OBJECTIVES: Therefore, the objective of this review was twofold; to identify and critically evaluate anti-depressant properties of medicinal plants or those incorporated in traditional medicine; and to discuss their possible mechanism of action as well as challenges and way forward for this alternative treatment approach.
METHODS: Relevant research articles were retrieved from various databases, including Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science, for the period from 2018 to 2020, and the search was updated in September 2024. The inclusion criterion was relevance to antidepressants, while the exclusion criteria included duplicates, lack of full-text availability, and non-English publications.
RESULTS: Through an extensive literature review, more than 40 medicinal plant species with antidepressant effects were identified, some of which are part of traditional medicine. The list of the said plant species included Albizia zygia (DC.) J.F.Macbr., Calculus bovis Sativus, Celastrus paniculatus Willd., Cinnamomum sp., Erythrina velutina Willd., Ficus platyphylla Delile, Garcinia mangostana Linn., Hyptis martiusii Benth, and Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. Anti-depressant mechanisms associated with those plants were further characterised based on their modes of action such as anti-oxidation system, anti-inflammation action, modulation of various neurotransmitters, neuroprotective effect, the regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and anti-depressant mechanism. The challenges and future outlook of this alternative and complementary medicine are also explored and discussed.
CONCLUSION: This pool of identified plant species is hoped to offer health care professionals the best possible alternatives of anti-depressants from natural phytocompounds that are efficacious, safe and affordable for applications in future clinical settings.
METHODS: Archives of our institute were reviewed. Cases diagnosed as odontogenic myxoma were retrieved. Demographic, clinical, radiographic, and histopathological features of these cases were analyzed. In addition, immunohistochemical markers including vimentin, Ki-67, Bcl-2, and CD117 were performed. The correlation between immunohistochemical profiles and clinicopathological characteristics was evaluated.
RESULTS: Sixteen cases of odontogenic myxoma were discovered. Fourteen cases were central type while two cases were peripheral type. The mean age of patients was 34.6 years with male-to-female ratio of 1:2.2. Mandible (68.8 %) was more affected than the maxilla (31.2 %). Bony expansion or jaw swelling (43.8 %) was the most common clinical feature. Most cases (71.4 %) presented with multilocular radiolucency. Histopathologically, tumors show stellate and spindle-shaped cells in a myxoid stroma with varying amounts of collagen fiber. All cases were positive for vimentin and Bcl-2. Half of the cases showed positive for Ki-67. Mast cells were presented in most cases (75.0 %). A significant correlation was found between the immunoexpression level of Bcl-2 and border of lesion in radiograph (p = 0.024).
CONCLUSIONS: This study contributes to better understanding of the characteristics of odontogenic myxoma. Clinicians and pathologists should be aware of odontogenic myxoma, as its clinical and histopathological features may overlap with other tumors. The expression of Bcl-2 and presence of mast cell in this tumor may relate to its growth and aggressiveness. Despite its benign nature, odontogenic myxoma exhibits high recurrence, especially in lesion managed conservatively.
METHODS: Seven databases and four trial registries were searched. Eligible studies included randomised- and non-randomised-controlled-trials in patients diagnosed with OM. Studies on Individualised- and non-Individualised-Homeopathy (IH, non-IH) were included, and controls were inactive and/or active treatment. Primary outcomes were clinical-improvement and antibiotic-use. Data extraction, Risk of Bias and certainty of evidence (GRADE) were performed using established methodology.
RESULTS: Nine studies (IH = 4, non-IH = 5) comprising seven Randomised Clinical Trials (RCTs) and two non-RCTs (nRCTS) compared homeopathy with placebo (n = 2) or standard care (n = 7). 4/7 included RCTs reported statistically significant individual outcomes at relevant time points (symptom score, MEE, and antibiotic use) favouring homeopathy. However, heterogeneity of study designs, homeopathic interventions and outcome measures hindered the pooling of data for most outcomes, except for antibiotic use (non-IH). Add-on non-IH reduced filled antibiotic prescriptions by 46 % (RR = 0.54 [95%CI: 0.28, 1.06], P = 0.07, I2 = 12 %), but this did not reach statistical significance. Most studies demonstrated that the homeopathy group had less adverse events than the control group.
CONCLUSIONS: The evidence base for the effectiveness of homeopathy and OM treatment is modest in study number, size, and risk of bias assessment. Individual RCTs report positive effects on clinical improvement and/or antibiotic use at relevant time points with homeopathy with no safety issues. Due to heterogeneity, the current evidence is insufficient to satisfactorily answer whether homeopathy is effective for clinical improvement and reducing antibiotic use in patients with OM. A Core Outcome Set for OM for future research is warranted to improve the potential for meta-analyses and strengthen the evidence base.
OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to identify the differences in knowledge and attitude toward OSA between medical and dental practitioners working in North-Eastern Peninsular Malaysia.
METHODS: A comparative cross-sectional study was performed from February 2020 to February 2021. A total of fifty-two medical practitioners and fifty-two dental practitioners working at university-based outpatient clinics, government health clinics, and oral health clinics located in Kelantan State of Malaysia participated in the study, and data were collected by the structured questionnaire including sociodemographic inquiry and OSAKA questionnaire by non-probability stratified random sampling. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare knowledge and attitude scores between the two groups.
RESULTS: The mean age of the respondents was 34.6 years. The current study shows that 92.3% of medical doctors and 96.1% of dental doctors were able to correctly answer the question "Most of the patients with OSA snore" a significant finding in our study. Only 1% of medical professionals could answer seventeen questions correctly with a median score of 11, and only 1% of dental professionals could answer sixteen questions correctly with a median score of 9. None of them could provide an accurate answer to all the knowledge questions. Medical and dental practitioners exhibited different knowledge levels on OSA (z- statistics=-4.39, U = 827.00 with p < 0.05, and effect size, r = 0.61). However, no significant differences were found in total knowledge score by gender (p-value>0.05), ethnicity (p-value>0.05), total service years (p-value>0.05), and training attended. In addition, significant differences in attitude levels between medical and dental practitioners have been observed (z-statistics=-3.42, U = 725.00 with p < 0.05, and effect size, r = 0.47). Nevertheless, no significant differences have been seen in total attitude score by ethnicity (p-value > 0.05), total service years (p-value > 0.05), attending training on OSA (p-value > 0.05), and professional status (p-value > 0.05) except gender (p-value < 0.05).
CONCLUSION: A Significant difference is evident concerning knowledge and attitude toward OSA diagnosis and management between medical and dental practitioners working in North-Eastern Peninsular Malaysia. Medical practitioners in this study recorded a higher knowledge and attitude score compared to dental practitioners.
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study is to examine the effect of telerehabilitation (TR) on PA levels and quality of life (QoL) in young adult teleworkers.
METHODS: A quasi-experimental study was conducted on 82 teleworkers (54 females and 28 males). Levels of PA and QoL were assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF) and the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL-14) questionnaire. TR was provided to all participants for four weeks, three times a week, for 40 minutes per session. Levels of PA and QoL were evaluated at baseline and after four weeks of the intervention. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics.
RESULTS: After four weeks of TR, there has been a significant improvement in the scores of IPAQ and HRQOL-14 (p