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Nitrogen nutrient removals from wastewater and river water

Abdul-Rahman R, Tsuno H, Zainol N

Water Sci Technol, 2002;45(12):197-204.
PMID: 12201103

Elevated levels of nutrients in agroindustry wastewaters, and higher reliance on chlorination pose health threats due to formation of chlorinated organics as well as increased chlorination costs. Removals of ammonium and nitrate compounds were studied using activated carbon from palm shells, as adsorbent and support media. Experiments were carried out at several loadings, F:M from 0.31 to 0.58, and hydraulic residence times (HRT) of 24 h, 12 h and 8 h. Results show that the wastewater treatment process achieved removals of over 90% for COD and 62% for Total-N. Studies on removals from river water were carried out in sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and activated carbon biofilm (ACB) reactor. Removals achieved by the SBR adsorption-biodegradation combination were 67.0% for COD, 58.8% for NH3-N and 25.5% for NO3-N while for adsorption alone the removals were only 37.0% for COD, 35.2% for NH3-N and 13.8% for NO3-N. In the ACB reactor, at HRT of 1.5 to 6 h, removals ranged from 12.5 to 100% for COD, 16.7 to 100% for NO3-N and 13.5 to 100% for NH3-N. Significant decrease in removals was shown at lower HRT. The studies have shown that substantial removals of COD, NO3-N and NH3-N from both wastewater and river water may be achieved via adsorption-biodegradation by biofilm on activated carbon processes.
Fulltext Sturge-Weber-Syndrome with extreme ocular manifestation and rare association of upper airway angioma with anticipated difficult airway

Wong HS, Abdul Rahman R, Choo SY, Yahya N

Med J Malaysia, 2012 Aug;67(4):435-7.
PMID: 23082461 MyJurnal

We report a rare case of an 18 year old girl with Sturge-Weber syndrome, she had extensive facial port wine stains, right bupthalmos and advanced glaucoma involving both eyes. She underwent right eye glaucoma drainage device surgery under general anaesthesia, and had a difficult intubation due to extensive angiomatous like soft tissue swelling at her upper airway. This report highlights the importance of being aware of the need for continuous follow-up in Sturge-Weber syndrome patients as this syndrome can lead to blindness due to advance glaucoma and the awareness of possible difficult intubation for this group of patients.
Multicentre evaluations of two new rapid IgG4 tests (WB rapid and panLF rapid) for detection of lymphatic filariasis

Noordin R, Itoh M, Kimura E, Abdul Rahman R, Ravindran B, Mahmud R, et al.

Filaria journal, 2007;6:9.
PMID: 17961262

In the global effort to eliminate lymphatic filariasis (LF), rapid field-applicable tests are useful tools that will allow on-site testing to be performed in remote places and the results to be obtained rapidly. Exclusive reliance on the few existing tests may jeopardize the progress of the LF elimination program, thus the introduction of other rapid tests would be useful to address this issue. Two new rapid immunochromatographic IgG4 cassette tests have been produced, namely WB rapid and panLF rapid, for detection of bancroftian filariasis and all three species of lymphatic filaria respectively. WB rapid was developed using BmSXP recombinant antigen, while PanLF rapid was developed using BmR1 and BmSXP recombinant antigens. A total of 165 WB rapid and 276 panLF rapid tests respectively were evaluated at USM and the rest were couriered to another university in Malaysia (98 WB rapid, 129 panLF rapid) and to universities in Indonesia (56 WB rapid, 62 panLF rapid), Japan (152 of each test) and India (18 of each test) where each of the tests underwent independent evaluations in a blinded manner. The average sensitivities of WB rapid and panLF rapid were found to be 97.6% (94%-100%) and 96.5% (94%-100%) respectively; while their average specificities were both 99.6% (99%-100%). Thus this study demonstrated that both the IgG4 rapid tests were highly sensitive and specific, and would be useful additional tests to facilitate the global drive to eliminate this disease.
Fulltext Spatial distribution of Plasmodium knowlesi cases and their vectors in Johor, Malaysia: in light of human malaria elimination

Pramasivan S, Ngui R, Jeyaprakasam NK, Liew JWK, Low VL, Mohamed Hassan N, et al.

Malar J, 2021 Oct 29;20(1):426.
PMID: 34715864 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-021-03963-0

BACKGROUND: Plasmodium knowlesi, a simian malaria parasite infection, increases as Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax infections decrease in Johor, Malaysia. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the distribution of vectors involved in knowlesi malaria transmission in Johor. This finding is vital in estimating hotspot areas for targeted control strategies.
METHODS: Anopheles mosquitoes were collected from the location where P. knowlesi cases were reported. Cases of knowlesi malaria from 2011 to 2019 in Johor were analyzed. Internal transcribed spacers 2 (ITS2) and cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) genes were used to identify the Leucosphyrus Group of Anopheles mosquitoes. In addition, spatial analysis was carried out on the knowlesi cases and vectors in Johor.
RESULTS: One hundred and eighty-nine cases of P. knowlesi were reported in Johor over 10 years. Young adults between the ages of 20-39 years comprised 65% of the cases. Most infected individuals were involved in agriculture and army-related occupations (22% and 32%, respectively). Four hundred and eighteen Leucosphyrus Group Anopheles mosquitoes were captured during the study. Anopheles introlatus was the predominant species, followed by Anopheles latens. Spatial analysis by Kriging interpolation found that hotspot regions of P. knowlesi overlapped or were close to the areas where An. introlatus and An. latens were found. A significantly high number of vectors and P. knowlesi cases were found near the road within 0-5 km.
CONCLUSIONS: This study describes the distribution of P. knowlesi cases and Anopheles species in malaria-endemic transmission areas in Johor. Geospatial analysis is a valuable tool for studying the relationship between vectors and P. knowlesi cases. This study further supports that the Leucosphyrus Group of mosquitoes might be involved in transmitting knowlesi malaria cases in Johor. These findings may provide initial evidence to prioritize diseases and vector surveillance.
Fulltext Prevalence of Clostridium difficile toxin in diarhoeal stool samples of patients from a tertiary hospital in North Eastern Penisular Malaysia

Hassan SA, Othman N, Idris FM, Abdul Rahman Z, Maning N, Abdul Rahman R, et al.

Med J Malaysia, 2012 Aug;67(4):402-5.
PMID: 23082450 MyJurnal

This study describes the prevalence of Clostridium difficile toxin (CDT) in loose stool samples from inpatients aged more than two years of a tertiary hospital. A total of 175 samples that had been examined were from stool samples that were sent to the Medical Microbiology & Parasitology Laboratory for various clinical indications. The toxin was detected by a commercial immunochromatograhic test, and the patients' demography, clinical features, treatment and outcomes were analyzed from their medical records. Clostridium difficile toxin was positive in 24 (13.7%) of the stool samples. Male and female were 11 (45.8%) and 13 (54.2%) respectively, with the majority of them aged more than 50 years. Most were from medical wards (n = 21, 87.5%), with the rest from surgical wards (n = 2, 8.3%) and intensive care units (n = 1, 3.4%). All the CDT positive patients had history of prior antibiotic usage within 6 weeks before the detection of the toxin. The mean duration of antibiotics usage was 17.75 (+/- 13.75) days, while the mean duration of diarrhea was 5.21((+/- 5.85) days. Eighteen patients had underlying medical illnesses that were diabetes mellitus, chronic renal disease, hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease and malignancy; with seven of them being CDT positive while on chemotherapy. Stool occult blood test was positive in 15 patients whereas presence of pus cells in the CD positive stool samples were detected in 21 patients. The duration of hospitalization among the patients was 27.96 (+/- 23.22) days.
Fulltext Fatty acid, triacylglycerol composition and antioxidant properties of date seed oil

Mohd Jaih, A.A., Abdul Rahman, R., Abdull Razis, A.F., Ariffin, A.A., Al-Awaadh, A., Suleiman, N.

International Food Research Journal, 2019;26(2):517-527.
MyJurnal

Oil is one of the major components of date seed alongside dietary fibre, carbohydrate, protein, moisture and ash. Therefore, the present work focused on the extraction of oil from five varieties of date seed using Soxhlet extraction method and subsequently characterised their physicochemical and antioxidant properties accordingly. Oil extracted from the seeds ranged between 8 to 9.8%, whereas the iodine values were between 48.7 to 55.5 g I2/100g. Furthermore, oleic and lauric acids were revealed as the main fatty acids present in the date seed oil, with LaOO (La: lauric acid; O: oleic acid) as the main triacylglycerol. The total phenolic content in the oil ranged from 7.96 to 17.72 mg GAE/g oil, while the antioxidant activity, expressed as EC50, ranged from 5.17 to 17.18 mg/mL. Additionally, the highest reducing activity was observed at 4mg/mL. Hence, oil characteristics are dependent on the type of date, thus indicating that different potential applications may be suggested.
Pattern of maxillofacial injuries in motorcyclists in Malaysia

Ramli R, Abdul Rahman R, Abdul Rahman N, Abdul Karim F, Krsna Rajandram R, Mohamad MS, et al.

J Craniofac Surg, 2008 Mar;19(2):316-21.
PMID: 18362705 DOI: 10.1097/SCS.0b013e318163f94d

Motorcycle casualties represent significant number in road traffic accidents in Malaysia, and among all the injuries, facial injuries pose many significant problems physiologically, functionally, and aesthetically. The aim of this study was to analyze the pattern of maxillofacial as well as other injuries in motorcyclists who were seen at Hospital Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia.Patients' records from January 2004 to December 2005 were reviewed. Data related to demographics, vehicle/object involved in collision, involvement as a rider or pillion, whether a helmet was worn or not, location of injuries on the face/facial bones, and other associated injuries were collected.A total of 113 cases of motorcycle accidents were recorded; 106 males and 7 females were involved. Mean age was 25.8 years. Among all the races, Malay had the highest involvement (72.3%), followed by Chinese (14.3%), Indians (8.9%), and others (5.4%). The types of collision were either a single-vehicle collision (i.e., skidded) or with another vehicle/s or object (e.g., tree, stone, or lamppost). The injuries were mainly seen on the lower face (46.9%) followed by midface (25.7%) and a combination of the midface and lower face (15%) and others (12.4%). The most frequent other associated injuries recorded were orthopedic and head injuries.
The potential of 3-dimensional construct engineered from poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid)/fibrin hybrid scaffold seeded with bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells for in vitro cartilage tissue engineering

Abdul Rahman R, Mohamad Sukri N, Md Nazir N, Ahmad Radzi MA, Zulkifly AH, Che Ahmad A, et al.

Tissue Cell, 2015 Aug;47(4):420-30.
PMID: 26100682 DOI: 10.1016/j.tice.2015.06.001

Articular cartilage is well known for its simple uniqueness of avascular and aneural structure that has limited capacity to heal itself when injured. The use of three dimensional construct in tissue engineering holds great potential in regenerating cartilage defects. This study evaluated the in vitro cartilaginous tissue formation using rabbit's bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs)-seeded onto poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) PLGA/fibrin and PLGA scaffolds. The in vitro cartilaginous engineered constructs were evaluated by gross inspection, histology, cell proliferation, gene expression and sulphated glycosaminoglycan (sGAG) production at week 1, 2 and 3. After 3 weeks of culture, the PLGA/fibrin construct demonstrated gross features similar to the native tissue with smooth, firm and glistening appearance, superior histoarchitectural and better cartilaginous extracellular matrix compound in concert with the positive glycosaminoglycan accumulation on Alcian blue. Significantly higher cell proliferation in PLGA/fibrin construct was noted at day-7, day-14 and day-21 (p<0.05 respectively). Both constructs expressed the accumulation of collagen type II, collagen type IX, aggrecan and sox9, showed down-regulation of collagen type I as well as produced relative sGAG content with PLGA/fibrin construct exhibited better gene expression in all profiles and showed significantly higher relative sGAG content at each time point (p<0.05). This study suggested that with optimum in vitro manipulation, PLGA/fibrin when seeded with pluripotent non-committed BMSCs has the capability to differentiate into chondrogenic lineage and may serve as a prospective construct to be developed as functional tissue engineered cartilage.
Scale-up synthesis of lipase-catalyzed palm esters in stirred-tank reactor

Keng PS, Basri M, Ariff AB, Abdul Rahman MB, Abdul Rahman RN, Salleh AB

Bioresour Technol, 2008 Sep;99(14):6097-104.
PMID: 18243690 DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2007.12.049

Lipase-catalyzed production of palm esters by alcoholysis of palm oil with oleyl alcohol in n-hexane was performed in 2L stirred-tank reactor (STR). Investigation on the performance of reactor operation was carried out in batch mode STR with single impeller mounted on the centrally located shaft. Rushton turbine (RT) impellers provide the highest reaction yield (95.8%) at lower agitation speed as compared to AL-hydrofoil (AL-H) and 2-bladed elephant ear (EE) impellers. Homogenous enzyme particles suspension was obtained at 250 rpm by using RT impeller. At higher impeller speed, the shear effect on the enzyme particles caused by agitation has decreased the reaction performance. Palm esters reaction mixture in STR follows Newtons' law due to the linear relation between the shear stress (tau) and shear rate (dupsilon/dy). High stability of Lipozyme RM IM was observed as shown by its ability to be repeatedly used to give high percentage yield (79%) of palm esters even after 15 cycles of reaction. The process was successfully scale-up to 75 L STR (50 L working volume) based on a constant impeller tip speed approach, which gave the yield of 97.2% after 5h reaction time.
A survey of perceived stress among undergraduate dental students in Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia

Rosli TI, Abdul Rahman R, Abdul Rahman SR, Ramli R

Singapore Dent J, 2005 Dec;27(1):17-22.
PMID: 16438264

The objectives of this study were to determine the sources of stress among undergraduate dental students, and to compare the sources of stress among the 5 years of undergraduate study, between gender, and with other studies done elsewhere. A total of 325 students across the 5 academic years (88.8% response rate) of the Faculty of Dentistry, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, completed the modified Dental Environment Stress questionnaire. All respondents reported that they experienced some form of stress. The preclinical students reported that examinations and fear of failure caused the most stress. The main stressor for clinical students was clinical training, particularly factors relating to meeting clinical requirements. Female students perceived more stress generally than male students. However, male students were more stressed when faced with factors related to clinical training.
Fulltext Pain assessment using self-reported, nurse-reported, and observational pain assessment tools among older individuals with cognitive impairment

Ngu SS, Tan MP, Subramanian P, Abdul Rahman R, Kamaruzzaman S, Chin AV, et al.

Pain Manag Nurs, 2015 Aug;16(4):595-601.
PMID: 26088939 DOI: 10.1016/j.pmn.2014.12.002

Pain assessment in older individuals with cognitive impairment is challenging. Evidence on the performance of pain assessment tools in this population remains limited. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of self-reported pain, nurse-reported pain, and observational pain tools among older patients with cognitive impairment using a prospective observational design. In all, 152 older individuals admitted to the acute geriatric ward were recruited through convenience sampling. Three methods of pain assessment were compared: self-reported pain (SRP), observational pain using the Pain Assessment in Advanced Dementia (PAINAD) tool, and nurse-reported pain (NRP). Cognition and mood were assessed with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15). There was moderate agreement between SRP and PAINAD (k = 0.438) and fair agreement between SRP and NRP (k = 0.263). There was statistically significant correlation between SRP and GDS-15 (r = 0.382, p r = 0.018, p = .824). These results suggest that the use of an observational pain scale would be helpful in pain assessment among older individuals when the ability to report pain is not possible. However, self-reported assessments should be attempted first for cognitively impaired patients.
Fulltext A 5-year survey of oral and maxillofacial biopsies in Hospital Kota Bharu and Universti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan: 1994-1998

Ghazali, N., Zain, R.B., Samsudin, A.R., Abdul Rahman, R., Othman, N.H.

Malaysian Dental Journal, 2007;28(2):83-91.
MyJurnal

A review of incident oral and maxillofacial biopsies in Kelantan from January 1994 to December 1998 was carried out to evaluate the scope of pathological lesions managed by the two main oral and maxillofacial units in this state. A total of 357 biopsy reports from incident cases of pathological lesions were reviewed. The biopsies were mainly from intra-oral sites (n=326, 91.3%). Females had more frequent oro-facial lesions compared with males (male:female ratio is 0.8:1). The Bumiputera ethnic group had the most number of biopsies (n=321; 90%). The three most commonly observed histopathological groups were the connective tissue hyperplasia (n=90; 25.2%), epithelial dysplasia and neoplasia (n=68; 19%) and salivary gland cysts/mucocele (n=56; 15.7%). The top five most frequent diagnoses were mucocele (n=56; 15.7%), squamous cell carcinoma (n=45; 12.6%), epulides (n=31; 8.7%), pyogenic granuloma (n=25; 7.0%) and fibroepithelial polyp (n=19; 5.3%). Oro-facial malignancies made up almost one-fifth of all diagnoses and squamous cell carcinoma was the most common sub-type. Lymphomas in the oro-facial region (n=8; 11.4%) were more common than basal cell carcinoma (n=7; 10%) and salivary gland malignancies (n=6; 8.5%). Epithelial jaw cysts consisted of 8.7% (n=31) of all diagnoses, where inflammatory types were more common than the developmental types. Odontogenic tumours consisted of 5.6% (n=20) of all diagnoses and ameloblastoma was the predominant type.
Pan LF-ELISA using BmR1 and BmSXP recombinant antigens for detection of lymphatic filariasis

Abdul Rahman R, Hwen-Yee C, Noordin R

Filaria journal, 2007;6:10.
PMID: 17961264

Anti-filarial IgG4 antibody has been shown to be a good marker for detection of lymphatic filaria infection. Previous studies demonstrated that anti-filarial IgG4 assay using BmR1 recombinant antigen was highly specific and sensitive for detection of brugian filariasis. For bancroftian filariasis, an equivalent assay employing recombinant antigen expressed from the ORF of SXP1 gene has been reported. In order to detect infections by all species of lymphatic filarial, BmR1 and BmSXP recombinant antigens were employed in the development of a pan LF-ELISA.
Fulltext The Protective Effect of Maternal Folic Acid Supplementation on Childhood Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Case-control Studies

Wan Ismail WR, Abdul Rahman R, Rahman NAA, Atil A, Nawi AM

J Prev Med Public Health, 2019 Jul;52(4):205-213.
PMID: 31390683 DOI: 10.3961/jpmph.19.020

OBJECTIVES: Maternal folic acid supplementation is considered mandatory in almost every country in the world to prevent congenital malformations. However, little is known about the association of maternal folic acid intake with the occurrence of childhood cancer. Hence, this study aimed to determine the effects of maternal folic acid consumption on the risk of childhood cancer.
METHODS: A total of 158 related articles were obtained from PubMed, Google Scholar, Scopus, and ProQuest using standardized keywords, of which 17 were included in the final review.
RESULTS: Eleven of the 17 articles showed a significant protective association between maternal folic acid supplementation and childhood cancer. Using a random-effects model, pooled odds ratios (ORs) showed a protective association between maternal folic acid supplementation and childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (OR, 0.75; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.66 to 0.86). However, there was no significant association between maternal folic acid supplementation and acute myeloid leukaemia (OR, 0.70; 95% CI, 0.46 to 1.06) or childhood brain tumours (OR, 1.02; 95% CI, 0.88 to 1.19).
CONCLUSIONS: Maternal folic acid supplementation was found to have a protective effect against childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Thus, healthcare professionals are recommended to provide regular health education and health promotion to the community on the benefits of folic acid supplementation during pregnancy.
Fulltext Survivability of Salmonella and shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) O157 in microwave heated ready-to-eat (RTE) foods

New, C.Y., Abdul Rahman, R., Son, R., Mohammed, A.S.

Food Research, 2018;2(4):378-390.
MyJurnal

The safety level of microwaved foods remains at vague as this subject was less addressed
scientifically. A study was initiated to address the matter by investigating on the
survivability of Salmonella and Shiga-toxigenic Escherichia coli (STEC) O157 in
microwave heated ready-to-eat (RTE) foods using the Most Probable Number coupled
Polymerase Chain Reaction (MPN-PCR) technique. A total of 329 samples of various
ready-to-eat (RTE) convenience meals were collected around Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala
Lumpur and Selangor regions. Salmonella was positively identified in 66 samples (20.1%,
Fulltext Cost analysis of facial injury treatment in two university hospitals in Malaysia: a prospective study

Saperi BS, Ramli R, Ahmed Z, Muhd Nur A, Ibrahim MI, Rashdi MF, et al.

Clinicoecon Outcomes Res, 2017;9:107-113.
PMID: 28223831 DOI: 10.2147/CEOR.S119910

OBJECTIVE: Facial injury (FI) may occur in isolation or in association with injuries to other parts of the body (facial and other injury [FOI]). The objective of this study was to determine the direct treatment costs incurred during the management of facial trauma.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A prospective cohort study on treatment cost for FIs and FOIs due to road-traffic crashes in two university hospitals in Malaysia was conducted from July 2010 to June 2011. The patients were recruited from emergency departments and reviewed after 6 months from the date of initial treatment. Direct cost analysis, comparison of cost and length of hospital stay, and Injury Severity Score (ISS) were performed.
RESULTS: A total of 190 patients were enrolled in the study, of whom 83 (43.7%) had FI only, and 107 (56.3%) had FOI. The mean ISS was 5.4. The mean length of stay and costs for patients with FI only were 5.8 days with a total cost of US$1,261.96, whereas patients with FOI were admitted for 7.8 days with a total cost of US$1,716.47. Costs doubled if the treatment was performed under general anesthesia compared to local anesthesia.
CONCLUSION: Treatment of FI and FOI imposes a financial burden on the health care system in Malaysia.
Near fatal error in management of postoperative epidural analgesia

Wan Mat WR, Yahya N, Izaham A, Abdul Rahman R, Abdul Manap N, Md Zain J

Int J Risk Saf Med, 2014;26(2):57-60.
PMID: 24902502 DOI: 10.3233/JRS-140611

Acute pain service (APS) ensures provision of effective and safe postoperative pain relief. The following cases describe a potentially fatal error in managing patients who receive epidural analgesia postoperatively.
Successful treatment of epithelial downgrowth with endoscopic photocoagulation and intracameral 5-fluorouracil after prolonged limbal wound leak

Abdollah Z, Mohd Zahidin AZ, Ahem A, Abdul Rahman R, Md Din N

Int J Ophthalmol, 2018;11(4):703-704.
PMID: 29675395 DOI: 10.18240/ijo.2018.04.28
Fulltext Date seed and date seed oil

Abdul Afiq, M.J., Abdul Rahman, R., Che Man, Y.B., AL-Kahtani, H.A., Mansor, T.S.T.

International Food Research Journal, 2013;20(5):2035-2043.
MyJurnal

Date palm is an important plant in arid regions with more than 20 varieties reported all over the world. Date seed is a byproduct of date fruit industry which is normally being discarded, used as animal feed ingredient or turned into non-caffeinated coffee by the Arabs. About 11-18% of date fruit weight is the seed which is composed of carbohydrates, dietary fiber, fat, ash and protein. In addition, the antioxidant content in date seed oil (DSO) was found to be comparable with olive oil, which can be as a good source of antioxidant in order to fulfill the consumers demand. Oleic acid is the major fatty acid found in DSO, followed by lauric, linoleic, palmitic and myristic acid. However, different varieties of date fruits have different fatty acid compositions. This paper reviewed the potential use of date seed and date seed oil in order to discover and develop its usage and find out the suitable application of these seed and oil.
Drone technology in maternal healthcare in Malaysia: A narrative review

Zailani MAH, Raja Sabudin RZA, Abdul Rahman R, Mohd Saiboon I, Ismail A, Mahdy ZA

Malays J Pathol, 2021 Aug;43(2):251-259.
PMID: 34448789

INTRODUCTION: The vast advancement of technology and breakthrough in high-tech disciplines created multiple areas of research activities, including the emergence of the medical drone. Malaysia, a rapidly developing country in Southeast Asia is on track to achieving high-income status. However, the stagnant growth of Malaysian maternal healthcare does not run parallel with the aspiration. This review paper assessed and reported narratively the current condition of maternal healthcare in Malaysia, the possible application of drones in improving the sector, exploring in detail several challenges, and providing recommendations for experts in studying the rising technological phenomena.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A literature search was done from June 2019 to November 2019 with restrictions to the English language. The search was performed in ScienceDirect, PubMed, and EMBASE databases, using a combination of search terms related to drones, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS), maternal, obstetric, healthcare, medical products transportation and Malaysia. A discourse analysis followed and a narrative review was provided on this subject.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The validated ability of drones in the delivery of blood products is highlighted as a possible application in improving maternal healthcare in Malaysia, particularly in the state of Sabah. Five key challenges are identified: infrastructure, technicalities, regulations, expertise, and social acceptance. Future predictions of drone technology in healthcare were outlined with the suggestion of three principle arms of application.
CONCLUSION: The usage of the medical drone in medical products transportation supports the objectives of WHO MDG 5 for Malaysian maternal health. A study on the impact of drones in reducing the maternal mortality ratio is recommended for further exploration.

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