards, 2 National Scientist awards and 2 Toray Foundation recipients in the country. The school has won several national and international awards; among these are 9, I-TEX awards, 2 Geneva and 2 Nuremberg international invention competitions medals and many more. This achievement far exceeds the records of other medical schools in the country.
Hypertension is the major cause of congestive cardiac failure all over the world. It is under diagnosed and achievement of optimal therapy is difficult and costly. Diastolic dysfunction is an early poor prognostic factor in hypertension and is a reversible condition. Early detection and treatment is necessary to avoid cardiac complications. The objective of this study was to assess the occurrence of diastolic dysfunction in hypertensive patients referred for echocardiograph assessment of left ventricular function in a secondary hospital. It was also designed to determine whether contributing factors such as age, gender, systolic and diastolic pressure, duration of hypertension, previous myocardial infarct or ischemic heart disease and choice of anti-hypertensive drugs influence the development of diastolic dysfunction in these hypertensive patients. The analysis of diastolic dysfunction was based on the E/A ratio using Doppler echocardiogram. All of the patients were recruited from the Echocardiography Unit, Department of Medicine, Seremban General Hospital. Fifty patients with history of hypertension were selected for the study. Out of These 22 patients (44%) were found to have diastolic dysfunction; 39.1% of male patients (9 out of 23) and 48.1% of female patients (13 out of 27). Other contributing factors of diastolic dysfunction were found in patients: (a) with more than 8 years history of hypertension (12%) (b) with history of preexisting IHD/AMI (20%), (c) stages II – III of systolic hypertension based on 6th Joint National Committee recommendation (73%) (d) on ACE-inhibitor (18%) and (e) on Beta-blocker (28%) In conclusion, the study had demonstrated that the duration of hypertension, both systolic and diastolic blood pressure and age of patients are important prognostic indicators in predicting the development of diastolic dysfunction in hypertensive patients.
Garlic (Allium sativum L.) and red onion (Allium cepa L.) are among the most common ingredients in Malaysian cuisines. These two Allium species are believed to possess medicinal properties including antioxidants. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to compare antioxidant level and activities (i.e. at primary and secondary levels) in both the Allium species collected from markets around Kuantan, Pahang Darul Makmur, Malaysia. Current results of total phenolic content (TPC) assay indicate that TPC is higher in red onion (i.e. 53.43 ± 1.72 mg GAE/100g) as compared to garlic (i.e. 37.60 ± 2.31 mg GAE/100g). In addition, EC50 value of garlic is lower than that of the red onion, showing a higher free radical scavenging activity in garlic than in red onion. However, the primary antioxidant activities of both the samples are lower than the standard antioxidant, BHA. Therefore, there is a poor relationship between the TPCs and the primary antioxidant activities, indicating that
the primary antioxidant activities of both the Allium species are not solely due to the phenolic compounds. For secondary antioxidant activity, FIC assay shows that at the highest sample concentration of 1.0 mg/mL, red onion has higher ferrous ion chelating effect (i.e. 45.00 ± 1.73%) as compared to garlic (i.e. 43.29 ± 3.89%). Furthermore, both the Allium samples show slightly higher ion chelating effect than BHA (i.e. 43.14 ± 1.07%) but lower than EDTA (i.e. 97.9 ± 0.07%). Overall, the findings of the present study show a negative relationship between the results of TPC assay, DPPH radical scavenging activity assay, and FIC assay. To strengthen the validity of the present results and to further assess the potential of both the Allium species as natural antioxidant sources, more different assays need to be considered for future work.
A Hepatitis A outbreak occurred in Mukim Hulu Langat, Hulu Langat district from April 2002 to October 2002. Of the 51 cases notified, most were among students and the ethnic groups involved were Malays and the Orang Asli (local indigenous community). Eidemiological investigations revealed that the cases were localized along rivers used for recreational activities in this area. River water analysis indicated human faecal contamination and it was believed that the contamination was due to the Orang Asli community living upstream. This occurred due to lack of toilet facilities, water at point of use and the existing traditional practices of the Orang Asli community. Control measures instituted were intense health education to the Orang Asli to avoid using the rivers for defecation, multi agency efforts to provide sanitary toilets and adequate water to the villages affected. Future measures include conducting a sero— prevalence survey to determine the feasibility of Hepatitis A immunization to the susceptible population in this area. The outbreak that began in April 2002 was controlled by October 2002.
MeSH terms: Defecation; Disease Outbreaks; Ethnic Groups; Fresh Water; Health Education; Hepatitis A; Humans; Immunization; Surveys and Questionnaires; Recreation; Residence Characteristics; Students; Toilet Facilities; Water; Prevalence; Population Groups; Rivers
All percutaneous tracheostomies performed in the general intensive care unit (ICU), Hospital Sultanah Aminah, Johor Bahru, Malaysia, from July 1999 to June 2002 were studied. The tracheostomies were performed as an elective bedside technique in the ICU.
A total of 352 percutaneous tracheostomies were performed. Eighty-eight percent of the tracheostomies were completed within 15 minutes. The most common complication was bleeding which occurred in 52 patients (14.7%). The rest of the complications encountered were:- transient hypoxia twelve (3.4%), inability/difficulty to insert tracheostomy tube eight (2.3%), false passage four (1.1%), transient hypotension two (0.6%), pneumothorax two (0.6%), peristomal infection two (0.6%), subcutaneous emphysema one (0.3%), cuff rupture one (0.3%), oesophageal cannulation one (0.3%), and granuloma formation one (0.3%). Conversion to conventional tracheostomies were performed on 7 patients (2%). There was one unfortunate death related to percutaneous tracheostomy.
In conclusion, percutaneous dilational tracheostomy can be used safely to manage the airway of critically ill patients.
Loss of P53 function is regarded as one of the critical steps in colorectal carcinogenesis. This study determines the P53 expression pattern of colorectal carcinoma in a cohort of 116 local patients. There was no significant relationship between overexpression of P53 with tumour stage (p=0.209, chi square test) and grade (p=0.877, chi square test). Survival analysis using Kaplan-Meier procedure did not show significant relationship between P53 positivity with overall recurrence-free and survival outcome (p=0.3322 and 0.921 respectively; log rank test). Long- term follow-up may give a better evaluation on the prognostic value of P53 overexpression in colorectal carcinoma.
From October 13 to October 21, 1999, a total of 46 males, aged 8 to 19 years, were admitted to Beaufort Hospital after swimming in the creek near an oil palm plantation in Kampung (Kg) Kebatu, Beaufort. Thirty (30) presented with symptoms including fever vomiting, bodyache, giddiness, headache, chest pain and cough, while 16 others, were asymptomatic. One, a 15 year old boy, died from haemorrhagic shock secondary to pulmonary haemorrhage. The onset of the illness was from 11 October to 19 October 1999. A case-control study found that the outbreak was associated with swimming in the creek (p320. The findings indicated that Leptospirosis was the cause of the outbreak of this illness and the contaminated creek water was the source of the infection. The occurrence of flooding and stagnation in the creek following the heavy rainfall during the first week of October 1999 could have contributed to the timing of the outbreak.
One of the undeniable facts about living is that everyday we are getting older. By 2050, it is projected that one out of every five Malaysians will be 60 or older. The economic challenge of this demographic change will affect development and the financial implications of sustaining well being of this group are formidable and complex. This population group has extensive oral disease, medical problems that complicate their oral care, and unique dental treatment challenges. The authors discuss the problem of oral healthcare among the aged, its impediments and propose some approaches for improvement to better serve the needs of this group of vulnerable members of our nation.
MeSH terms: Delivery of Health Care; Dental Care; Humans; Life; Population Groups
This study reviewed the trabeculectomies (TEs) carried out in University Malaya Medical Center between 1994 to 1998. One hundred and nine of 132 eyes operated were in the primary glaucoma group of which 63 (47.7%.) were of the open angle type and 46 (34.8%) were of the angle closure type. Twenty-three eyes belong to the secondary glaucoma group. Sixty-five eyes had plain or non-augmented trabeculectomy (TE) while 20 were augmented with mitomycin C (MMC) and 11 with 5 flourouracil (5FU). In 31 eyes the plain TEs were combined with extracapsular cataract extraction (ECCE) and 4 with phacoemusification. One case had combined ECCE and augmented trabeculectomy with mitomycin-C. The patients were followed up at I month, 6 months, 1 year and 2 years. Ninety-four of 132 (71.2%) eyes had successful surgery with intraocular pressure (IOP) of less than 21mmHg (tonometric success) at the end of 2 years. Four of these patients needed topical medication for the IOP control. More failures were seen in patients with cystic blebs than those with diffuse blebs. Complications include hypotony, shallow anterior chamber, cataracts and hyphaema. The majority of cases (53%) had no complications.
Inefficient metered-dose inhaler (MDI) technique results in poor drug delivery, suboptimal disease control and possibility of inhaled medication overuse. The MDI technique of 134 government hospital and clinic followed-up adult asthmatic patients followed-up in a government hospital and a heath clinic was pragmatically assessed based on the 3 obligatory steps of adequate lip seal, appropriate hand-breath coordination and sufficient breath holding after inhalation. The relationship between technique efficiency and frequency of daily short-acting β₂-agonist (SABA) use via the MDI and asthma exacerbations over a 12-month period was also assessed. Fifty-six patients (42%) had inefficient MDI technique. All demographic and asthma-related variables between the ‘efficient’ and ‘inefficient’ technique groups of patients were comparable except for significantly longer mean years of MDI use in the ‘efficient’ technique group [mean (SD): 10 (7) vs. 7 (5); p=0.003]. There were no significant differences between the two groups in relation to frequency of daily SABA use or asthma exacerbations over the past 12 months. Despite having been available in Malaysia for a considerable period of time, the MDI device is still poorly handled by a large proportion of adult asthmatic patients. Changing to other more user-friendly devices or use of spacer devices to facilitate delivery should be considered for these patients.
Karasek's job strain model postulates that workers chronically exposed to adverse psychosocial work environment (high strain job) — high psychological job demands and low job control, including poor social support, increased physical demand and hazardous work condition — will eventually develop both physical illnesses such as cardiovascular diseases and psychological disorders such as depression. In order to determine the prevalence and associated factors of job-related depression, a cross-sectional study was conducted among laboratory technicians in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) and Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia (KKM) Hospitals in Kelantan between September 2001 and February 2002. One hundred and two laboratory technicians in HUSM and 79 laboratory technicians in 7 KKM Hospitals were selected; 84 /102 (82.4%) in HUSM and 71/79 (89.9%) in KKM Hospitals responded. Data was collected using self-administered questionnaires of the validated Malay version of the Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ) originally developed by Robert Karasek. Results indicated that the prevalence of high job strain in laboratory technicians in HUSM and KKM hospitals was 33.3% (28/84) and 26.8% (19/71), respectively (p>0.05). Significantly higher proportion (59.5%) (50/84) of laboratory technicians in HUSM compared to those in KKM Hospitals (39.4%) (28/71) (p=0.016) experienced job-related depression. Significant associated factors of job-related depression were low social support (HUSM: adjusted OR 4.7, 95% CI 1.2-18.8; KKM: adjusted OR 14.8, 95% CI 2.4-89.3), high psychological demand (HUSM: adjusted OR 3.0, 95% CI 1.0-8.8), and low decision authority (KKM: adjusted OR 9.7, 95% CI 1.0-91.1). We conclude that strengthening the social support network (supervisors’ and coworkers’ support), reducing psychological job demand, and increasing decision-making authority of laboratory technicians may go a long way towards reducing job-related depression.
MeSH terms: Cardiovascular Diseases; Cross-Sectional Studies; Depression; Depressive Disorder; Malaysia; Surveys and Questionnaires; Social Support; Prevalence; Workplace; Laboratory Personnel
Non-accidental head injury leading to massive intracranial trauma has been identified as a leading cause of death in small children. In a typical case, a child usually below the age of one year is violently shaken, leading to rupture of the connecting veins between the dura mater and the brain substance with variable degrees of bleeding into the subdural space resulting in increased intracranial pressure. The accompanying venous thrombosis affecting the vessels of the brain substance leads to cerebral hypoxia and cellular death. In this study conducted throughout the year 1999, all children below the age of 3 years who were admitted to Hospital Kuala Lumpur and had died due to non-accidental injuries were included. Postmortems, including histopathological studies, were conducted to determine the most likely mechanisms of the injuries. Ten cases were identified for the whole year. In 2 cases, both below one ear of age, the features presented showed evidence of violent shaking of the infants. In 6 other cases whose average age was 13 (range 4-24) months, there were evidences of direct trauma and violent shaking. In the last two cases, aged 24 and 33 months respectively, there was only evidence of direct trauma on the heads without being shaken. This study shows that death due to intracranial trauma caused by shaking with or without direct impact is the most frequent cause of mortality in abused children. Death due to direct impact between the head and another object is a less frequent occurrence.
There is good evidence that folic acid is safe and efficacious for reducing neural tube defect (NTD). All women capable of becoming pregnant should take 400 microgram daily. This can be given in the form of a daily vitamin supplement, by foot fortification, or by increasing natural dietary folates. Compulsory grain fortification has been shown to reduce NTD in a population but supplementation and dietary advice have not. Malaysia should work towards a programme of grain fortification and use alternative strategies to reach sections of the population that would not he covered but several research questions need to be answered before a programme could be implemented in Malaysia.
The diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis is often delayed due to atypical clinical features and difficulty in obtaining positive bacteriology. We reviewed 232 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis diagnosed in Kedah Medical Centre, Alor Setar from January 1998 to December 2002. All age groups were affected with a male predominance (Male:Female ratio = 60:40). Risk factors include underlying diabetes mellitus (17.7%), positive family history (16.8%) and previous tuberculosis (5.2%). Nearly half (45.3%) of patients had symptoms for more than one year. Only 22% of patients had typical symptoms of tuberculosis (prolonged recurrent fever, cough, anorexia and weight loss), whilst others presented with haemoptysis, chronic cough, COPD, bronchiectasis, general ill-health, pyrexia of unknown origin or pleural effusion without other systemic symptoms. Fifteen percent of the patients presented with extrapulmonary diagnosis. Ninety percent of the patients had previous medical consultations but 40% had no chest radiograph or sputum examination done. The chest radiographs showed ‘typical’ changes of tuberculosis in 62% while in the other 38% the radiological features were ‘not typical’. Sputum direct smear was positive for acid-fast bacilli in only 22.8% of patients and 11.2% were diagnosed base on positive sputum culture. Sputum may be negative even in patients with typical clinical presentations and chest radiograph changes. Bronchial washing improved the diagnosis rate being positive in 49.1% of cases (24.1% by direct smear and the other 25.0% by culture). In 16.8% of cases, the diagnosis Was based on a good response to empirical anti-tuberculosis therapy in patients with clinical and radiological features characteristic of tuberculosis. In conclusions, the clinical and radiological manifestations of pulmonary tuberculosis may he atypical. Sputum is often negative and bronchoscopy with washings for Mycobacterium culture gives a higher yield for diagnosis. In highly probable cases, empirical therapy with anti- tuberculosis drugs should be considered because it is safe and beneficial.
Inappropriate utilization of Emergency Departments (ED) services may result in compromised management of patients requiring true emergency treatment. Significant attendance of non-emergency cases in ED was found in several countries. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital (HUSM) to determine the proportion of the inappropriate cases and the utilization pattern by time (over 24 hours and within a week) and by diagnoses. A sample of 350 cases was randomly selected from ED-HUSM register of the year 2000. A decision flowchart, which was adopted from 4 guidelines, was applied to classify appropriate and inappropriate cases. There were 55% inappropriate cases in this study. The inappropriate cases increased considerably in early morning, late evening, during the weekend and early part of the week. Most common diagnoses of inappropriate cases were upper respiratory tract infections, mild acute gastroenteritis and urinary tract infections. Considerable attendance of inappropriate cases calls for interventions.
Signal fly, Scholastes sp. (Diptera: Platystomatidae) was observed associated with
animal carcasses in Malaysia. The first observation was on a monkey carcass, which was killed
by using a handgun and immediately placed in a forested area in Gombak, Selangor while the
second observation was on a pig that died of natural causes and whose carcass was placed in an
oil palm plantation in Tanjung Sepat, Selangor. Both animal carcasses were visited by Scholastes
sp. flies during the fresh decomposition period. However, the role Scholastes flies in the
decomposition process remains unknown. In this paper, we report the occurrence of Scholastes
sp. on animal carcasses in Malaysia for the first time.