Displaying publications 1 - 20 of 402 in total

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  1. Long-Term Health Outcome and Quality of Life Post-HSCT for IL7Rα-, Artemis-, RAG1- and RAG2-Deficient Severe Combined Immunodeficiency: a Single Center Report
    Abd Hamid IJ, Slatter MA, McKendrick F, Pearce MS, Gennery AR
    J Clin Immunol, 2018 08;38(6):727-732.
    PMID: 30105620 DOI: 10.1007/s10875-018-0540-9
    Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is curative for severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), but data on long-term impact of pre-HSCT chemotherapy, immune reconstitution and quality of life (QoL) of specific SCID genotypes are limited. We evaluated the long-term immune-reconstitution, health outcome and QoL in IL7Rα SCID, Artemis and RAG1 and 2 SCID survivors > 2 years post-HSCT in our center. Clinical data and immune reconstitution parameters were collated, and patients/families answered PedsQL generic core scale v4.0 questionnaires. Thirty-nine patients with a diagnosis of IL7Rα SCID (17 patients), Artemis SCID (8 patients) and RAG1/2 SCID (13 patients) had undergone HSCT with median age at last follow up for IL7Rα SCID, 14 years (range 4-27) and Artemis and RAG1/2 SCID, 10 years (range 2-18). Many patients have ongoing medical issues at latest follow-up [IL7Rα (73%), Artemis (85%), RAG1/2 (55%)]. Artemis SCID patients experienced more sequela than RAG1/2 SCID. Conditioned recipients with Artemis and RAG SCID had more CD4+ naïve lymphocytes compared to unconditioned recipients. All patients except those of IL7Rα SCID reported lower QoL; further subset group analysis showed parents and Artemis and RAG1/2 survivors without ongoing medical issues reported normal QoL. Conditioned recipients have superior long-term thymopoiesis, chimerism and immunoglobulin-independence. QoL was normal in those who did not have medical issues at long-term follow-up.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  2. Fulltext Electrical Performance of Polymer-Insulated Rail Brackets of DC Transit Subjected to Lightning Induced Overvoltage
    Abd Rahman FA, Ab Kadir MZA, Ungku Amirulddin UA, Osman M
    Materials (Basel), 2021 Mar 29;14(7).
    PMID: 33805583 DOI: 10.3390/ma14071684
    The fourth rail transit is an interesting topic to be shared and accessed by the community within that area of expertise. Several ongoing works are currently being conducted especially in the aspects of system technical performances including the rail bracket component and the sensitivity analyses on the various rail designs. Furthermore, the lightning surge study on railway electrification is significant due to the fact that only a handful of publications are available in this regard, especially on the fourth rail transit. For this reason, this paper presents a study on the electrical performance of a fourth rail Direct Current (DC) urban transit affected by an indirect lightning strike. The indirect lightning strike was modelled by means of the Rusck model and the sum of two Heidler functions. The simulations were carried out using the EMTP-RV software which included the performance comparison of polymer-insulated rail brackets, namely the Cast Epoxy (CE), the Cycloaliphatic Epoxy A (CEA), and the Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) together with the station arresters when subjected by 30 kA (5/80 µs) and 90 kA (9/200 µs) lightning currents. The results obtained demonstrated that the GRP material has been able to slightly lower its induced overvoltage as compared to other materials, especially for the case of 90 kA (9/200 µs), and thus serves better coordination with the station arresters. This improvement has also reflected on the recorded residual voltage and energy absorption capacity of the arrester, respectively.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  3. Stability of depressive symptoms over 3 months post-partum
    Abdollahi F, Zarghami M, Sazlina SG, Lye MS
    Early intervention in psychiatry, 2017 Feb;11(1):57-62.
    PMID: 25582677 DOI: 10.1111/eip.12215
    AIM: Prolonged depression during the post-partum period is associated with maternal and infant mortality and morbidity. Less attention has been given to factors that predict the persistence of depression beyond the first 3 months post-partum.
    METHODS: From a longitudinal cohort of 2279 women who attended Mazandaran's primary health centres in 2009, 478 women with an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) score of 12 or greater in the third trimester of pregnancy were recruited. Persistently depressed women (depressed at all three occasions: during pregnancy, and at 2 and 12 weeks post-partum) were compared with those without depression to determine demographic, cultural, obstetric and biopsychosocial predictors for persistence of depression. Data were analysed using chi-square test, t-test and logistic regression models.
    RESULTS: The stability of depression was found in 193 (46.2 %) of 418 depressed cases who were followed up over the study period. Of those mothers who scored more than the threshold of 12 during the third trimester of pregnancy, 277 (66.3%) and 221 (52.9%) had high EPDS at 2 and 12 weeks post-partum. Psychological distress (based upon the General Health Questionnaire), low maternal parental self-efficacy (based upon the Parental Expectation Survey) and perceived social isolation (based upon the Network Orientation Scale) were independent predictors of persistent depression.
    CONCLUSION: Fewer depressed mothers in this study were found to recover during the first 3 months after giving birth. Psychosocial factors predicted sustained depression from pregnancy to 3 months post-partum. The findings highlight the significance of support in enhancing maternal mental health.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  4. Fulltext Dietary Intake among Adolescents in a Middle-Income Country: An Outcome from the Malaysian Health and Adolescents Longitudinal Research Team Study (the MyHeARTs Study)
    Abdul Majid H, Ramli L, Ying SP, Su TT, Jalaludin MY, Abdul Mohsein NA
    PLoS One, 2016;11(5):e0155447.
    PMID: 27187889 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0155447
    Optimal nutrition is essential for healthy growth during adolescence. This study aims to investigate the baseline nutritional intake of Malaysian adolescents by gender, body mass index, and places of residence, both urban and rural. A cohort study was conducted consisting of 794 adolescents (aged 13-years) attending 15 public secondary schools from the Central (Kuala Lumpur and Selangor) and Northern (Perak) Regions of Peninsular Malaysia. Qualified dietitians conducted a 7-day historical assessment of habitual food intakes. Facilitated by flipcharts and household measurement tools, detailed information on portion sizes and meal contents were recorded. Nutritionist Pro™ Diet Analysis software was also used to analyze the dietary records.The mean age of the adolescents was 12.86 ± 0.33 y; the mean energy intake was 1659.0 ± 329.6 kcal/d. Males had significantly (P < .001) higher energy intake than females (1774.0 ± 369.8 vs 1595.2 ± 320.6 kcal/d); adolescents in rural schools consumed more energy and cholesterol (P < .001) compared to adolescents in urban schools (1706.1 ± 377.7 kcal/d and 244.1 ± 100.2 mg/d, respectively). Obese adolescents in rural schools consumed more energy and sugar (1987.6 ± 374.0 kcal/d and 48.9 ± 23.0 g/d) (p-value <0.001).The dietary intake of normal weight versus obese adolescents differs by the location of their school. Thus, the implementation of a structured and tailored intervention is recommended to help minimize this nutritional inequality.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  5. A 5-year longitudinal study of caries development in first permanent molars in children
    Abdul Razak I, Esa R
    Dent J Malays, 1988 Nov;10(2):41-4.
    PMID: 3271127
    The present study analysed the development of caries in 653 first permanent molars annually over a period of 5 years in children who were 7 years-old at baseline. The cumulative caries experience increased from 6.0% at baseline to 35.2% at the end of the study period. There were no appreciable differences in the annual incremental rate of caries experience among males and females. At baseline, the Malays and Indians have the highest and lowest caries experience respectively. At 12 years of age, the Chinese have the highest caries experience whilst the data for the Malays and Indians were comparable. The highest cumulative percentage increase in caries experience for the Malays, Chinese and Indians were between the ages of 7 to 8, 9 to 10 and 8 to 9 respectively while the average annual caries increment were 4.5%, 7.3% and 5.0% respectively.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  6. Persistence of cognitive deficits following paediatric head injury without professional rehabilitation in rural East Coast Malaysia
    Abdullah JM, Kumaraswamy N, Awang N, Ghazali MM, Abdullah MR
    Asian J Surg, 2005 Jul;28(3):163-7.
    PMID: 16024307
    To use data from a prospective, longitudinal study to determine whether psychomotor functions improve spontaneously during the first year following paediatric traumatic brain injury without modern rehabilitation facilities in a rural area of Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  7. Gefitinib as first line therapy in Malaysian patients with EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer: A single-center retrospective study
    Abdullah MM, Bhat A, Mohamed AK, Ching FY, Ahmed N, Gantotti S
    Oncol Lett, 2016 Apr;11(4):2757-2762.
    PMID: 27073548
    The present retrospective, single-center study evaluated the objective response rate (ORR) and progression-free survival (PFS) of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutation-positive Malaysian patients with advanced lung adenocarcinoma treated with gefitinib. During May 2008 to July 2013, 33 patients with Stage IV, EGFR mutation-positive non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) were identified and received gefitinib (250 mg) as first line treatment. The primary and secondary end points were ORR, PFS and safety, respectively. A total of 18 (54.5%) and 2 (6.1%) patients achieved partial response (PR) and complete response (CR) to gefitinib therapy, respectively, yielding an ORR of 60.6% (95% CI, 42.1-77.1%). Patients with exon 20 or 21 mutations (n=6, 66.7%) tended to have better ORR compared with exon 19 (n=22, 59.1%). The median PFS was 8.9 months in Malaysian patients with EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC, treated with gefitinib. The majority of treatment-related toxicity was mild in nature. The most frequently reported adverse events included dry skin (39.4%), skin rash (27.2%), and dermatitis acneiform (15.2%). In conclusion, Malaysian patients with locally advanced and metastatic EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC responded favorably to gefitinib therapy in terms of ORR, median PFS, and tolerability, the results of which were consistent with those of the IPASS study conducted in an Asian population. Considering the efficacy and safety profile of gefitinib, it is a favorable option for the first-line treatment of Malaysian patients with EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC. However, future long-term studies in a larger population of Malaysian patients are required to support whether the prolonged PFS conferred by gefitinib will translate into prolonged overall survival.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  8. Assessing the treatment of acetaminophen-contaminated brewery wastewater by an anaerobic packed-bed reactor
    Abdullah N, Fulazzaky MA, Yong EL, Yuzir A, Sallis P
    J Environ Manage, 2016 Mar 1;168:273-9.
    PMID: 26760229 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2015.12.015
    The treatment of high-strength organic brewery wastewater with added acetaminophen (AAP) by an anaerobic digester was investigated. An anaerobic packed-bed reactor (APBR) was operated as a continuous process with an organic loading rate of 1.5-g COD per litre per day and a hydraulic retention time of three days. The results of steady-state analysis showed that the greatest APBR performances for removing COD and TOC were as high as 98 and 93%, respectively, even though the anaerobic digestibility after adding the different AAP concentrations of 5, 10 and 15 mg L(-1) into brewery wastewater can affect the efficiency of organic matter removal. The average CH4 production decreased from 81 to 72% is counterbalanced by the increased CO2 production from 11 to 20% before and after the injection of AAP, respectively. The empirical kinetic models for substrate utilisation and CH4 production were used to predict that, under unfavourable conditions, the performance of the APBR treatment process is able to remove COD with an efficiency of only 6.8%.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  9. Fulltext Participants Attrition in a Longitudinal Study: The Malaysian Cohort Study Experience
    Abdullah N, Kamaruddin MA, Goh YX, Othman R, Dauni A, Jalal NA, et al.
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2021 07 06;18(14).
    PMID: 34299667 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18147216
    The attrition rate of longitudinal study participation remains a challenge. To date, the Malaysian Cohort (TMC) study follow-up rate was only 42.7%. This study objective is to identify the cause of attrition among TMC participants and the measures to curb it. A total of 19,343 TMC participants from Kuala Lumpur and Selangor that was due for follow-up were studied. The two most common attrition reasons are undergoing medical treatment at another government or private health center (7.0%) and loss of interest in participating in the TMC project (5.1%). Those who were inclined to drop out were mostly Chinese, aged 50 years and above, unemployed, and had comorbidities during the baseline recruitment. We have also contacted 2183 participants for the home recruitment follow-up, and about 10.9% agreed to join. Home recruitment slightly improved the overall follow-up rate from 42.7% to 43.5% during the three-month study period.
    Study name: The Malaysian Cohort (TMC) project
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies*
  10. Risk factors associated with diabetic retinopathy among type 2 diabetes patients at teaching hospital in Malaysia
    Abougalambou SS, Abougalambou AS
    Diabetes Metab Syndr, 2015 Apr-Jun;9(2):98-103.
    PMID: 25470640 DOI: 10.1016/j.dsx.2014.04.019
    BACKGROUND: Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness in the United States and it is the leading cause of new cases of blindness in adults aged 20-74. It is estimated that about 20% of patients with type 2 DM have evidence of diabetic retinopathy at diagnosis with diabetes.
    OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of DR and to determine risk factors related to diabetic retinopathy among type 2 diabetes patients attending endocrinology clinics at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM).
    SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The study design was observational prospective longitudinal follow-up study, the study was conducted with sample of 1077 type 2 diabetes mellitus outpatient recruited via attended the diabetes clinics at HUSM. Diagnosis of retinopathy is based on finding the diagnostic signs of retinopathy on eye exams by fundoscopy. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent variables that affect the development of retinopathy.
    RESULTS: The prevalence of retinopathy was 39.3%. It has been noticed from this study findings, that the progression of retinopathy is been influenced by five independent risk factors such as duration of diabetes, presence neuropathy, total cholesterol at second and third visit and createnine clearance.
    CONCLUSION: DR is highly prevalent among type 2 DM. The progression of retinopathy is been influenced by five independent risk factors such as duration of diabetes, presence neuropathy, total cholesterol at second and third visit and createnine clearance. DR is a serious diabetic complication and public health strategies are required in order to reduce its risk factors and decrease its prevalence.
    KEYWORDS: Prevalence; Retinopathy; Risk factors; Type 2 diabetes mellitus
    Study site: Endocrinology clinics, Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Kelantan, Malaysia
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  11. Explorative study on diabetes neuropathy among type II diabetic patients in Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital
    Abougalambou SS, Abougalambou AS
    Diabetes Metab Syndr, 2012 Jul-Sep;6(3):167-72.
    PMID: 23158982 DOI: 10.1016/j.dsx.2012.09.002
    OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to determine risk factors and prevalence of diabetic neuropathy (DN) among type II diabetic patients in Malaysian hospital setting.
    SUBJECTS AND METHODS: a observational prospective longitudinal follow up study design was selected, total no of respondents were 1077 type 2 diabetes mellitus outpatients recruited via attended the diabetes clinics at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) in Kelantan. The diagnosis of neuropathy was confirmed by nerve conduction studies. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent variables that affect the development of neuropathy.
    RESULTS: The prevalence of nephropathy is 54.3%. Longitudinal logistic regression identified four predictive variables on the development and progression of diabetic neuropathy that are: duration of diabetes, retinopathy, HbA1c at second visit, and creatinine clearance third visit.
    CONCLUSION: Findings of this study show high prevalence of diabetic neuropathy. HbA1c and creatinine clearance are two modifiable risk factors for the development of diabetic neuropathy.
    Study site: Diabetes clinics, Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Kelantan, Malaysia
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  12. A study evaluating the postprandial plasma glucose control among type 2 diabetes patients attending a teaching hospital in Malaysia
    Abougalambou SSI, Ahmed NO, Abougalambou AS
    Diabetes Metab Syndr, 2017 Nov;11 Suppl 1:S445-S449.
    PMID: 28434857 DOI: 10.1016/j.dsx.2017.03.033
    BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Type 2 DM is rapidly rising as a global health care problem that threatens to reach pandemic levels by 2030. Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a disease with no cure and chronic disease that results in major morbidity and mortality. The main objective of this study is to evaluate postprandial plasma glucose level and to determine factors affect on postprandial plasma glucose level among type 2 diabetes outpatients attending endocrinology clinics at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, Teaching Hospital.
    SUBJECTS AND METHODS: The study design was observational prospective longitudinal follow-up study, the study was conducted with sample of 1077 type 2 diabetes mellitus outpatient recruited via attended the diabetes clinics at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) in Kelantan. Post prandial plasma glucose (PPG) parameter to measure the glycaemic control. Logistic regression analysis was used to assess the independent variables that affect the PPG control.
    RESULTS: About 426 (39.6%) of the patients did not achieve the optimal postprandial plasma glucose level (<10mmol/l). In this study, the possible factors that affect postprandial plasma glucose levels (PPG) were found to be gender (OR=0.77) and the duration of diabetes (OR=1.12).
    CONCLUSION: It has been found that gender and the duration of diabetes are the factors affecting PPG. New strategy to improve the current status of control of diabetes is needed. The study recommends that health-care providers should pay more attention to type 2 DM male patients and patients who had diabetic for long time.
    Study site: Endocrine clinic, Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM)
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  13. Fulltext Optical-based sensors for monitoring corrosion of reinforcement rebar via an etched cladding Bragg grating
    Abu Hassan MR, Abu Bakar MH, Dambul K, Adikan FR
    Sensors (Basel), 2012;12(11):15820-6.
    PMID: 23202233 DOI: 10.3390/s121115820
    In this paper, we present the development and testing of an optical-based sensor for monitoring the corrosion of reinforcement rebar. The testing was carried out using an 80% etched-cladding Fibre Bragg grating sensor to monitor the production of corrosion waste in a localized region of the rebar. Progression of corrosion can be sensed by observing the reflected wavelength shift of the FBG sensor. With the presence of corrosion, the etched-FBG reflected spectrum was shifted by 1.0 nm. In addition, with an increase in fringe pattern and continuously, step-like drop in power of the Bragg reflected spectrum was also displayed.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  14. Fulltext Effects of sleep changes on pain-related health outcomes in the general population: A systematic review of longitudinal studies with exploratory meta-analysis
    Afolalu EF, Ramlee F, Tang NKY
    Sleep Med Rev, 2018 06;39:82-97.
    PMID: 29056414 DOI: 10.1016/j.smrv.2017.08.001
    Emerging longitudinal research has highlighted poor sleep as a risk factor of a range of adverse health outcomes, including disabling pain conditions. In establishing the causal role of sleep in pain, it remains to be clarified whether sleep deterioration over time is a driver of pain and whether sleep improvement can mitigate pain-related outcomes. A systematic literature search was performed using PubMed MEDLINE, Ovid EMBASE, and Proquest PsycINFO, to identify 16 longitudinal studies involving 61,000 participants. The studies evaluated the effect of sleep changes (simulating sleep deterioration, sleep stability, and sleep improvement) on subsequent pain-related outcomes in the general population. A decline in sleep quality and sleep quantity was associated with a two- to three-fold increase in risk of developing a pain condition, small elevations in levels of inflammatory markers, and a decline in self-reported physical health status. An exploratory meta-analysis further revealed that deterioration in sleep was associated with worse self-reported physical functioning (medium effect size), whilst improvement in sleep was associated with better physical functioning (small effect size). The review consolidates evidence that changes in sleep are prospectively associated with pain-related outcomes and highlights the need for further longitudinal investigations on the long-term impact of sleep improvements.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  15. Inclining Trend of the Researchers Interest in Antimicrobial Stewardship: A Systematic Review
    Ahmad NJ, Althemery AU, Haseeb A, Yusuf RF, Hassali AA, Khan AH
    J Pharm Bioallied Sci, 2020 01 29;12(1):11-15.
    PMID: 32801595 DOI: 10.4103/jpbs.JPBS_186_19
    Introduction: The implementation of antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs) can improve the treatment of infections and can decrease the adverse events that result from antibiotics use. In the last decades, there is an increasing interest of the researchers in the implementation of ASPs.

    Materials and Methods: The articles published in different journals were retrieved by searching many research databases such as Cochrane library, Europe PMC, PubMed, and Web of Science; we searched these databases for all published articles till November 2018.

    Results and Discussion: The searching results using Cochrane library showed an increase in the number of randomized clinical trials that related to the keyword of "antimicrobial stewardship" specially in the last 5 years. Using Europe PMC, we found 6178 results. From these results, there are 3874 free full texts. In addition, there are 2132 original articles in PubMed and by searching Web of Science database till November 8 there are 3085 results. These results show that the number of trusted published articles was increased continuously; this shows the increasing interest of the researchers in ASPs. These researches will help health-care providers to use antibiotics appropriately and to overcome the barriers of implementing ASPs.

    Conclusion: The results of this study show that the researchers had high levels of interest in participating in research activities related to the appropriate use on antibiotics and the implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs.

    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  16. Fulltext Morphological variant of pronator quadratus muscle: a case report
    Ahmad Ruzain, S., Zar Chi, T., Syed Baharom, S.A.F.
    Medicine & Health, 2018;13(2):164-169.
    MyJurnal
    Presented herein is a case of one different morphological anomaly of pronator quadratus (PQ) muscle. Here, the shape of PQ was not similar to the normal morphology of the muscle. The PQ muscle appeared to be in distinct triangular-shaped instead of quadrangular-shaped. In addition, this triangular-shaped was found in two sites i.e. proximal and distal. Significantly, the PQ muscle consisted of two fleshy red fibres and white aponeurosis. Proximally placed portion had a wide base and a narrower apex. The larger base was attached to the ulna and formed of fleshy red fibres which converged laterally to be continuous with aponeurosis ending on the radius. In contrast, the distal triangular portion had the fleshy fibres attached to the radius and converged medially to be continuous with aponeurotic portions on the ulna. Each portion were referred as pronator triangularis proximalis and pronator triangularis distalis. These variations might affect atypically in cases of forearm pronation. Information of these variations is important in hand surgeries and provide an additional knowledge on the relationship between morphology of PQ muscle and the limitation or the strength in the action of it.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  17. Fulltext Numerical analysis of thermal conductive hybrid nanofluid flow over the surface of a wavy spinning disk
    Ahmadian A, Bilal M, Khan MA, Asjad MI
    Sci Rep, 2020 Nov 02;10(1):18776.
    PMID: 33139760 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-75905-w
    A three dimensional (3D) numerical solution of unsteady, Ag-MgO hybrid nanoliquid flow with heat and mass transmission caused by upward/downward moving of wavy spinning disk has been scrutinized. The magnetic field has been also considered. The hybrid nanoliquid has been synthesized in the presence of Ag-MgO nanoparticles. The purpose of the study is to improve the rate of thermal energy transmission for several industrial purposes. The wavy rotating surface increases the heat transmission rate up to 15%, comparatively to the flat surface. The subsequent arrangement of modeled equations is diminished into dimensionless differential equation. The obtained system of equations is further analytically expounded via Homotopy analysis method HAM and the numerical Parametric continuation method (PCM) method has been used for the comparison of the outcomes. The results are graphically presented and discussed. It has been presumed that the geometry of spinning disk positively affects the velocity and thermal energy transmission. The addition of hybrid nanoparticles (silver and magnesium-oxide) significantly improved thermal property of carrier fluid. It uses is more efficacious to overcome low energy transmission. Such as, it provides improvement in thermal performance of carrier fluid, which play important role in power generation, hyperthermia, micro fabrication, air conditioning and metallurgical field.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  18. Vehicular traffic noise prediction and propagation modelling using neural networks and geospatial information system
    Ahmed AA, Pradhan B
    Environ Monit Assess, 2019 Feb 26;191(3):190.
    PMID: 30809746 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-019-7333-3
    This study proposes a neural network (NN) model to predict and simulate the propagation of vehicular traffic noise in a dense residential area at the New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) in Shah Alam, Malaysia. The proposed model comprises of two main simulation steps: that is, the prediction of vehicular traffic noise using NN and the simulation of the propagation of traffic noise emission using a mathematical model. First, the NN model was developed with the following selected noise predictors: the number of motorbikes, the sum of vehicles, car ratio, heavy vehicle ratio (e.g. truck, lorry and bus), highway density and a light detection and ranging (LiDAR)-derived digital surface model (DSM). Subsequently, NN and its hyperparameters were optimised by a systematic optimisation procedure based on a grid search approach. The noise propagation model was then developed in a geographic information system (GIS) using five variables, namely road geometry, barriers, distance, interaction of air particles and weather parameters. The noise measurement was conducted continuously at 15-min intervals and the data were analysed by taking the minimum, maximum and average values recorded during the day. The measurement was performed four times a day (i.e. morning, afternoon, evening, and midnight) over two days of the week (i.e. Sunday and Monday). An optimal radial basis function NN was used with 17 hidden layers. The learning rate and momentum values were 0.05 and 0.9, respectively. Finally, the accuracy of the proposed method achieved 78.4% with less than 4.02 dB (A) error in noise prediction. Overall, the proposed models were found to be promising tools for traffic noise assessment in dense urban areas.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  19. 'Rallying around the flag': Can an intergroup contact intervention promote national unity?
    Al Ramiah A, Hewstone M
    Br J Soc Psychol, 2012 Jun;51(2):239-56.
    PMID: 21793860 DOI: 10.1111/j.2044-8309.2011.02041.x
    A longitudinal study evaluated the success of a contact-based nation-building intervention (the Malaysian National Service Programme) in promoting various facets of national unity. The study assessed how post-test measures of quality of intergroup contact, outgroup evaluations, and levels of identification changed compared to their respective pre-test levels, for both National Service and control group participants. The intervention did not lead to a worsening of any of the constructs related to intergroup relations, which is noteworthy given the novelty for many participants of mixing in a multi-ethnic setting. Furthermore, all rater groups (Malays, Chinese, and Indians) maintained their ethnic identity, even in the presence of high levels of national identity, which we discuss with respect to past research on the effects of positive intergroup contact on minority group identification. However, the changes associated with the intervention yielded only small effect sizes, and, on the whole, National Service participants did not show significantly greater improvement than that experienced by control participants. We discuss the value of intergroup contact in this novel setting, considering various features of this programme that may have limited its effectiveness and discuss how such interventions can more successfully meet their goals.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
  20. Fulltext Burden of Giardia duodenalis infection and its adverse effects on growth of schoolchildren in rural Malaysia
    Al-Mekhlafi HM, Al-Maktari MT, Jani R, Ahmed A, Anuar TS, Moktar N, et al.
    PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 2013;7(10):e2516.
    PMID: 24205426 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002516
    Giardia duodenalis infection and malnutrition are still considered as public health problems in many developing countries especially among children in rural communities. This study was carried out among Aboriginal (Orang Asli) primary schoolchildren in rural peninsular Malaysia to investigate the burden and the effects of Giardia infection on growth (weight and height) of the children.
    Matched MeSH terms: Longitudinal Studies
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