Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 45 in total

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  1. A curious case of neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder co-existing with idiopathic intracranial hypertension
    Viswanathan S, Wong LC
    J Clin Neurosci, 2017 07;41:104-106.
    PMID: 28343917 DOI: 10.1016/j.jocn.2017.03.026
  2. Fulltext Acceptance and Preference for COVID-19 Vaccine among Japanese Residents at Early Stage of the Epidemic in Japan
    Wu J, Cai G, Fan Y, Arima K, Lin Y, Wong L, et al.
    Vaccines (Basel), 2023 Jan 11;11(1).
    PMID: 36680002 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11010157
    Background: This study aimed to survey the attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines and their acceptability among the Japanese public as soon as the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized vaccines and their rollouts started around the world. Methods: An anonymous cross-sectional survey was conducted in Japan between 4 January and 5 March 2021. A questionnaire was administered to evaluate attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines according to demographic characteristics, vaccine characteristics, and vaccine production. Results: A total of 1037 completed responses were received. More than half (63.5%) of the participants responded positively (extremely likely/likely) toward COVID-19 vaccines. The highest acceptance to be vaccinated was discovered among the youngest age group. As expected, participants who had never delayed acceptance or refused the vaccine in their history of vaccination had a significantly higher willingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19 (p < 0.001). Females (OR = 2.66, 95% CI: 1.99−3.58) and participants who had ever delayed acceptance or refuse the vaccine (OR = 3.49, 95% CI: 2.42−5.05) had higher odds of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Participants with a postgraduate degree (OR = 0.64, 95% CI: 0.40−1.00) presented the highest willingness to be vaccinated against COVID-19. More than two-thirds (72.9%, 95% CI: 70.4%−75.8%) of the participants did not mind a booster dose required following primary vaccination. A total of 63.2% (95% CI: 60.0%−66.0%) of the participants only accepted a nearly 90% effective or above vaccine at preventing COVID-19. At the same, 86.4% (95% CI: 84.4%−88.4%) of the participants reported only accepting a vaccine with minor side effects. Conclusions: The moderate levels of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance found in the early phase of the pandemic demonstrate that it is important to improve the implementation of effective management for vaccine promotion and the acceptability of the vaccine to slow or delay transmission.
  3. Fulltext Antimicrobial Efficacy of Fruit Peels Eco-Enzyme against Enterococcus Faecalis: An In Vitro Study
    Mavani HAK, Tew IM, Wong L, Yew HZ, Mahyuddin A, Ahmad Ghazali R, et al.
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2020 Jul 15;17(14).
    PMID: 32679828 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17145107
    Sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl), an effective endodontic irrigant against Enterococcus faecalis (EF), is harmful to periapical tissues. Natural pineapple-orange eco-enzymes (M-EE) and papaya eco-enzyme (P-EE) could be potential alternatives. This study aimed to assess the antimicrobial efficacy of M-EE and P-EE at different concentrations and fermentation periods against EF, compared to 2.5% NaOCl. Fermented M-EE and P-EE (3 and 6 months) at various concentrations were mixed with EF in a 96-well plate incubated for 24 h anaerobically. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) of M-EE and P-EE were determined via EF growth observation. EF inhibition was quantitatively measured and compared between different irrigants using the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and different fermentation periods using the independent-samples T-test. M-EE and P-EE showed MIC at 50% and MBC at 100% concentrations. There was no significant difference in antimicrobial effect when comparing M-EE and P-EE at 50% and 100% to 2.5% NaOCl. P-EE at 6 months fermentation exhibited higher EF inhibition compared to 3 months at concentrations of 25% (p = 0.017) and 0.78% (p = 0.009). The antimicrobial properties of M-EE and P-EE, at both 100% and 50% concentrations, are comparable to 2.5% NaOCl. They could therefore be potential alternative endodontic irrigants, but further studies are required.
  4. Are Boys Ready for Human Papillomavirus Vaccine? A National Study of Boys in Malaysia
    Wong LP, Alias H, Yusoff RNARM, Sam IC, Zimet GD
    Sex Transm Dis, 2019 09;46(9):617-624.
    PMID: 31181035 DOI: 10.1097/OLQ.0000000000001024
    BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to investigate factors associated with the willingness of boys to accept the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.

    METHODS: A nationwide cross-sectional survey among Secondary One male students in Malaysia.

    RESULTS: Among 2823 respondents, knowledge about HPV infection and the HPV vaccine was extremely poor. The mean total knowledge score was only 3.17 (SD ± 2.14), out of a possible score of 10. The majority of respondents were unaware that vaccinating boys can help protect girls against HPV infection (81.6%), and HPV is a sexually transmitted infection (70.1%). Many had the misconception that only females get HPV (78.9%). In multivariable analysis, the factors associated with the intention to receive the HPV vaccination were: agreeing boys need to be vaccinated against HPV infection (odds ratio [OR], 2.05; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.57-2.68), perceiving their parents might allow them to get the HPV vaccine (OR, 1.66; 95% CI, 1.18-2.34), perceived susceptibility to HPV infection (OR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.06-2.52), and attending a rural school (OR, 1.49; 95% CI, 1.14-1.95).

    CONCLUSIONS: Public health educational programs that are focused and tailored on parents consenting to HPV vaccination for boys at a young age can be useful in improving HPV vaccination rates among boys. There is also a pressing need to educate boys about the benefits of HPV vaccination in males and about HPV disease susceptibility to facilitate adoption of the HPV vaccine by young adults in the future.

  5. Calculation of energy recovery and greenhouse gas emission reduction from palm oil mill effluent treatment by an anaerobic granular-sludge process
    Show KY, Ng CA, Faiza AR, Wong LP, Wong LY
    Water Sci Technol, 2011;64(12):2439-44.
    PMID: 22170839 DOI: 10.2166/wst.2011.824
    Conventional aerobic and low-rate anaerobic processes such as pond and open-tank systems have been widely used in wastewater treatment. In order to improve treatment efficacy and to avoid greenhouse gas emissions, conventional treatment can be upgraded to a high performance anaerobic granular-sludge system. The anaerobic granular-sludge systems are designed to capture the biogas produced, rendering a potential for claims of carbon credits under the Kyoto Protocol for reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) would be issued, which can be exchanged between businesses or bought and sold in international markets at the prevailing market prices. As the advanced anaerobic granular systems are capable of handling high organic loadings concomitant with high strength wastewater and short hydraulic retention time, they render more carbon credits than other conventional anaerobic systems. In addition to efficient waste degradation, the carbon credits can be used to generate revenue and to finance the project. This paper presents a scenario on emission avoidance based on a methane recovery and utilization project. An example analysis on emission reduction and an overview of the global emission market are also outlined.
  6. Circulating miR-3197 and miR-2116-5p as novel biomarkers for diabetic retinopathy
    Ji H, Yi Q, Chen L, Wong L, Liu Y, Xu G, et al.
    Clin Chim Acta, 2020 Feb;501:147-153.
    PMID: 31678272 DOI: 10.1016/j.cca.2019.10.036
    Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of vision loss among older adults. The goal of this case-control study was to identify circulating miRNAs for the diagnosis of DR. The miRNeasy Serum/Plasma Kit was used to extract serum miRNAs. The μParaflo™ MicroRNA microarray was used to detect the expression levels of the miRNAs. The miRWalk algorithm was applied to predict the target genes of the miRNAs, which were further confirmed by the dual luciferase reporter gene system in HEK293T cells. A microarray was performed between 5 DR cases and 5 age-, sex-, body mass index-, and duration of diabetes-matched type 2 diabetic (T2DM) controls. The quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction technique was used to validate the differentially expressed circulating miRNAs in 45 DR cases and 45 well-matched controls. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was used to evaluate the performance of the circulating miRNAs as diagnostic biomarkers for DR. Our microarray analysis screened out miR-2116-5p and miR-3197 as significantly up-regulated in DR cases compared with the controls. Furthermore, two miRNAs were validated in the 45 DR cases and 45 controls. The ROC analysis suggested that both miR-3197 and miR-2116-5p distinguished DR cases from controls. An additional dual-luciferase reporter gene assay confirmed that notch homolog 2 (NOTCH2) was the target gene of miR-2116-5p. Both miR-3197 and miR-2116-5p were identified as promising diagnostic biomarkers for DR. Future research is still needed to explore the molecular mechanisms of miR-3197 and miR-2116-5p in the pathogenesis of DR.
  7. Fulltext Clinical Significance of BCL2, C-MYC, and BCL6 Genetic Abnormalities, Epstein-Barr Virus Infection, CD5 Protein Expression, Germinal Center B Cell/Non-Germinal Center B-Cell Subtypes, Co-expression of MYC/BCL2 Proteins and Co-expression of MYC/BCL2/BCL6 Proteins in Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: A Clinical and Pathological Correlation Study of 120 Patients
    Ting CY, Chang KM, Kuan JW, Sathar J, Chew LP, Wong OJ, et al.
    Int J Med Sci, 2019;16(4):556-566.
    PMID: 31171907 DOI: 10.7150/ijms.27610
    Background: Clinical significance of germinal center B-cell (GCB) and non-GCB sub-categorization, expression of MYC, BCL2, BCL6, CD5 proteins and Epstein Barr virus encoded RNA (EBER) positivity in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) remain controversial. Could these biomarkers accurately identify high risk DLBCL patients? Are MYC, BCL2 and BCL6 proteins expression feasible as baseline testing to predict c-Myc, BCL2 or BCL6 gene rearrangements? Aims: To investigate prognostic values of GCB/non-GCB sub-categorization, Double Protein Expression Lymphoma (DPL), Triple Protein Expression Lymphoma (TPL), positivity of CD5 protein and EBER in patients with DLBCL disease. To evaluate correlation between BCL2 , c-Myc and BCL6 gene rearrangements with BCL2, MYC and BCL6 proteins expression. Methods: Diagnostic tissue samples of 120 DLBCL patients between January 2012 to December 2013 from four major hospitals in Malaysia were selected. Samples were subjected to immunohistochemical staining, fluorescent in-situ hybridization (FISH) testing, and central pathological review. Pathological data were correlated with clinical characteristics and treatment outcome. Results: A total of 120 cases were analysed. Mean age of diagnosis was 54.1 years ± 14.6, 64 were males, 56 were females, mean follow up period was 25 months (ranged from 1 to 36 months). Of the 120 cases, 74.2% were non-GCB whereas 25.8% were GCB, 6.7% were EBER positive, 6.7% expressed CD5 protein, 13.3% were DPL and 40% were TPL. The prevalence of c-Myc, BCL2, BCL6 gene rearrangements were 5.8%, 5.8%, and 14.2%, respectively; and 1.6% were Double Hit Lymphoma (DHL). EBER positivity, DPL, TPL, c-Myc gene rearrangement, BCL2 gene rearrangement, extra copies of BCL2 gene and BCL6 gene rearrangement were associated with shorter median overall survival (P<0.05). IPI score was the significant determinants of median overall survival in DPL and TPL (P<0.05). CD5 protein expression and GCB/non-GCB sub-categorization did not affect treatment outcome (P>0.05). Overall, c-Myc, BCL2 and BCL6 gene rearrangements showed weak correlation with expression of MYC, BCL2 and BCL6 proteins (P>0.05). Fluorescent in situ hybridization is the preferred technique for prediction of treatment outcome in DLBCL patients. Conclusion:c-Myc, BCL2, and BCL6 gene rearrangements, EBER expression, DHL, TPL and IPI score are reliable risk stratification tools. MYC, BCL2 and BCL6 proteins expression are not applicable as baseline biomarkers to predict c-Myc, BCL2, and BCL6 gene rearrangements.
  8. Fulltext Current status of home blood pressure monitoring in Asia: Statement from the HOPE Asia Network
    Chia YC, Buranakitjaroen P, Chen CH, Divinagracia R, Hoshide S, Park S, et al.
    J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich), 2017 Nov;19(11):1192-1201.
    PMID: 28815840 DOI: 10.1111/jch.13058
    Hypertension represents a major burden in Asia, with a high prevalence rate but poor level of awareness and control reported in many countries in the region. Home blood pressure monitoring has been validated as an accurate and reliable measure of blood pressure that can help guide hypertension treatment as well as identify masked and white-coat hypertension. Despite its benefits, there has been limited research into home blood pressure monitoring in Asia. The authors reviewed the current evidence on home blood pressure monitoring in Asia, including but not limited to published literature, data presented at congresses, and national hypertension management guidelines to determine the current utilization of home blood pressure monitoring in clinical practice in the region. Public policies to enable greater access to home blood pressure monitoring and its use in clinical care would add considerably to improving hypertension outcomes in Asia.
  9. Data analysis in qualitative research: a brief guide to using nvivo
    Wong L
    Malays Fam Physician, 2008;3(1):14-20.
    PMID: 25606106 MyJurnal
    Qualitative data is often subjective, rich, and consists of in-depth information normally presented in the form of words. Analysing qualitative data entails reading a large amount of transcripts looking for similarities or differences, and subsequently finding themes and developing categories. Traditionally, researchers 'cut and paste' and use coloured pens to categorise data. Recently, the use of software specifically designed for qualitative data management greatly reduces technical sophistication and eases the laborious task, thus making the process relatively easier. A number of computer software packages has been developed to mechanise this 'coding' process as well as to search and retrieve data. This paper illustrates the ways in which NVivo can be used in the qualitative data analysis process. The basic features and primary tools of NVivo which assist qualitative researchers in managing and analysing their data are described.
  10. Fulltext Does body mass index and height influence the incident risk of ischemic stroke in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes subjects?
    Duan D, Li H, Xu J, Wong L, Xu G, Kong F, et al.
    J Diabetes Res, 2019;2019:2591709.
    PMID: 30805371 DOI: 10.1155/2019/2591709
    Objective: To estimate the incident risk of ischemic stroke (IS) in newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes (T2D) subjects according to different body mass index (BMI) and height categories.

    Methods: A total of 25,130 newly diagnosed T2D subjects were included in this study. All T2D subjects were enrolled consecutively from the Chronic Disease Surveillance System (CDSS) of Ningbo. Standardized incidence ratio (SIR) and its 95% confidence interval (95% CI) stratified by BMI categories and height quartiles were used to estimate the incident risk of IS in T2D subjects.

    Results: In total, 22,795 subjects completed the follow-up. Among them, 1268 newly diagnosed IS cases were identified, with 149,675 person-years. The SIRs of normal BMI (18.5-24.0 kg/m2), overweight (24.0-28.0 kg/m2), and obese (≥28.0 kg/m2) in overall subjects were 2.56 (95% CI 1.90-3.13), 2.13 (95% CI 1.90-3.13), and 1.87 (95% CI 1.29-2.43), respectively (Ptrend < 0.01), comparing to the general population of Ningbo. For each 1 kg/m2 increment in BMI, the SIR was 0.948 (95% CI 0.903-0.999). For height quartiles, the SIRs of male subjects in quartile 1 (<160 cm), quartile 2 (161-165 cm), quartile 3 (165-170 cm), and quartile 4 (≥171 cm) were 2.27 (95% CI 1.99-2.56), 2.01 (95% CI 1.67-2.45), 1.37 (95% CI 1.05-1.68), and 0.91 (95% CI 0.40-1.32), respectively (Ptrend < 0.01). While for female subjects, the SIRs in quartile 1 (<155 cm), quartile 2 (156-160 cm), quartile 3 (161-165 cm), and quartile 4 (≥166 cm) were 3.57 (95% CI 3.11-3.49), 2.96 (95% CI 2.61-3.31), 1.94 (95% CI 1.51-2.36), and 1.71 (95% CI 0.95-2.47), respectively (Ptrend < 0.01).

    Conclusion: Compared to the general population of Ningbo, T2D subjects had a higher incident risk of IS. Furthermore, the IS incident risk was not only higher in newly diagnosed T2D subjects with normal BMI but also lower in taller newly diagnosed T2D subjects.
  11. Effective Response Metric: a novel tool to predict relapse in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia using time-series gene expression profiling
    Yeoh AE, Li Z, Dong D, Lu Y, Jiang N, Trka J, et al.
    Br J Haematol, 2018 Jun;181(5):653-663.
    PMID: 29808917 DOI: 10.1111/bjh.15252
    Accurate risk assignment in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is essential to avoid under- or over-treatment. We hypothesized that time-series gene expression profiles (GEPs) of bone marrow samples during remission-induction therapy can measure the response and be used for relapse prediction. We computed the time-series changes from diagnosis to Day 8 of remission-induction, termed Effective Response Metric (ERM-D8) and tested its ability to predict relapse against contemporary risk assignment methods, including National Cancer Institutes (NCI) criteria, genetics and minimal residual disease (MRD). ERM-D8 was trained on a set of 131 patients and validated on an independent set of 79 patients. In the independent blinded test set, unfavourable ERM-D8 patients had >3-fold increased risk of relapse compared to favourable ERM-D8 (5-year cumulative incidence of relapse 38·1% vs. 10·6%; P = 2·5 × 10-3 ). ERM-D8 remained predictive of relapse [P = 0·05; Hazard ratio 4·09, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1·03-16·23] after adjusting for NCI criteria, genetics, Day 8 peripheral response and Day 33 MRD. ERM-D8 improved risk stratification in favourable genetics subgroups (P = 0·01) and Day 33 MRD positive patients (P = 1·7 × 10-3 ). We conclude that our novel metric - ERM-D8 - based on time-series GEP after 8 days of remission-induction therapy can independently predict relapse even after adjusting for NCI risk, genetics, Day 8 peripheral blood response and MRD.
  12. Fulltext Enhanced Goat Milk MUFA Quality via Date Pit Supplementation: A Time-Based Pattern Recognition Analysis Utilizing Agricultural Waste Byproduct
    Abd Rahman MR, Hassan Z, Hassan MS, Hashim R, Wong LS, Leong WY, et al.
    Int J Food Sci, 2023;2023:1797017.
    PMID: 37350796 DOI: 10.1155/2023/1797017
    Date pits are agricultural waste byproducts and are available in tons yearly. Milk MUFAs are lipids beneficial for health and sorted out for food product development. This work is aimed at researching the effect of supplementing dairy goats with date pit powder (DPP) as a source of fatty acids (FA), an alternative to enhancing the unsaturated FA in milk and analysed via chemometrics in a 3-month supplementation-based study. Saanen-Boer crossed dairy goats were divided into six groups comprising of control, 10 g and 20 g both for Ajwa DPP (high-quality dates) and Mariami DPP (agricultural waste byproduct), and another 30 g for Mariami DPP only. The supplementation exercise was done daily on each dairy goat. The DPP and milk samples were analysed for its FA profile applying GC-FID and followed by chemometric techniques, namely, PCA and PLS. Results indicated that the n-6/n-3 ratio was the highest for the unsupplemented group compared to the DPP-treated goats with lower n-6/n-3 ratios. The M30 group showcased the most promising health-related class of FAs viewed by 3D PCA and PLS model clustering patterns, in particular monounsaturated FA (MUFA) (C18:1n9c or oleic acid). These results suggest that Mariami DPP supplementation at higher doses and time to lactating Saanen-Boer cross goats can be a means to milk FA quantity and quality enhancement and that chemometrics via pattern recognition can be useful statistical tools when dealing with overwhelming data.
  13. Facial carbuncle - a new method of conservative surgical management plus irrigation with antibiotic-containing solution
    Ngui LX, Wong LS, Shashi G, Abu Bakar MN
    J Laryngol Otol, 2017 Sep;131(9):830-833.
    PMID: 28412984 DOI: 10.1017/S0022215117000834
    OBJECTIVE: This paper reports on a non-conventional method for the management of facial carbuncles, highlighting its superiority over conventional surgical treatment in terms of cosmetic outcome and shorter duration of wound healing.

    BACKGROUND: The mainstay of treatment for carbuncles involves the early administration of antibiotics in combination with surgical intervention. The conventional saucerisation, or incision and drainage, under normal circumstances results in moderate to large wounds, which may need secondary surgery such as skin grafting, resulting in a longer duration of wound healing and jeopardising cosmetic outcome.

    CASE REPORTS: The reported three cases presented with extensive carbuncles over the chin, face and lips region. In addition to early commencement of intravenous antibiotics, the pus was drained, with minimal incision and conservative wound debridement, with the aim of maximal skin conservation. This was followed by thrice-daily irrigation with antibiotic-containing solution for a minimum of 2 consecutive days. The wounds healed within two to four weeks, without major cosmetic compromise.

    CONCLUSION: The new method showed superior cosmetic outcomes, with a shorter duration of wound healing. Conservative surgical management can be performed under regional anaesthesia, which may reduce morbidity and mortality; patients with facial carbuncles often have higher risks with general anaesthesia.

  14. Factors associated with nurses' perceptions about quality of end-of-life care
    Hussin EOD, Wong LP, Chong MC, Subramanian P
    Int Nurs Rev, 2018 Jun;65(2):200-208.
    PMID: 29430644 DOI: 10.1111/inr.12428
    AIM: To examine the factors associated with nurses' perceptions of the quality of end-of-life care.

    BACKGROUND: With increasing demand for hospitals to provide end-of-life care, the low quality of palliative care provided in hospital settings is an issue of growing concern in developing countries. Most dying patients receive their care from general nurses, irrespective of the nurses' specialty or level of training.

    METHOD: A structured cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted of 553 nurses working at a teaching hospital in Malaysia.

    RESULTS: The mean scores for nurses' knowledge about end-of-life care, their attitudes towards end-of-life care and the perceived quality of end-of-life care were low. The factors identified as significantly associated with the quality of end-of-life care were nurses' levels of knowledge and their attitudes towards end-of-life care.

    DISCUSSION: Factors that contributed to the low quality of end-of-life care were inadequate knowledge and negative attitudes. These findings may reflect that end-of-life care education is not well integrated into nursing education.

    CONCLUSION: The findings of this study suggest that there is a need to increase the nurses' level of knowledge and improve their attitude towards end-of-life care in order to enhance the quality of care provided to dying patients.

    IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND HEALTH POLICY: Nurse managers and hospital policymakers should develop strategies to enhance nurses' level of knowledge, as well as providing adequate emotional support for nurses who care for dying patients and their families. Nurses should be proactive in increasing their knowledge and adopting more positive attitudes towards end-of-life care.

  15. Genetic polymorphism of cytochrome P450 2C19 in healthy Malaysian subjects
    Pang YS, Yang YS, Wong LP, Lee TC, Mustafa AM, Mohamed Z, et al.
    Br J Clin Pharmacol, 2004 Sep;58(3):332-5.
    PMID: 15327595
    Impaired S-mephenytoin 4'-hydroxylation is a well-described genetic polymorphism affecting drug metabolism in humans. Although ethnic differences in its distribution of polymorphism has been described, it is not known whether there is an ethnic heterogeneity of the structure and expression of the CYP2C19 enzyme in the Malaysian population.
  16. Fulltext Genetic variants in HBS1L-MYB with Hb subtypes level among Filipino β°-deletion carriers coinherited with -α3.7 deletion
    Lim, L. N., Yu, K. S., Chua, S. M., George, E., Lai, M. I., Wong, L., et al.
    Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences, 2019;15(102):47-47.
    MyJurnal
    Introduction: Filipino β°-deletion is predominant among the β-thalassaemia patients in the indigenous population of Sabah, Malaysia particularly among the Kadazandusun. Individuals who co-inherit with α- and β-thalassaemia will demonstrate milder clinical symptoms with modified complete blood count (CBC) and Hb subtype parameters. HBS1L-MYB variants act as one of the key regulator of haematopoiesis and erythropoiesis and display strong association
    with variation of HbF levels. Therefore, this study aims to evaluate the association between genetic variants in HBS1L-MYB with Hb subtypes level among Filipino β°-deletion carriers co-inherited with -α3.7 deletion. Methods: Filipino β°-deletion and -α3.7 deletion were identified using gap-polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A total of 34 subjects found with coinheritance of Filipino β°-deletion and -α3.7 deletion were subjected for HBS1L-MYB intergenic polymorphisms (HMIP) analysis. Hb subtypes level were quantified using BioRad Variant II Hb analyser. Genotyping of HBS1L-MYB variants rs9399137 and rs11759553 was done using own designed tetra primer ARMS-PCR. Results: The minor allele frequencies (MAF) of the two HMIP is found more than 0.05 (rs11759553, MAF=0.18 and rs9399137, MAF=0.15), indicating the significance of these variants among the study subjects. Significant difference was found between HbF level and HBS1L-MYB variant rs11759553 with p-value less than 0.05 (p=0.001). Subjects with homozygous genotype for rs11759553 (T/T) was found with higher HbF, followed by heterozygous (A/T) and wild type (A/A). rs11759553 and rs9399137 was found did not influence the level of HbA and HbA2. HMIP of rs11759553 and rs9399137 are found significant among Filipino β°-deletion carriers co-inherited with -α3.7deletion with its high minor allelic frequency and high HbF level. Strong association with HbF level was demonstrated when
    coinheritance of rs11759553. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that there are significant associations between certain genetic variants in HBS1L-MYB with Hb subtypes level among Filipino β°-deletion carriers co-inherited with -α3.7 deletion.
  17. Genome survey and development of polymorphic microsatellite loci for Sillago sihama based on Illumina sequencing technology
    Qiu B, Fang S, Ikhwanuddin M, Wong L, Ma H
    Mol Biol Rep, 2020 Apr;47(4):3011-3017.
    PMID: 32124169 DOI: 10.1007/s11033-020-05348-z
    In this study, we first conducted a genome survey assay for Sillago sihama by Illumina sequencing platform, and then developed 15 polymorphic microsatellite loci in a wild population. A total of 129.46 Gb raw data were obtained, of which 115.07 Gb were clean data, with a sequencing depth of 179.3-folds. This genome was estimated to be 522.6 Mb in size, with the heterozygosity, repeat content and GC content being 0.63%, 21% and 44%. A total of 630,028 microsatellites were identified from the genome, of which, dinucleotide repeat was the most abundant (56.80%), followed by mononucleotide repeat (30.23%). Furthermore, 60 pairs of primers were designed and synthesized based on microsatellite sequences, of which 15 were polymorphic in a wild population. A total of 91 alleles were found, with an average of 6.07 per locus. Number of alleles, observed and expected heterozygosity per locus ranged from two to 13, from 0.250 to 0.862, and from 0.396 to 0.901, respectively. Twelve loci were highly informative (PIC > 0.5), and the others were medium informative (0.25 
  18. Fulltext Germinoma of the basal ganglia and thalamus--CT and MRI findings
    Wong LW, Jayakumar CR
    Singapore Med J, 1997 Oct;38(10):444-6.
    PMID: 9529959
    A case of germinoma originating in the basal ganglia and thalamus is presented. This tumour most commonly originates during childhood and adolescence, at pineal and suprasellar regions. In the early stages, the diagnosis of germinoma in the basal ganglion and thalamus is difficult because of its rarity and non-specific findings. The computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings though non-diagnostic, are discussed here. A few differential diagnoses had been discussed with radiological abnormality. Open biopsy done in this case proved to be two-cell pattern germinoma. Early detection of the tumour is desirable, since this tumour is highly sensitive to radio and chemotherapy and is potentially curable. Our patient was treated with combined chemotherapy and the response was well and no residual tumour or recurrence was seen on the repeated imaging modality, however his neurological deficits remained unchanged.
  19. Government Dental Services in Sarawak, East Malaysia
    Wong LM
    Dent Update, 1992 Dec;19(10):430-2.
    PMID: 1303358
    As part of the student elective, the author organized a small research project into Government Dental Services in Sarawak, East Malaysia. The resulting article gives an insight into dentistry in this country.
  20. Fulltext Guidance on home blood pressure monitoring: A statement of the HOPE Asia Network
    Kario K, Park S, Buranakitjaroen P, Chia YC, Chen CH, Divinagracia R, et al.
    J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich), 2018 03;20(3):456-461.
    PMID: 29450979 DOI: 10.1111/jch.13216
    Hypertension is an important modifiable cardiovascular risk factor and a leading cause of death throughout Asia. Effective prevention and control of hypertension in the region remain a significant challenge despite the availability of several regional and international guidelines. Out-of-office measurement of blood pressure (BP), including home BP monitoring (HBPM), is an important hypertension management tool. Home BP is better than office BP for predicting cardiovascular risk and HBPM should be considered for all patients with office BP ≥ 130/85 mm Hg. It is important that HBPM is undertaken using a validated device and patients are educated about how to perform HBPM correctly. During antihypertensive therapy, monitoring of home BP control and variability is essential, especially in the morning. This is because HBPM can facilitate the choice of individualized optimal therapy. The evidence and practice points in this document are based on the Hypertension Cardiovascular Outcome Prevention and Evidence (HOPE) Asia Network expert panel consensus recommendations for HBPM in Asia.
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