Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 83 in total

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  1. Tadesse L, Abdullah NH, Awadalla HMI, D'Amours S, Davies F, Kissoon N, et al.
    Bull World Health Organ, 2023 Apr 01;101(4):231-231A.
    PMID: 37008261 DOI: 10.2471/BLT.23.289916
  2. De Zulueta J, Lachance F
    Bull World Health Organ, 1956;15(3-5):673-93.
    PMID: 13404443
    A first experiment on malaria control in the interior of Borneo by spraying with residual insecticides is described. The work was carried out in the isolated, sparsely populated valleys of the Baram River and its tributary, the Tinjar, in northern Sarawak. The experimental area was divided into three parts: a DDT test area, where a 75% suspension of wettable powder was applied at the rate of 2 g of DDT per m(2) of surface; a BHC test area, where a 50% suspension of wettable powder was applied at the rate of 0.10 g of gamma isomer per m(2); and a check area.Entomological investigations made before the spraying operations were started showed that Anopheles leucosphyrus Dönitz, 1901 was the main malaria vector in both the test and the check areas. Out of a total of 7568 A. leucosphyrus dissected, 30 gland infections were detected-a sporozoite-rate of 0.40%. A. barbirostris was found to be a secondary vector throughout the experimental area.THE RESULTS OF INSECTICIDE SPRAYING WERE SATISFACTORY: in the DDT test area, the spleen-rate fell from 51.8% to 25.1%, and the parasite-rate from 35.6% to 1.6%, in 21 months, and a similar reduction in the rates was observed in the BHC test area. In the check area, the spleen- and parasite-rates rose during the period of observations. It is considered that if such a degree of control can be obtained in 21 months, complete eradication can be expected in the near future.Although BHC spraying proved effective, the fact that it has to be repeated every three months makes it impracticable in the interior of Sarawak, where communications are very poor and difficulties of transport very great. DDT spraying, which need only be done twice a year, is therefore to be preferred. The cost of the DDT operations-US$ 0.45 per person protected per year-is comparatively high, owing to the difficulty of communications and to the necessity for spraying not only the village "longhouses", but also the temporary shelters which the semi-nomadic people in the interior of Sarawak build each year in the rice-fields.
  3. Warrener L, Slibinskas R, Chua KB, Nigatu W, Brown KE, Sasnauskas K, et al.
    Bull World Health Organ, 2011 Sep 01;89(9):675-82.
    PMID: 21897488 DOI: 10.2471/BLT.11.088427
    OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the performance of a newly developed point-of-care test (POCT) for the detection of measles-specific IgM antibodies in serum and oral fluid specimens and to assess if measles virus nucleic acid could be recovered from used POCT strips.

    METHODS: The POCT was used to test 170 serum specimens collected through measles surveillance or vaccination programmes in Ethiopia, Malaysia and the Russian Federation: 69 were positive for measles immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies, 74 were positive for rubella IgM antibodies and 7 were positive for both. Also tested were 282 oral fluid specimens from the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) surveillance programme of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The Microimmune measles IgM capture enzyme immunoassay was the gold standard for comparison. A panel of 24 oral fluids was used to investigate if measles virus haemagglutinin (H) and nucleocapsid (N) genes could be amplified by polymerase chain reaction directly from used POCT strips.

    FINDINGS: With serum POCT showed a sensitivity and specificity of 90.8% (69/76) and 93.6% (88/94), respectively; with oral fluids, sensitivity and specificity were 90.0% (63/70) and 96.2% (200/208), respectively. Both H and N genes were reliably detected in POCT strips and the N genes could be sequenced for genotyping. Measles virus genes could be recovered from POCT strips after storage for 5 weeks at 20-25 °C.

    CONCLUSION: The POCT has the sensitivity and specificity required of a field-based test for measles diagnosis. However, its role in global measles control programmes requires further evaluation.

  4. Hawking F
    Bull World Health Organ, 1962;27:555-68.
    PMID: 13953210
    There has been little change since 1955 in the laboratory techniques for seeking new antifilarial compounds, although one valuable addition to laboratory study has been the experimental infection of cats with Brugia malayi.The chief drug for the treatment and control of filariasis-whether caused by Wuchereria bancrofti or by B. malayi-continues to be diethylcarbamazine, and the author reviews the reports recently published on its use. In India and China large-scale campaigns involving the use of this drug have been undertaken; and in Tahiti filariasis has been suppressed and almost eliminated. Campaigns on a smaller scale and pilot projects considered in this survey include those conducted in Pacific islands, Malaya, Ceylon, Brazil, Surinam and East and West Africa.It is generally agreed that the administration of diethylcarbamazine produces a great diminution in the microfilarial counts of those taking it, and in many persons both microfilariae and adult worms are eradicated. The difficulties which arise are due to toxic effects which occur in some recipients and which may adversely affect the acceptability of treatment.
  5. Miller AB, Nunn AJ, Robinson DK, Fox W, Somasundaram PR, Tall R
    Bull World Health Organ, 1972;47(2):211-27.
    PMID: 4118761
    As part of a large-scale international cooperative investigation into the side effects of thioacetazone-containing regimens in the treatment of tuberculosis, an evaluation has been made of the variation in the frequency of side effects between different countries and between different centres in the same country and of the likely reasons for this variation. In 3 countries patients of different racial origin were under observation in the same hospital. Over a 12-week period of treatment there was considerable variation between the countries and centres in the overall frequency of side effects and of those leading to a major departure from prescribed treatment, the variation being similar for the two thioacetazone-containing regimens and for the streptomycin plus isoniazid control regimen, though at a lower level for the latter. In Malaysia, Singapore, and Trinidad, where different racial groups were under treatment, there was no clear indication that race was an important factor in explaining the differences between countries, except for cutaneous side effects in Trinidad and possibly in Malaysia.It is concluded that the differences in the frequency of side effects to thioacetazone-containing regimens probably result from variation in the closeness of supervision of patients, in the recording and interpretation of side effects, and in environmental factors including the previous use of other medicaments or exposure to sensitizing substances.
  6. Tan DS, Stern H
    Bull World Health Organ, 1981;59(6):909-12.
    PMID: 6279323
    Healthy Malaysians from various parts of Peninsular Malaysia were examined for CF antibodies against cytomegalovirus (CMV) and herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 2. CMV antibodies were detected in 1114 out of 1556 persons (71.6%) and HSV antibodies were detected in 954 persons out of 1554 (61.4%). The age distribution patterns were similar for the two infections, with maximum prevalence at 5 - 14 years of age. Prevalence was higher in women than in men. There were no significant differences among the Malay, Chinese, and Indian groups of the population with respect to CMV, 72 - 78% possessing antibodies, but in the case of HSV, 76% of the Chinese had antibodies, compared with 57 - 60% of the Malays and Indians. More than 90% of newborn infants had CMV and HSV CF antibodies, confirming the highly immune status of childbearing women in Malaysia. No CMV-specific IgM was detected in the Malaysian neonates examined but this does not exclude the possibility of congenital infection.
  7. Suleiman AB, Mathews A, Jegasothy R, Ali R, Kandiah N
    Bull World Health Organ, 1999;77(2):190-3.
    PMID: 10083722
    A confidential system of enquiry into maternal mortality was introduced in Malaysia in 1991. The methods used and the findings obtained up to 1994 are reported below and an outline is given of the resulting recommendations and actions.
    PIP: This is a report on the methods, findings, resulting recommendations and actions of a study on maternal mortality in Malaysia during the period 1991-94. Maternal death was defined as the death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days following termination of pregnancy from any cause related to the pregnancy or its management but not from accidental causes. Between 1991 and 1994 there were 1066 reported maternal deaths, and the maternal mortality ratios for the successive years were respectively 44, 48, 46 and 39 per 100,000 live births. The primary causes of maternal death were postpartum hemorrhage (24%), hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (16%), obstetric pulmonary embolism (13%), and associated medical conditions (7%). Analysis of the 375 deaths from 1992 - 1993 showed that the maternal mortality ratio was 53/100,000 live births for deliveries performed at home, 36/100,000 in government hospitals, and 21/100,000 in private institutions. Shortcomings among health personnel were detected in several cases; these involved failure to diagnose, failure to appreciate the severity of a patient's condition, inadequate therapy, and inappropriate, delayed or failed adherence to protocols. The high proportion of maternal mortality associated with substandard care demonstrates that it is important to make the standard of care more widely available. Reports have been circulated to institutions and organizations providing maternal care and to medical schools. Articles and case histories have been published, and many new protocols and procedures have been developed. Furthermore, seminars have been organized and training modules have been distributed to all involved in the provision of maternity care.
  8. Chapple PJ
    Bull World Health Organ, 1966;34(2):243-8.
    PMID: 5296130
    Studies have recently been published of surveys of antibodies to common respiratory viruses in human sera from several parts of the world. The present article reports the findings of a survey of antibodies to two more viruses (adenovirus type 8 and coxsackievirus type A21) in human sera mainly collected from six widely separated geographical regions (Alaska, England, Marshall Islands, Sarawak, South-West Africa and Tunisia).A world-wide geographical distribution of infection with these two viruses was found. However, antibodies to individual viruses were not found with the same frequency in all countries; and, in marked contrast to the findings in the earlier surveys of antibodies to the common respiratory viruses, the frequency of antibodies was not the same for each virus in sera from the same country. It was not possible to draw any final conclusions as to the reasons for the observed differences.
  9. Macdonald WW, Rajapaksa N
    Bull World Health Organ, 1972;46(2):203-9.
    PMID: 4537482
    Although dengue haemorrhagic fever is widely established in South-East Asia, no cases have been reported from Borneo. In order to help to assess whether the infection could become established in Borneo, a survey was made, using the single-larva collection method, of the distribution and prevalence of the principal vector, Aedes aegypti, in Sabah and in a few towns and villages of Brunei and Sarawak. In addition, the prevalence of Ae. aegypti was compared with that of certain other species of Aedes.Ae. aegypti was found to be well established in the north, east, and south-west of Sabah but to be absent from almost all of the west coast. It was either uncommon in, or absent from, several small coastal villages; in others, very high Breteau indices were recorded. No reasonable explanation for this discontinuous distribution can be suggested. Large numbers of potential larval habitats were found, giving reason to believe that Ae. aegypti will spread further within these territories.
  10. Smith CE, Turner LH, Harrison JL, Broom JC
    Bull World Health Organ, 1961;24(1):5-21.
    PMID: 20604085
    In recent years leptospirosis has been shown to be an important cause of human febrile illness in Malaya. Studies were therefore undertaken to determine its animal reservoirs and the factors influencing spread of infection from them to man and domestic animals. This paper presents the board picture obtained. A wide range of animal species were trapped in forest localities, ricefield areas, areas of scrub and cultivation and in several towns and villages. The maintenance hosts of leptospirosis in Malaya appear to be mainly or entirely rats, although evidence of infection has been found throughout the animal kingdom. Some rat species have characteristics which suggest that they are better maintenance hosts than others. Evidence was found of practically every serogroup of leptospires infecting animals in Malaya. Altogether 104 strains were isolated and identified, and 155 animals were found to have serological evidence of infection. Of 1763 rodents examined, 194 had evidence of infection, and 41 of 1083 other animals. A serum survey of domestic animals showed the highest incidence of antibodies to be in goats and the lowest in oxen.
  11. Smith CE, Turner LH, Harrison JL, Broom JC
    Bull World Health Organ, 1961;24(1):23-34.
    PMID: 20604083
    In a previous paper the authors reported on the methods and zoogeographical background of a survey of animal leptospirosis in Malaya, giving a broad analysis of results. In the present paper the localities studied in towns and villages, in ricefields, in secondary forest and scrub and in primary forest are compared in detail. In towns and villages infection rates in rats were low, except in a seaport town where the invading R. norvegicus was heavily infected. In ricefields infection is maintained in R. argentiventer, alone or in association with R. exulans. In secondary forest and scrub there is overlap with forest species and the main hosts of leptospires appear to be R. exulans and R. jalorensis. In primary forest giant rats and, to a lesser degree, spiny rats are the main hosts.Ground-living rats appear to be better maintenance hosts than those scrambling on vegetation or arboreal rats. With some exceptions the incidence of infection of a rat species in an area was found to be in direct relation to the proportion that species formed of the total rat population. The critical number of rats for maintenance of leptospirosis in an area is estimated to be about two rats of the maintenance species per hectare.
  12. Gordon Smith CE, Turner LH, Harrison JL, Broom JC
    Bull World Health Organ, 1961;24(6):807-16.
    PMID: 20604093
    In previous papers it has been demonstrated that ground-dwelling rats are the principal reservoir of leptospirosis in Malaya. The present paper considers the distribution of infection by sex and weight in the ten principal rat species. There appears to be a general tendency for females to be infected more frequently than males, but significant differences were demonstrated only in R. sabanus (more than three times as many females as males infected) and R. whiteheadi. In Malaya, where seasonal changes are minimal, weights can be used as a good index of age in rats. In rat species with a low incidence of infection the incidence appeared to rise steadily with age. In species with a medium incidence the infection rate rose at first with age, fell in the 6-8-month age-group, and then rose again. In high-incidence species the rate rose rapidly from the second month.There appear to be three types of enzootic infection; (1) intensive transmission of a single serogroup in a crowded population of rats of a single species (transmission probably being through urinary contamination of damp soil); (2) low-intensity transmission of several serogroups among ground-rats frequenting wet places (probably with urinary transmission); and (3) low-intensity transmission of several serogroups among ground-rats in dry places (the transmission may be venereal).
  13. Jan S, Lee SW, Sawhney JP, Ong TK, Chin CT, Kim HS, et al.
    Bull World Health Organ, 2016 Mar 1;94(3):193-200.
    PMID: 26966330 DOI: 10.2471/BLT.15.158303
    To estimate out-of-pocket costs and the incidence of catastrophic health expenditure in people admitted to hospital with acute coronary syndromes in Asia.
  14. Bull World Health Organ, 1996;74(4):345-51.
    PMID: 8823955
    This memorandum summarizes the report of a WHO Consultation on the Control of Cervical Cancer in Developing Countries, held on 6-7 November 1994, in New Delhi, India. Evaluated was the current situation with regard to cervical cancer and the relevance of current practices in screening. New pragmatic approaches to cervical cancer were proposed that are relevant for developing countries; this includes empowerment of women to come forward, and visual inspection-"downstaging".
  15. Panchanathan V, Kumar S, Yeap W, Devi S, Ismail R, Sarijan S, et al.
    Bull World Health Organ, 2001;79(9):811-7.
    PMID: 11584728
    To carry out a comparative study of the safety and immunogenicity of Vi polysaccharide vaccine against whole-cell killed (WCK) typhoid vaccine.
  16. Inwang EE, Khan MA, Brown AW
    Bull World Health Organ, 1967;36(3):409-21.
    PMID: 5299673
    The yellow fever mosquito Aedes aegypti has developed resistance to DDT in the Caribbean region and in South-East Asia, but not in West Africa. Therefore West African strains were compared with South-East Asian strains for their response to laboratory selection with DDT. It was found that West African strains were much slower to respond initially, but eventually could build up a high degree of DDT-resistance. By crossing and backcrossing with a susceptible marker-gene strain, it was found that this resistance was due to a single gene linked with the gene y (yellow) on chromosome 2 at a cross-over distance of approximately 35 units in an Upper Volta strain as in a Bangkok strain; interstrain crosses indicated that the gene was the same as that in a Trinidad strain and in one from Penang. Dieldrin-resistance could be readily induced in the Upper Volta strain and proved to be due to a gene also linked with y but at a crossover distance of approximately 25 units, comparable to that in Caribbean strains previously studied. Material from Karachi, West Pakistan, developed a dieldrin-resistance also showing 25% crossing over with y, and a DDT-resistance also linked with this chromosome-2 marker gene.
  17. McCoy D, Kapilashrami A, Kumar R, Rhule E, Khosla R
    Bull World Health Organ, 2024 Feb 01;102(2):130-136.
    PMID: 38313156 DOI: 10.2471/BLT.23.289949
    Colonialism, which involves the systemic domination of lands, markets, peoples, assets, cultures or political institutions to exploit, misappropriate and extract wealth and resources, affects health in many ways. In recent years, interest has grown in the decolonization of global health with a focus on correcting power imbalances between high-income and low-income countries and on challenging ideas and values of some wealthy countries that shape the practice of global health. We argue that decolonization of global health must also address the relationship between global health actors and contemporary forms of colonialism, in particular the current forms of corporate and financialized colonialism that operate through globalized systems of wealth extraction and profiteering. We present a three-part agenda for action that can be taken to decolonize global health. The first part relates to the power asymmetries that exist between global health actors from high-income and historically privileged countries and their counterparts in low-income and marginalized settings. The second part concerns the colonization of the structures and systems of global health governance itself. The third part addresses how colonialism occurs through the global health system. Addressing all forms of colonialism calls for a political and economic anticolonialism as well as social decolonization aimed at ensuring greater national, racial, cultural and knowledge diversity within the structures of global health.
  18. Carragher N, Byrnes J, Doran CM, Shakeshaft A
    Bull World Health Organ, 2014 Oct 01;92(10):726-33.
    PMID: 25378726 DOI: 10.2471/BLT.13.130708
    OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the development and feasibility of a tool to assess the adequacy of national policies aimed at reducing alcohol consumption and related problems.

    METHODS: We developed a quantitative tool - the Toolkit for Evaluating Alcohol policy Stringency and Enforcement (TEASE-16) - to assess the level of stringency and enforcement of 16 alcohol control policies. TEASE-16 was applied to policy data from nine study areas in the western Pacific: Australia, China excluding Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), Hong Kong SAR, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore and Viet Nam. Correlation and regression analyses were then used to examine the relationship between alcohol policy scores and income-adjusted levels of alcohol consumption per capita.

    FINDINGS: Vast differences exist in how alcohol control policies are implemented in the western Pacific. Out of a possible 100 points, the nine study areas achieved TEASE-16 scores that ranged from 24.1 points for the Philippines to 67.5 points for Australia. Study areas with high policy scores - indicating relatively strong alcohol policy frameworks - had lower alcohol consumption per capita. Sensitivity analyses indicated scores and rankings for each study area remained relatively stable across different weighting schemes, indicating that TEASE-16 was robust.

    CONCLUSION: TEASE-16 could be used by international and national regulatory bodies and policy-makers to guide the design, implementation, evaluation and refinement of effective policies to reduce alcohol consumption and related problems.

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