Objective: The immune system has been implicated as one mechanism underlying the benefits of acupuncture therapy. Evidence suggests that acupuncture can ameliorate symptoms of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), but the association between clinical response and the immune system has not been investigated.
Design/setting: We investigated 12 CP/CPPS patients participating in a prospective randomized clinical trial comparing acupuncture versus sham acupuncture for effects on cellular immunity. Blood samples were taken before the first needling and after the last of 20 treatment sessions (week 10). Patients also completed questionnaires examining their CP/CPPS symptoms and mood status at the baseline and end of study visits.
Results: At the end of study 8 of 12 participants (67%) were classified as treatment responders, four participants each from the acupuncture and sham groups. The acupuncture group averaged a 5% increase in natural killer cell levels compared to corresponding sham (-13%; p=0.03). Similarly, patients randomized to acupuncture reported a reduction in other white blood cell parameters examined, supporting the possibility that immunity might be important in the pathophysiology of CP/CPPS.
Conclusions: The specific effect of acupuncture on CP/CPPS remains unclear. Further research is warranted to examine the mechanisms by which acupuncture therapy may improve clinical symptoms in patients with CP/CPPS.
Chromoblastomycosis is a chronic fungal infection of the skin and subcutaneous tissue that most commonly affects the feet and lower limbs. It is rare for this infection to occur on the face, and it is exceptionally rare for it to involve the nose and sinuses. This paper reports a rare case of nasal chromoblastomycosis in a 50-year-old Malaysian male.
This study investigates factors affecting older persons' state of loneliness in multiethnic Malaysia using data from the 2004 Malaysian Population and Family Survey, the first nationally representative sample in Malaysia. The study sample was extracted to include Malays, Chinese, Indians and other Indigenous groups aged 60 and above, and who had children (n = 1791). Cross tabulations and ordinal logistic regression methods were used in the analysis. Among the ethnic groups, older Malays were more likely than their Chinese and Indian counterparts to experience loneliness. Loneliness was found to be associated with age, marital status, education level, sources of income, health status, and physical limitations. Among older people, feelings of loneliness were inversely related with coresidence with adult children and participation in religious activities. Sociodemographic changes have eroded the traditional family support system for the elderly, while social security remains inadequate. This study shows the important role of family in alleviating loneliness among older people. Hence the need to promote and facilitate coresidence, as well as participation in religious activities, and a healthy lifestyle as a priority strategy is in line with the objectives of the National Policy for the Older People.
Although large international studies have found consistent patterns of sex differences in personality traits among adults (i.e., women scoring higher on most facets), less is known about cross-cultural sex differences in adolescent personality and the role of culture and age in shaping them. The present study examines the NEO Personality Inventory-3 (McCrae, Costa, & Martin, 2005) informant ratings of adolescents from 23 cultures (N = 4,850), and investigates culture and age as sources of variability in sex differences of adolescents' personality. The effect for Neuroticism (with females scoring higher than males) begins to take on its adult form around age 14. Girls score higher on Openness to Experience and Conscientiousness at all ages between 12 and 17 years. A more complex pattern emerges for Extraversion and Agreeableness, although by age 17, sex differences for these traits are highly similar to those observed in adulthood. Cross-sectional data suggest that (a) with advancing age, sex differences found in adolescents increasingly converge toward adult patterns with respect to both direction and magnitude; (b) girls display sex-typed personality traits at an earlier age than boys; and (c) the emergence of sex differences was similar across cultures. Practical implications of the present findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).
BACKGROUND: Smoking is a primary risk factor for cancer development. While most research has focused on smoking cigarettes, the increasing popularity of shisha or water pipe smoking has received less attention. This study measured the prevalence and risk factors for shisha and cigarette smoking and related knowledge.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in Shah Alam, Malaysia. Participants aged ≥ 18 years were selected from restaurants. Data regarding demographic variables, smoking patterns, and knowledge about shisha smoking were collected in local languages. Logistic regression was performed to assess risk factors.
RESULTS: Of 239 participants, 61.9 % were male and 99.2% revealed their smoking status. Some 57.4% were smokers: 50.7% only cigarettes, 5.9% only shisha and 42% both. Mean age of starting cigarette smoking was 17.5 ± 2.4 years and for shisha smoking 18.7 ± 2.0 years. In a univariate model, male gender, age 33-52 years and monthly income > MYR 4,000 increased the risk and unemployment and being a student decreased the risk. In a multivariate model, male gender increased the risk of smoking, while being a student decreased the risk, adjusting for age and income. The perception of shisha being less harmful than cigarettes was present in 14.6% and 7.5% had the opinion that shisha is not harmful at all, while 21.7% said that it is less addictive than cigarettes, 39.7% said that shisha did not contain tar and nicotine, 34.3% said that it did not contain carbon monoxide and 24.3% thought that shisha did not cause health problems.
CONCLUSIONS: Prevalence of shisha and cigarette smoking is high in the general population in Malaysia and knowledge about shisha smoking is relatively low. The findings of our study might have implications for understanding similarities and differences in incidence of shisha and cigarette smoking in other cultural/geographic regions.
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Escitalopram has widely been recognized as one of the most frequently used antidepressants, with superior tolerability and great efficacy in preventing major depressive disorder (MDD) relapse and recurrence. However, anhedonia, which is a core symptom of MDD, remains difficult to treat. This study investigates the hedonic levels of MDD patients treated with Escitalopram.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 108 participants, 26 of whom with MDD on Escitalopram, were recruited in this cross sectional study. They were evaluated using the Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) questionnaires to assess their hedonic state, general mental health condition and level of depression.
RESULTS: Our study shows that most items in the SHAPS scores are significantly different between MDD patients on Escitalopram and the controls.
CONCLUSIONS: The hedonic capacity remains different between the two groups despite patients with MDD are put on Escitalopram treatment. Escitalopram fails to alleviate the hedonic state of MDD patients. Antidepressants that improve both depressive symptoms and hedonic states should be considered when treating MDD patients in clinical settings.
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: To compare the outcome of transarterial angioembolization (TAE) and surgery with endoscopically unmanageable non-variceal hemorrhage of the upper gastrointestinal tract.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A case note review of all patients treated for non-variceal upper gastrointestinal bleeding from January 2006 till January 2012 was performed.
RESULTS: Fifty-four of 667 patients with non-variceal bleeding did not respond to endoscopic treatment. Nine of the 54 patients had incomplete data, leaving 45 patients in the study; 24 had angiography and another 21 had surgery. The two groups were broadly similar in terms of relevant clinical variables. Nineteen of 24 having angiography had embolisation. Re-bleeding recurred in 8 patients (33%) in the TAE group and 6 patients (28.6%) in the surgery group (p = 0.28). There was no statistically significant difference in post procedural complications (81% vs 62.5%, p = 0.17), 30-day mortality (33% vs 29.1%, p = 0.17 ) units of blood transfused (12.24 vs 8.92, p = 0.177) and mean hospital stay (30.7 vs 22.9 days, p = 0.281) observed in patients undergoing surgery as compared to TAE.
CONCLUSIONS: TAE and surgery have similar outcomes in patients with endoscopically unmanageable non-variceal upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage.
OBJECTIVES: There is a lack of local instruments to assess behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD). This 2-stage cross-sectional study was aimed at validating a Malay translated version of the Neuropsychiaric Inventory (MvNPI).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was conducted on a selected group of 138 elderly outpatients with dementia and their caregivers in Hospital Pulau Pinang. Severity of dementia was assessed using the Malay-translated version of Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE). The original NPI was translated and then back-translated before it was pilot-tested. The MvNPI was administered twice, a week apart on the same caregiver by the same investigator.
RESULTS: The individual items and total scale score of MvNPI had high internal consistency, with Corrected Item-Total Correlation ranging from satisfactory to good (0.41 to 0.77). The Cronbach's alpha for all the NPI domains showed high internal consistency (0.83), and subtotal for severity and distress scores were perfect (0.998 to 1.00). There was no significant difference between test-retest mean scores (p>0.05) and their correlations were perfect (0.996 to 1.00). Content validity indicated mild and inverse relationship between MMSE scores and severity, and distress score (-0.281 and -0.268, respectively, with p<0.001). Discriminant validity calculated using Mann-Whitney U test was found to be significant (p<0.001) in differentiating severity of cognitive impairment. Factor analysis revealed four possible components existed in MvNPI.
CONCLUSIONS: The MvNPI is a valid and reliable tool for assessing BPSD among Malay speaking populations of Malaysia and its neighbouring South East Asian countries.
Previous research has suggested that the factor structure of Body Appreciation Scale (BAS), a widely-used measure of positive body image, may not be cross-culturally equivalent. Here, we used confirmatory factor analysis to evaluate the conceptual equivalence of a Chinese (Cantonese) translation of the BAS among women (n=1319) and men (n=1084) in Hong Kong. Results showed that neither the one-dimensional nor proposed two-dimensional factor structures had adequate fit. Instead, a modified two-dimensional structure, which retained 9 of the 13 BAS items in two factors, had the best fit. However, only one of these factors, reflective of General Body Appreciation, had adequate internal consistency. This factor also had good patterns of construct validity, as indicated through significant correlations with participant body mass index, self-esteem, and (among women) actual-ideal weight discrepancy. The present results suggest that there may be cultural differences in the concept and experience of body appreciation.
To determine how tuberculosis (TB) treatment affects the health-related quality of life (HRQL) of patients with pulmonary TB and to identify the predictors of favourable TB treatment outcomes in Baghdad, Iraq.
The aim of our study was to relate four modifiable lifestyle factors (smoking status, body mass index, physical activity and diet) to health expectancy, using quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) in a prospective cohort study. Data of the prospective EPIC-NL study were used, including 33,066 healthy men and women aged 20-70 years at baseline (1993-7), followed until 31-12-2007 for occurrence of disease and death. Smoking status, body mass index, physical activity and adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet (excluding alcohol) were investigated separately and combined into a healthy lifestyle score, ranging from 0 to 4. QALYs were used as summary measure of healthy life expectancy, combining a person's life expectancy with a weight for quality of life when having a chronic disease. For lifestyle factors analyzed separately the number of years living longer in good health varied from 0.12 year to 0.84 year, after adjusting for covariates. A combination of the four lifestyle factors was positively associated with higher QALYs (P-trend <0.0001). A healthy lifestyle score of 4 compared to a score of 0 was associated with almost a 2 years longer life in good health (1.75 QALYs [95% CI 1.37, 2.14]).
BACKGROUND: To determine the prevalence and sociodemographic correlates of multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD) among Malaysian adults.
METHODS: We analysed data on 1044 men and 1528 women, aged 24-64 years, participants in the Non Communicable Disease Surveillance 2005/2006, a nationally representative, population-based, cross-sectional study. Prevalence of obesity, high blood pressure, dyslipidaemia, hyperglycemia, physical inactivity, smoking, risky drinking, low vegetable and fruit intake were determined and multivariable logistic regression was used to identify sociodemographic factors associated with having ≥3 of these cardiovascular disease risk factors.
RESULTS: The response rate was 84.6% (2572/3040). Overall, 68.4% (95% CI: 63.2, 73.1) had at least three risk factors. Among men, older age and Indian ethnicity were independently associated with having ≥3 CVD risk factors; while among women, older age, low education, and housewives were more likely to have ≥3 CVD risk factors.
CONCLUSION: The prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors clustering among Malaysian adults is high, raising concerns that cardiovascular disease incidence will rise steeply in the near future if no immediate preventive measures are taken. The current national health education and promotion programmes pertaining to modifiable risk factors can be further improved by taking into account the sociodemographic variation in CVD risk factors clustering.
Study name: Malaysia Non-Communicable Disease Surveillance-1 (MyNCDS-1) survey.
Disability caused by migraine may be one of the main causes of burden contributing to poor quality of life (QOL) among migraine patients. Thus, this study aimed to measure QOL among migraine sufferers in comparison with healthy controls.
The aim of this study was to determine ethnic differences and predictors of the perception of quality of life (QOL) in a multiethnic Malaysian population with type 2 diabetes.
The population of Malaysia is relatively young, due to this there is a dearth in research conducted among the elderly especially relating to depression. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence and the predictors of severe depression among the elderly in Malaysia. A sample of 2005 older adults randomly selected from the Penang State government's list of elderly receiving aid participated in the study. The Geriatric Depression Scale was used to screen for depression. Socio-demographic, social support, disease, functional and other factors were looked at as possible predictor variables. The prevalence of severe depression was 19.2 %. Indians (aOR = 2.0), being married (aOR = 10.5), widowed & divorced (aOR = 5.2), having poor (aOR = 2.7) or moderate social support (aOR = 2.7), having no one (aOR = 2.9), relatives (aOR = 2.3) or religious figures & others (aOR = 1.9) as compared to a spouse as a source of emotional support, feeling extremely lonely (aOR = 3.4), not socially active (aOR = 2.3), cognitively impaired (aOR 2.5), activities limited due to illness or disability (aOR = 1.6) and poor sleep quality (aOR = 3.6) were significant predictor variables. The prevalence of severe depression was high. It is pertinent that older adults, especially those with risk factors identified in this study be screened for depression at every opportunity.
Device, Questionnaire & Scale: Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-30)
This study aimed to identify the association of dietary patterns with sociodemographic and health-related characteristics among coronary artery disease patients. In this cross-sectional study, the participants were 250 patients coronary artery disease aged ≥ 40 years old. Data collection was done using questionnaires related to sociodemographics, health-related factors, and food-frequency intake information. Three dietary patterns (traditional, western, and healthy) were obtained using principal component analysis. The result showed that dietary patterns were associated with sociodemographic and health-related factors. According to the result, all the factors were taken very seriously when planning a promotional program for healthy lifestyle in prevention of CAD.
The maxillary incisive canal connects the roof of the oral cavity with the floor of nasal cavity and has the incisive and nasal foramina respectively at its two opposite ends. Its close proximity with the anterior incisors affects one's ability to place immediate implants in ideal position.
To describe 2 cases of spontaneous corneal clearing after Descemetorhexis: 1 after iatrogenic trauma (Case 1) and 1 as an intentional surgical intervention for Fuchs endothelial dystrophy (Case 2).
Dengue is a major public health problem in many tropical and sub-tropical countries. Vascular leakage and shock are identified as the major causes of deaths in patients with severe dengue. Studies have suggested the potential role of Fc gamma receptors I (FcγRI) in the pathogenesis of dengue. We hypothesized that the circulating level of Fcγ receptor I could potentially be used as an indicator in assisting early diagnosis of severe dengue.