The residual activities of 5 insect growth regulators (IGRs) were studied and compared to operational dosage of temephos (1 mg/L) and Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) (0.008 mg/L). The IGRs, temephos and Bti were applied into plastic containers containing 5 litres of water. Thirty Aedes aegypti larvae were added into each container weekly. Efficacy of these IGRs were evaluated for effective duration of each dosage and the percentage of emergence inhibition (EI). An end-point of EI/mortality > 50% was considered to be effective. Pyriproxyfen possessed the longest residual activity in both indoor (43 weeks) and outdoor (26 weeks) conditions, followed by temephos (26 weeks in indoor and 16 weeks in outdoor). Although the residual activity of Bti in indoor lasted 8 weeks which was longer than cyromazine and diflubenzuron; however, it was least effective in outdoor which only lasted 2 weeks. This study revealed that pyriproxyfen possessed good residual effect among test IGRs compared to temephos and Bti. The use of IGRs can be an alternative long-term control measure in stagnant water body.
MeSH terms: Temefos; Aedes; Animals; Bacillus thuringiensis; Body Water; Diflubenzuron; Juvenile Hormones; Larva; Plastics; Pyridines; Triazines; Water
Plasmodium is a blood protozoan parasite that is responsible for malaria. To date, Plasmodium falciparum has shown multi-drug resistance, particularly in Thailand, Myanmar and Malaysia. The aim of the study is to screen the plant extracts that can effectively inhibit P. falciparum 3D7, a common lab strain malaria parasite. Nine plants were collected and processed through maceration using hexane, chloroform and ethanol, resulting in 24 crude plant extracts. Of these, extracts from Artabotrys crassifolius, Pericampylus glacus and Leuconotis eugeniifolia showed promising antiplasmodial activities at IC50 of 15.32 to 39.75 µg/mL in a modified schizont maturation assay. Further studies are warranted to explore its efficacies and lead compounds of these three plant extracts for the development of antiplasmodial drugs.
Necrotizing fasciitis is a rare, severe and rapidly progressive life-threatening clinical disease which is commonly caused by streptococci. However, the disease caused by Pasteurella multocida is infrequently reported. Here, we report a rare case of a 85-year-old Malay man who developed septicaemia secondary to necrotizing fasciitis post viper bite. P. multocida was isolated from pus, tissue and blood cultures. A post viper bite was the only risk factor and to the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of P. multocida necrotizing fasciitis secondary to viper bite.
Serological confirmation of dengue in 1,410 school-going children aged 7-18 years provided prevalence data for 16 different sites in Malaysia. These sites ranged from highly urbanized cities to small towns. We found that at least ~7 % of children in the study group had been exposed to dengue by age 12 and ~16% by age 18. Here we report that the dengue seroprevalence correlates with i) increasing land development and decreased vegetation, and ii) the overall population growth. Water bodies did not significantly affect dengue prevalence. High prevalence of dengue was also recorded in few of the non-urban sites suggesting the expanding geographical locality of those who get dengue in Malaysia in tandem with increased land usage activities. These findings highlight the need to give closer consideration to future urban planning and development, taking into consideration the changing demography and the importance of built environment to mitigate the increasing incidence of dengue in the non-urban areas of Malaysia.
MeSH terms: Child; Cities; City Planning; Dengue; Environment Design; Geography; Humans; Malaysia; Population Growth; Urbanization; Incidence; Prevalence; Seroepidemiologic Studies
Salmonella infections occur worldwide, in both developed and developing countries, and a major contributor to morbidity and economic costs. A total of 32 Salmonella isolates isolated from dogs (n=15/162), cats (n=1/126) and snakes (n=16/42) in the Klang valley, Peninsular Malaysia during 2012-2013, were used in this study and 6 serovars were identified. The isolates were then characterized for their susceptibility to commonly used antimicrobial agents using the standard disk diffusion method. The presence of relevant resistance genes and class 1 integrons were investigated by using PCR. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was carried out to determine the genetic diversity of these Salmonella strains. Higher resistance rates were observed for tetracycline (40.6%), nalidixic acid (21.9%), sulphamethazole-trimethoprim (18.7%), ampicillin (18.7%) followed by chloramphenicol (15.6%), streptomycin (6.25%), enrofloxacin (12.5%), cephalexin (6.25%), cephalothin (6.25%) and amoxicillin-clavulanic acid (3.12%). Nine percent (3/32) presented a single type of resistance, 6% (2/32) showed resistance to two classes of antimicrobials and 34% (11/32) were multidrugresistant (MDR) (resistant to 3 or more antimicrobials). Analysis of the carriage of resistance genes in the isolates revealed that seven (blaTEM-1, strA, strB, sulII, dfrhI, tetA, and cmlA) out of 10 resistance genes were present. Classes 1 integrons were present in 68.75% (11/16) of the resistance strains. PFGE analysis showed that the strains were very diverse and certain PFGE pattern clusters correlated well with antimicrobial resistance phenotypes. In conclusion, high rates of multidrug resistance were found among the dogs Salmonella strains.
The study on biodiversity of forensically important Diptera in the tropical rain
forest in Malaysia is scarce. Thus, a preliminary survey was conducted at a jungle fringe near
Kampung Bahagia Bukit Lagong, Sungai Buloh, Selangor. A rat carcass was offered to attract
carrion flies and we collected an adult female calliphorid, Hypopygiopsis fumipennis (Walker,
1856) during the fresh stage of carcass decomposition. The female fly was allowed to oviposit
on chicken liver in a container and the resulting larvae were reared to the adult stage. Along
the developmental process, several individuals from each instar were collected and preserved
in 70% ethanol and then processed on the slides. We recorded the duration of development for
each instar and described its larval features for the first time. The third instar larvae of H.
fumipennis showed accessory oral sclerite present, anterior spiracle with 13-15 papillae,
intersegmental spines mostly unicuspid with pointed end, and posterior spiracles heavily
sclerotized with inter-slit projections. Some larval differences between H. fumipennis and
Hypopygiopsis violacea were noted.
An antiplasmodial screening of Phyllanthus debilis and Phyllanthus urinaria was carried out. The medicinal plants were extracted and evaluated for in vitro antiplasmodial activity against D10 (chloroquine-sensitive, CQS) and Gombak A (chloroquine-resistant, CQR) strains of Plasmodium falciparum. The methanolic crudes from the soxhlet extraction were active against both strains however, P. urinaria (IC50 8.9 µg/ml with CQR strain) exhibited better anti-malarial activity compared to P. debilis (IC50 12.2 µg/ml with CQR strain). Furthermore, the methanolic crude of P. urinaria obtained by the cold extraction has good anti-malarial activity towards CQS (IC50 4.1 µg/ml). The concentration of macronutrients (calcium and magnesium) and trace metals (copper, manganese, iron and zinc) from three Phyllanthus species i.e. P. debilis Klein ex Wild., Phyllanthus niruri L., P. urinaria L. and Alpinia conchigera Griff. were determined using microwave digestion method and analyzed by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Standard Reference Material 1547 (peach leaves) was used to validate the method throughout this study. The recovery values were in the range of 80% to 120% which were in very good agreement with the certified values. The three Phyllanthus species and leaves of A. conchigera showed the highest concentration of calcium compared to other metals and macronutrients studied. The significant presence of all the important macronutrients and trace metals which are essential for human health and wellbeing substantiate their use medicinally in traditional practices.
Angiostrongylus cantonensis is the most frequent cause of eosinophilic meningitis in humans in Thailand and worldwide. Because of difficulty of recovering the Angiostrongylus larvae from infected patients, detection of parasite-specific antibodies is used to support clinical diagnosis. This study tested serum samples from eosinophilic meningitis patients and individuals at risk of infection with A. cantonensis to evaluate a recently developed simple and rapid dot-immunogold filtration assay (DIGFA) for detection of specific antibodies against A. cantonensis. Purified 31-kDa glycoprotein of A. cantonensis and protein A colloidal gold conjugate were employed to detect the 31-kDa anti-A. cantonensis antibody in patients sera from the parasite endemic areas of northeast Thailand. The results were compared with those obtained by dot-blot enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with 31-kDa A. cantonensis antigen. The overall positivity rate of DIGFA and dot-blot ELISA for A. cantonensis infection in 98 clinically diagnosed cases from three highly endemic districts in Khon Kaen province were 39.79% and 37.75%, respectively. Among 86 sera of subjects at risk of infection with A. cantonensis, 24.41% were positive by DIGFA and 23.25% by dot-blot ELISA. There were good correlation between the visual grading of DIGFA and dot-blot ELISA in both groups of defined sera. DIGFA is as sensitive and specific as dot-blot ELISA for confirming eosinophilic meningitis due to A. cantonensis infection, with advantages of simplicity, rapidity and without the use of specific and expensive equipment, and can be used in field settings.
Increased susceptibility of diabetics to melioidosis, a disease caused by the
Burkholderia pseudomallei bacterium is believed to be attributed to dysfunction of the
innate immune system. However, the underlying mechanism of the innate susceptibility is not
well-understood. Glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK3β) plays an important role in the innate
inflammatory response caused by bacterial pathogens. The present study was conducted to
investigate the effects of GSK3β inhibition by LiCl on levels of pro- and anti-inflammatory
cytokines; and the activity of transcription factor NF-κB in B. pseudomallei-infected peripheral
blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) derived from diabetic-induced and normal Sprague Dawley
rats. In addition, the effects of LiCl on intracellular bacterial counts were also investigated.
Infection of PBMC from diabetic and normal rats with B. pseudomallei resulted in elevated
levels of cytokines (TNF-α, IL-12 and IL-10) and phosphorylation of NF-κB in both cell types.
Intracellular bacterial counts decreased with time in both cell types during infection. However
bacterial clearance was less prominent in diabetic PBMC. Burkholderia pseudomallei infection
also caused inactivation (Ser9 phosphorylation) of GSK3β in normal PBMC, an effect absent
in infected diabetic PBMC. Inhibition of GSK3β by LiCl lowered the levels of pro-inflammatory
cytokines (TNF-α and IL-12) in both normal and diabetic PBMC. Similarly, phosphorylated NF-
κB (pNF-κB) levels in both cell types were decreased with LiCl treatment. Also, LiCl was able
to significantly decrease the intracellular bacterial count in normal as well as diabetic PBMC.
Interestingly, the levels of anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 in both normal and diabetic
PBMC were further elevated with GSK3β inhibition. More importantly, GSK3β in infected
diabetic PBMC was inactivated as in their non-diabetic counterparts upon LiCl treatment.
Taken together, our results suggest that inhibition of dysregulated GSK3β in diabetic PBMC
resulted in the inactivation of NF-κB and modulation of inflammatory cytokine levels. This is
evidence that dysregulation of GSK3β is a contributing factor in the molecular basis of innate
dysfunction and susceptibility of diabetic host to melioidosis infection.
Non-Leisure Time Physical is the main component of physical activity in Malaysia. The aim of this study is to study the associated factors related to Non-Leisure Time Physical (occupational & travel) in Malaysia. This data is from the Third National Health and Morbidity Survey, consisting of 32,575 respondents. It was a cross-sectional study among Malaysian adult, aged 18 years and was conducted using proportional to the size stratified sampling method. Chi square test and logistic regression model were used to analyse the data. The result showed that non-leisure time physical activity (NLTPA) gives more contribution to total physical activity, as compared to leisure time physical activity with percentage of 64.3% and 35.7% respectively. There was a significant association between NLTPA with age (P < 0.001), gender (P < 0.001), ethnicity (P < 0.001), education (P < 0.001), occupation (P < 0.001), income (P < 0.001), marital status (P < 0.001), region (P < 0.001). The main component of physical activity in Malaysia is NLTPA. Promoting NLTPA may have potential to increase physical activity levels in Malaysia.
Study name: National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS-2006)
MeSH terms: Adult; Cross-Sectional Studies; Ethnic Groups; Humans; Leisure Activities; Malaysia; Motor Activity; Occupations; Surveys and Questionnaires; Chi-Square Distribution; Logistic Models; Marital Status
Information regarding out of hospital cardiac arrest incidence including outcomes in Malaysia is limited and fragmented. This study aims to identify the incidence and adherence to protocol of out of hospital cardiac arrest and also to explore the issues faced by pre-hospital personnel in regards to the management of cardiac arrest victim in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A mixed method approach combining qualitative and quantitative study design was used. Two hundred eighty five (285) pre-hospital care data sheet for out of hospital cardiac arrest during the year of 2011 were examined by using checklists to identify the incidence and adherence to protocol. Nine semi-structured interviews and two focus group discussions were performed. Based on the overall incidence for out of hospital cardiac arrest cases which occurred in 2011 (n=285), the survival rate was 16.8%. On the adherence to protocol, only 89 (41.8%) of the cases adhered to the given protocol and 124 did not adhere to such protocol. All the relevant qualitative data were merged into few categories relating to issues that could affect the management of out of hospital cardiac arrest performed by pre-hospital care team. The essential elements in the handling of out of hospital cardiac arrest by pre-hospital care teamwasto ensure increased survival rates and excellent outcomes. Measures are needed to strengthen the quick activation of the pre-hospital care service, prompt bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation, early defibrillation and timely advanced cardiac life support, and also to address all other issues highlighted in the qualitative results of this study.
MeSH terms: Data Accuracy; Electric Countershock; Humans; Malaysia; Personnel, Hospital; Incidence; Survival Rate; Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation; Focus Groups; Advanced Cardiac Life Support; Checklist; Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest
The objective of this study was to describe the differences in physical activity with socio-demographic factors and its association with cardiovascular risk factors. It was a cross-sectional study among selected urban and rural Malays communities in Kuching and Samarahan. Physical activity data was obtained using International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) short version. Assessment of cardiovascular risk factors was based on blood pressure, fasting cholesterol and glucose and body mass index (BMI). Data was analysed using SPSS version 20. A total of 223 participated with higher response from rural areas (60.1%) and females (61.9%). More than half of the respondents (58.5%) were overweight and obese, with a mean BMI of 25.9 kg/m2 (SD=4.9). About 25% of the respondents were found to have blood pressure in the at-risk range. The prevalence of at-risk blood glucose was 52.3% with a mean value of 7.3mmol/L (SD=3.46). The prevalence of at-risk cholesterol were lower with 31.8%, mean value of 3.5 mmol/L (SD=2.94). There were more active respondents living in rural area (p=0.02). Logistics regression analysis showed that urban area (OR=1.988 95% CI 1.082 to 3.652), systolic blood pressure (OR1.020 95% CI 1.003 to 1.037) and blood cholesterol (OR0.884 95% CI 0.785 to 0.996) were associated with physical activity level. Change of physical activity due to urbanization can increase the risk of obesity and other chronic diseases. Efforts to include physical activity in intervention programme should be more intensified, with more provision of suitable built environment.
MeSH terms: Blood Glucose; Blood Pressure; Blood Pressure Determination; Cardiovascular Diseases; Cholesterol; Chronic Disease; Cross-Sectional Studies; Environment Design; Fasting; Female; Glucose; Motor Activity; Obesity; Surveys and Questionnaires; Regression Analysis; Risk Factors; Urbanization; Body Mass Index; Prevalence; Overweight
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric diagnosis made when someone including children who experiences traumatic stressor. Those who are exposed to a more severe trauma have highest level of PTSD. The aim of this study was to measure the prevalence of PTSD and its associated factors among 219 children who were affected by a form of natural disaster which is the tsunami waves in a rural area in Malaysia. A cross sectional study was carried out among children aged 10-12 years 6 months after the traumatic event. Child Posttraumatic Stress Disorder –Reaction Index (CPTSD-RI) was used as a screening instrument which was answered by the affected children through a self-administered questionnaire. Forty six percent of these children had PTSD symptoms; 31.1% of these children had mild, 11.4% had moderate, 3.7% had severe PTSD and none had very severe PTSD. Result also showed that 91.8% had re-experiencing symptoms, 28.3% had numbing/avoidance symptoms and 49.3% had hyperarousal symptoms. Children with low social support (Adj OR = 2.3 (95% CI: = 1.3- 4.2)), and children who experienced deaths among someone close to them (Adj OR = 3.7 (95% CI =1.2 - 11.5)) were more likely to have symptoms of PTSD. This showed that children are at higher risk of developing PTSD as early as 6 months after the event and thus early intervention should be offered to them. Future longitudinal study can be carried out among affected children to assess whether these PTSD symptoms persist over time.
MeSH terms: Child; Cross-Sectional Studies; Death; Disasters; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Malaysia; Surveys and Questionnaires; Social Support; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic; Prevalence; Early Intervention (Education); Tsunamis
The uprising needs of traditional & complementary medicine (T&CM) despite the availability of conventional medical (CVM) treatments has gained a serious concern to the authorities in hospital care delivery systems. It was about suffices the supply and demand for T&CM and its absence may interfere the quality of patient care. Malaysia was not exempted of this phenomenon. Moreover, its rich tropical biodiversity and multi-ethnical medical systems promoted T&CM usage. This research was aimed to determine the overall T& CM preferences, the preferred future patient care services (FPCS) and its socio-demographic and warding characteristics. Using a self-administered standardised questionnaire, instrumented by cross sectional study, a total 132 warded patients in a UKM Medical Center (UKMMC) were interviewed. T&CM preferences were the composite of seven domains. The finding revealed that the T&CM preference was 64.4%, dominated by older age (66.2%), women (68.2%), low education (66.0%), employed (66.7%), high income (67.5%) and married (66.0%). Oncology (81.3%) and orthopaedic (75.7%) ward patients were more in preference compared to other wards. When asked about the FPCS preference, about 80.3% expected integrative medicine services to be provided, whereas the remaining were still exclusively preferred modern medicine (15.2%) and alternative medicine (4.5%) respectively. As conclusion, this study has affirmed that there is a great need towards T&CM among hospitalized patients who are accessible to modern CVM.
Indonesian government secures the access of the poor towards health services through subsidised schemes. This study is aimed to describe the pattern of health expenditure by households and to describe the pattern of health service utilisation across household’s socioeconomic level in the city of Padang after seven years of the introduction of subsidised schemes. A household survey was conducted involving 918 households, with multistage random sampling method. The proportion of out-of-pocket (OOP) health spending as a share of household’s capacity to pay was regressive across consumption quintiles. The proportion of households with catastrophic health expenditure was 1.6% while 1.1% faced impoverished health expenses. Among those who need health care, the utilisation among the rich was higher than the poor. Health insurance schemes in Padang provides financial protection, however with regards to household’s capacity to pay, the poor has the higher burden of health payment. The gap on health service utilisation between the poor and the better-offs was still apparent for outpatient services and it has been narrowed for inpatient care. This study suggests that the subsidised schemes for the poor are highly needed and the possibility of the leakage of subsidies to the rich should be considered by the government.
MeSH terms: Ambulatory Care; Health Expenditures; Family Characteristics; Government; Humans; Indonesia; Inpatients; Insurance, Health; Outpatients; Surveys and Questionnaires
Purpose of the present study was to assess effect of work-family conflict (along with its four dimensions) on physical health status. In particular, we examined the mediating role of health related behaviors on the linkage between all dimensions of work-family conflict and physical health status. The current cross-sectional research was conducted among 567 women who were working in the public departments of Malaysia. Self-administrated questionnaire was used for data collection. Our findings showed that work-family conflict (along with its four dimensions) significantly and negatively correlated with physical health status. The findings from mediational analysis showed that all dimensions of work-family conflict indirectly deteriorate physical health status via increasing the chance of not using food strategies. However, our results did not support the mediating function of physical activity on the proposed relationship. Results of the current study indicated that women with greater level of work-family conflict are more likely to suffer from poor physical health status. Having multiple strategies for managing food and eating reduce the adverse effect of work-family conflict on physical health. Organizations may benefit from Family Friendly Policies (FFP) that can alleviate level of conflict and eventually avoid or decrease rate of engagement in unhealthy behavior that have detrimental effect on health status.
MeSH terms: Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Health Status; Humans; Malaysia; Motor Activity; Surveys and Questionnaires; Work; Family Conflict
Family planning is a method of controlling fertility which helps to prevent unwanted pregnancies among couples. Unwanted pregnancy has negative effects for mothers and children. The aims of this study were to determine the prevalence of family planning practices among women in Serdang area and associated factors with their family planning practices. A cross sectional study was conducted with a systematic random sampling of 349 women of reproductive age, who attended Sri Kembangan Polyclinic. Descriptive analysis with chi-square and multiple regression analysis were conducted to identify factors associated with the family planning practice. The prevalence of family planning practice was 38.4%. Family planning was significantly associated with age (p=0.001), marital status (p=0.001), mode of delivery of the last pregnancy (p=0.001), number of children (p=0.001), source of information (p=0.004), level of knowledge (p=0.001), and the attitude (p=0.004). Using multiple logistic regression, four factors contributed to family planning practice, were identified as statistically significant: marital status (married OR=40, 95% CI: 9.45, 169.8), religion (Muslim OR=1.9, 95% CI: 1.14, 3.4), number of children (children>4 OR=2.98, 95% CI:1. 74, 5.09) and attitude (positive attitude OR=1.88, 95% CI:1.11, 3.18). The prevalence of family planning practice in Serdang was low even though knowledge was sufficient. The use of pamphlets and booklets are still needed to enhance efforts in health education. Currently, practice on family planning will determine the future structure of the community and the economic wellbeing of a country. Future study should focus on family planning practice among teenager and types of methods for women.
MeSH terms: Adolescent; Cross-Sectional Studies; Family Characteristics; Family Planning Services; Female; Fertility; Health Education; Humans; Islam; Marriage; Mothers; Pamphlets; Pregnancy; Pregnancy, Unwanted; Prevalence; Logistic Models; Marital Status
Limited studies on prevalence and risk factors of Premature Coronary Artery Disease (PCAD) were done in Malaysia, primarily on lipid profile. This cross sectional study aims to identify any changing patterns in prevalence and risk factors of Premature CAD between 2000 and 2012. From 2000 to 2012 we included 21862 patients who underwent the first Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI). Analysis of risk factors was done to 1660 and 2098 patients from year 2007 and 2012 respectively. Age of less than 45 years was taken as PCAD. Data was collected from PCI database of National Heart Institute (NHI), NHI TrakCare System, and patients’ medical records. PCAD significantly decreased from 18.8% (2000) to 11.6% (2012). Malay ethnicity showed increasing trend over the years from 55.1% to 66.9%. Multiple logistic regression analysis in 2007 showed that smoking had the higher risk (AOR=2.52), followed by male gender (AOR=2.06), family history of PCAD (AOR=1.96), Indian ethnicity, (AOR=1.65), triglycerides level (AOR=1.20) and BMI (AOR=1.06). In 2012, family history of PCAD had the highest risk (AOR=2.00) followed by smoking (AOR=1.91) and BMI (AOR=1.11). There are changes in risk factors patterns of premature CAD between 2007 and 2012. Most of them are preventable at earlier stage.
MeSH terms: Coronary Artery Disease; Cross-Sectional Studies; Ethnic Groups; Humans; Lipids; Malaysia; Male; Medical Records; Risk Factors; Smoking; Triglycerides; Body Mass Index; Prevalence; Logistic Models; Asian Continental Ancestry Group; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention
Ageing anxiety is commoner among women compared to men. However, little is known on the possible contributing factors towards the development of ageing related anxiety among Malaysian women. This study aimed to explore ageing anxiety among the middle-aged women in Malaysia in facing the ageing process. Series of 6 focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted involving a total of 36 women aged between 35 and 59 years old. Each FGD consisted of 5 to 7 respondents and was conducted for an average of 1 to 2 hours. The respondents were selected using the maximum variation sampling method focussing on five age categories, between 35 to 39, 40 to 44, 45 to 49, 50 to 54 and 55 to 59 years old. Representative from several residential areas in the area of Putrajaya Federal Territory and Seri Kembangan, Selangor were involved in the selection of respondents. The interviews revealed that, majority of the respondents were seriously thinking of the possible negative experiences associated with ageing and being old, but very few experiencing ageing anxiety. Three main themes that were identified to contribute to the ageing anxiety were issues related to caregiving at old age and fear of loneliness, the welfare and care of their children when they are old and eventually die and also physical changes that occurred with ageing process. These themes were not specifically associated with any particular age groups, marital or income status. However, the development of the ageing anxiety was found to be related to their personal experiences and observations from the surrounding community. The findings show that women in Malaysia are still emphasizing on the importance of traditional caregiving system, where elderly parents are looked after by the children or extended family members rather than living in formal institutions. Despite the important role of formal institutions in the care of elderly people in the future, it is still negatively perceived. With the shrinking of the size of nuclear family and massive involvement of women in employment sector, more elderly will be expected to reside in formal institutions in the near future. Relevant authorities should be made aware on the importance to maintain the quality of care in the formal institution for elderly, in order to tackle the negative perceptions.
The computer is well known as one of the important tools in the office that gives a lot of benefits but silently leads to musculoskeletal pain. There are many different kinds of musculoskeletal complaints pain but the most common seen among computer users in developed countries is the complaint of arm, neck and shoulder (CANS). Despite this, definite factors that can be associated with the prevalence of CANS have not been established. This study was conducted to identify the prevalence and factors associated with work-related complaints of arm, neck and shoulder (CANS) among office workers in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur. A survey study design was conducted where 110 (n=110) office workers were recruited from around the Selangor and Kuala Lumpur area for 5 months periods. Participants were required to answer the Maastricht Upper Extremity Questionnaire (MUEQ) and the Level of Ergonomic Knowledge Questionnaire. The study showed the highest percentage of CANS reported was at neck region (53.6% of participants), followed by shoulders with 53.0%. The majority of participants have low level of computer ergonomic awareness where only 19.09% (n=21) from government sector and 10% (n=11) office workers from private sector reported knowledge of ergonomics. Majority of the participants did not have the know-how in implementing correct computer ergonomics. However there was a weak association (r=
MeSH terms: Arm; Computers; Government; Human Engineering; Neck; Surveys and Questionnaires; Shoulder; Prevalence; Private Sector; Developed Countries; Upper Extremity; Musculoskeletal Pain