A Mondor’s disease is a rare, benign and self-limiting condition. It is due to thrombophlebitis of the superficial veins of the breast and chest wall. It usually occurs in middle-aged women who present with a palpable cordlike structure, often painful in the acute phase. The aetiology is unknown, and may be related to trauma, surgery, infection or tight clothing. The finding of a superficial vessel seen as a linear opacity on mammography and a tubular structure on ultrasound is typical. An intra-luminal thrombus may be seen on ultrasound, and there may be absent flow on Doppler imaging. Conservative treatment is usually instituted, although surgery may be indicated in certain circumstances.
An aberrant right subclavian artery is the commonest aortic arch anomaly. Majority of them were asymptomatic. An aberrant subclavian artery is a rare cause of dysphagia in adults. This condition is also known as dysphagia lusoria. We report a case of dysphagia in a 49-year-old woman from an aberrant right subclavian artery. Diagnosis of her condition was made with barium swallow and MDCT (multidetector computed tomography) scan. She was managed conservatively.
Introduction: The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of lead on concentration and motility of spermatozoa recovered from epididymis and testes in mature male offspring whose mothers were exposed to different doses and concentrations of lead acetate during gestation period. Materials and Methods: Seventy two healthy mature female mice were divided into three major groups according to the number of injections involving 1, 2 and 3 injections. Each major group was subdivided into four minor groups according to the concentration dose of (0, 25, 50 and 100) mg/Kg of lead acetate. Sperm concentration, percentage of motility and grade of activity were microscopically examined and statistically analyzed. Results: A significant reduction in the sperm functions were seen in relation to an increased in the number of injections and/or concentration of lead acetate dose as compared with the control groups. Conclusion: The toxic effects of lead acetate may interfere with spermatogenesis and metabolism of spermatozoa.
Introduction: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a frequently encountered clinical condition in children. Based on DSM IV-TR criteria it can be sub-classified into three distinct types namely hyperactiveimpulsive, inattentive and combined. Materials and Methods: In the present study, salivary antioxidant activity (AOA) in children with ADHD was compared with age-matched normal control subjects, both as a whole and also with regard to the three subtypes. Additionally, the effect of therapy on the altered AOA levels was investigated following short term (
MeSH terms: Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity; Child; Humans; Nervous System Diseases; Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide and in Malaysia. It has better cure rate if detected early. However, the practice of breast cancer screening in Malaysia is still low. The objective of this study is to determine the knowledge and its associated factors as well as sources of information on breast cancer and breast cancer screening among female staff in a public university in Malaysia. Materials and Methods: This was a cross sectional study conducted in 2005 involving 394 female staff including academic and non-academic staff, which was selected by cluster sampling. A self-administered questionnaire on socioeconomic characteristics and family history of breast cancer was used for data collection. Chi-square Test and Fisher’s Exact Test was used for testing an association using SPSS 12.0. Results: The response rate was 84.3%. Only 50.9% had high knowledge on breast cancer and breast cancer screening and this was significantly associated with occupational status, monthly family income and educational level (p
MeSH terms: Breast Neoplasms; Cross-Sectional Studies; Employment; Female; Humans; Malaysia; Surveys and Questionnaires; Universities; Early Detection of Cancer
Introduction: The aim of this study was to determine the effects of gamat extract on pain behaviour and Fos like immunoreactivity (FLI) expression in the ventral posterolateral thalamus using the acute pain model. Materials & Methods: Fourteen Sprague-Dawley male rats (220-300 gram) were given intraplantar injection of 0.05ml formalin (1%) followed by intraperitoneal administration of either 4 mg/kg gamat extracts (Holothuria spp.) or saline (control). Behavioural changes were observed and rats were sacrificed 2 hours post-formalin injection. Immunohistochemistry testing was done on the brain sections. FLI was examined using a light microscope attached to an image analyser. The behaviour and FLI data were analysed using repeated measure analysis of variance and independent t-test respectively. Significance level was taken as p
Introduction: Frequency of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in young age women is not well studied. It is said to be common among female elderly and multiparous population. The aim of this study is to obtain the prevalence of LUTS among nulliparous students in relation to their personal hygiene. Materials and methods: This is a prospective cross-sectional study conducted among 200 nulliparous medical and nursing students aged between 18-28 years using standardized questionnaires. Urine samples were also collected from students to detect urinary tract infections. Results: The complete data sets of 146 students were analyzed. All of them were nulliparous, single and not sexually active. The prevalence of LUTS was 52.7% consist of over-active bladder, urinary incontinence (UI) and voiding difficulty respectively (51.3%, 34.9% and 45.2%). The most common type of UI was stress urinary incontinence which was 21.9% followed by 11.6% of urgency incontinence. Conclusion: The prevalence of LUTS among young age population is high at 52.7%. Public awareness regarding LUTS and availability of treatment is needed.
Introduction: Thalassaemia is an inherited blood disorder and is a significant public health alarm in Malaysia with many not knowing they are carriers of this haemoglobin disorders. Materials and methods: This study conducted a one off collection of blood samples from 72 Malays students of International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) in Kuantan. Blood samples were subjected to conventional haemoglobin analyses that include full blood count and picture, HPLC, Haemoglobin electrophoresis and H-inclusion test. All samples were also genotyped for alpha thalassaemia–1 of Southeast Asia (a-Thal1SEA). Result: There were 17(23.6%) students who were diagnosed as thalassaemia carriers. Out of this, four (5.5 %) and six (8.3 %) students were presumptive β-thalassaemia trait and Haemoglobin-E trait as determined by the HPLC assay respectively. Nine (12.5%) students were genotyped a-Thal1SEA among whom two were also β-thalassaemia carriers. All thalassaemia cases had MCH of < 27pg. Nonetheless, two out of six Haemoglobin-E trait and three out of nine a-Thal1SEA carrier had MCV value of >80fL. Two out of four (50%) presumptive β -thalassaemia trait and one out of six (17%) students of presumptive Haemoglobin-E trait had family history of thalassaemia respectively. Conclusion: The high occurrence of the three common types of thalassaemia carrier (β, Hb-E and a-Thal1SEA thalassaemia) in our small group of subjects could be due to better participation of students who had family history of thalassaemia. The study reaffirmed the importance of molecular study for detection of alpha-thalassaemia and the use of MCH value of
Education and training in disaster medicine is an ongoing process to all categories of personnel involved.
In addition to the collaborative inter-professional table top exercises, regularly conducted field exercise drills offers the best form of training. Currently in most countries there is no standardized curriculum
for the training of disaster management from the medical perspective. It is imperative that the concept of disaster medicine and its principles should be a component in the undergraduate and postgraduate
curriculum of Medical and Allied health related programmes.
MeSH terms: Curriculum; Disasters; Exercise Therapy; Humans; Exercise; Disaster Medicine
One of the main factors for virulence of fungus such as Candida albicans is the ability to change its morphology from yeast to hyphae. Allicin, one of the volatile sulfur-oil compounds from freshly crushed garlic, has a variety of antifungal activities. In this study, the effect of allicin on growth and hyphae production in C. albicans as compared to fluconazole, an antifungal drug was investigated using survival time in vitro and microscopic image at different time intervals. Additionally, the expression of selected genes involved in hyphae formation and development such as SIR2 and SAP1-4 was evaluated by semi-quantitative RTPCR and relative real time RT-PCR. Allicin was shown to down-regulate the expression of SIR2 (5.54 fold), similar to fluconazole (3.48 fold) at 2x MIC concentrations. Interestingly, allicin had no effect on SAPs1-4 expression, whereas fluconazole was able to suppress SAP4 expression. Our findings showed that allicin was effective in suppressing hyphae development of C. albicans to an extent that is sometimes equal or more than fluconazole. Moreover, allicin and fluconazole seemed to share a common anti-Candida mechanism through inhibition of SIR2 gene, while fluconazole appeared to also exert its fungistatic effect through another pathway that involved SAP4 suppression.
Simulium (Gomphostilbia) taitungense sp. nov. is described on the basis of reared adult, pupal and mature larval specimens collected from Taitung, Taiwan. This new species is placed in the ceylonicum species-group within the subgenus Gomphostilbia and is distinguished from related known species by the characteristic colour markings on the ventral surface of the head capsule and on the dorsal surface of the abdomen in the larva. The male of Simulium (Gomphostilbia) tuenense Takaoka, which was originally described from a pharate pupa and a larva, is described for the first time; the association of the adult stage with the larval stage was confirmed by the comparison of the sequences of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene; this species is also placed in the ceylonicum species-group.
The life history of the male and female of the indoor forensic fly, Synthesiomyia nudiseta was studied under fluctuating temperature of indoor environments and analysed based on the age-stage and two sex life table. The life cycle of S. nudiseta was 14.0±1.0 days from the egg stage to adult emergence. The population parameters calculated were; net reproduction rate (Ro= 108.6), mean generation time (To= 12.2), intrinsic rate of increase (rm=0.38), and finite rate of increase (?= 1.46). The pre-oviposition period (APOP) was 6.0± 0.1 days. All population parameters suggested that S. nudiseta exhibits the r-strategist characteristics.
MeSH terms: Animals; Birth Rate; Environment; Female; Life Cycle Stages; Male; Muscidae; Oviposition; Temperature; Life Tables
Routine surveillance on resistant status of field mosquito populations is important
to implement suitable strategies in order to prevent pest outbreaks. WHO test kit bioassay is
the most frequent bioassay used to investigate the susceptibility status of field–collected
mosquitoes, as it is relatively convenient to be carried out in the field. In contrast, the topical
application of active ingredient is less popular in investigating the susceptibility status of
mosquitoes. In this study, we accessed the susceptibility status of Aedes albopictus Skuse
collected from two dengue hotspots on Penang Island: Sungai Dua and Persiaran Mayang
Pasir. Two active ingredients: permethrin and deltamethrin, were used. WHO test kit bioassay
showed that both wild strains collected were susceptible to the two active ingredients; while
topical application assay showed that they were resistant. This indicated that WHO test kit
bioassay less sensitive to low level of resistance compared to topical application assay.
Hence, topical application is expected to be more indicative when used in a resistance
surveillance programme.
. The cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COXI) gene sequences of three recent (2007-
2008) clinical Plasmodium knowlesi isolates from Klang Valley, peninsular Malaysia, were
determined and compared with those of older (1960’s) peninsular Malaysia, recent isolates
from Sarawak (on Borneo Island), and an isolate from Thailand. Multiple alignment of the
sequences showed that the three clinical isolates were more similar to the older peninsular
Malaysia isolates than to those from Sarawak and Thailand. Phylogenetic tree based on the
COXI sequences revealed three distinct clusters of P. knowlesi. The first cluster consisted of
isolates from peninsular Malaysia, the second consisted of Sarawak isolates and the third
composed of the Thailand isolate. The findings of this study highlight the usefulness of
mitochondrial COXI gene as a suitable marker for phylogeographic studies of P. knowlesi.
MeSH terms: Base Sequence; Borneo; Electron Transport Complex IV; Malaysia; Phylogeny; Thailand; Plasmodium knowlesi; Genes, Mitochondrial; Phylogeography; Islands
The biodiversity and the killer activity of yeasts isolated from various types of
fermented food in Malaysia were investigated in this study. Of 252 yeasts isolated from 48
fermented food samples in this study, 19 yeast species were identified based on sequence
analysis of the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 partial fragments of the yeasts. A total of 29 (11.5%) of the
yeast isolates demonstrated killer activity to at least one Candida species tested in this
study; including 22 isolates of Trichosporon asahii, 4 isolates of Pichia anomala, and one
i solate each of P i c h i a n o r v e g e n s i s , P i c h i a f e rme n t a n s and I s s a t c h e n k i a o r i e n t a l i s,
respectively. The presence of killer yeasts reflects antagonism that occurs during microbial
interaction in the fermented food, whereby certain yeasts produce killer toxins and possibly
other toxic substances in competition for limited nutrients and space. The anti-Candida
activity demonstrated by killer yeasts in this study should be further explored for development
of alternative therapy against candidiasis.
Bioassay test against malathion had been carried out with larval and adult stages
of Aedes aegypti. The mosquitoes were under selection pressure against malathion for fortyfive consecutive generations. The rate of resistance development was measured by LC50
and
LT50
values. The larvae and adult females, after subjection to malathion selection for 45
generations, developed high resistance level to malathion, with resistance ratio of 52.7 and
3.24 folds, respectively over control mosquitoes. Cross-resistance towards the same and
different groups of insecticides was determined using the F44 and F45 malathion-selected
adult females. Insecticides tested were DDT (4.0%), permethrin (0.75%), propoxur (0.1%),
fenitrothion (1%), λ-cyhalothrin (0.05%) and cyfluthrin (0.15%). Results indicated that the
mosquitoes were highly resistant to DDT and fenitrothion, moderately resistant to propoxur,
tolerant to permethrin and λ-cyhalothrin, and very low resistant to cyfluthrin.
Simulium (Gomphostilbia) sofiani sp. nov. is described on the basis of reared
adult female, male, pupal and larval specimens collected from Cameron Highlands, Pahang
state, Malaysia. This new species is placed in the ceylonicum species-group within the
subgenus Gomphostilbia and is easily distinguished from all the related known species by the
combination of the following characteristics: an elongate sensory vesicle and yellow hair tuft
on the stem vein of the wing in the female, the greater number of large upper-eye facets (15
or 16 vertical columns and 15 or 16 horizontal rows) and almost entirely darkened hind
basitarsus in the male, and the gill bearing a long common basal stalk and 8 filaments
arranged as [(1+2)+ (1+2)] +2 filaments from dorsal to ventral in the pupa.
The chromosomal relationships of Simulium arakawae, a black fly of medicalveterinary importance, are resolved relative to other members of the Simulium venustum
species group and to the standard reference map for the subgenus Simulium. Simulium
arakawae differs from the subgeneric standard by eight fixed inversions, apparently none of
which are shared with any of the other 17 chromosomally studied nominal members of the
group. The chromosomal features that indicate group membership might have been lost in S.
arakawae, particularly if they were polymorphic in an ancestor.
Assessment of amino acid decarboxylase activity can be conducted using tubed
broth or plated agar. In this study, the test was carried out in microtitre plates containing
lysine, ornithine, arginine, tyrosine, tryptophan, phenylalanine or histidine as biogenic amine
precursors. Møller decarboxylase base broth (MDB) with or without 1% of a known amino acid
were added to wells of a 96 well-microtitre plate. The wells were inoculated with Escherichia
coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter anitratus or Staphylococcus aureus to the final
concentration of 6.0 x 107 cfu/ml and incubated at 35
oC. The absorbance of the culture brothwas read at 570 nm at 0, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, 4.0, 5.5, 6.5 and 7.5 hour. Comparison of means of A’570between 0 hour and a speci f ied incubat ion t ime was determined s tat i s t ical ly. Pos i t ivedecarboxylase activities were detected in the media inoculated with E. coli and K. pneumoniae in less than 6 hours. The current method is suitable for immediate producers of amino acid
decarboxylase enzymes. It costs less as it uses less amino acid and it has the potential to be
used for screening aliquots of food materials for amino acid decarboxylase activities.
. The leaves of five plants namely Nyctanthes arbortistis (Oleaceae), Catharanthus
ros eus (Apocynaceae), Boenininghus enia albi f lora (Rutaceae), Val e r iana hardwi cki i
(Valerianaceae) and Eupatorium odoratum (Asteraceae) were selected for the first time
from the Garhwal region of north west Himalaya to investigation its toxicological properties
against mosquito vectors of malaria, filariasis and dengue. In a laboratory study, using different
polarity solvents (petroleum ether, chloroform and methanol) were tested against important
larvae of malaria, filariasis and dengue vectors in India. It was observed that petroleum ether
fraction of all selected plant possess good larvicidal properties than other solvent fraction.
The LC50
values of isolates from Nyctanthes arbortistis (HAR-1), C. roseus (CAT-1), B. albiflora
(BOA-1), V. hardwickii (SUG-1) and E. odoratum (EUP-1) against Anopheles stephensi were
185 ppm, 150 ppm, 105 ppm, 225 ppm and 135 ppm, respectively. The results therefore
sugges t that the f ract ion code BOA-1 has excel lent larvicidal proper t ies and could be
incorporated as botanical insecticides against mosquito vectors with high safety to nontarget organisms. The same fraction was tested against adult vectors of malaria, filariasis
and dengue, but no mortality was observed.