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Fulltext Managing social networking stress: the role of self-management in reducing social media exhaustion and improving higher education employee performance

Moughal W, Nordin SM, Salleh RB, Abbasi HA

Front Psychol, 2023;14:1254707.
PMID: 38222843 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1254707

This study investigates the significance of self-management in academic staff stress management related to social networking sites (SNS). It emphasizes particularly on reducing social media exhaustion and increasing job effectiveness. The research applies the stressor-strain-outcome theory and the Smart PLS (partial least squares) analytical approach to examine data from 391 respondents. The study's goal is to provide empirical data on the efficacy of self-control management in reducing SNS stress and its effects on academic staff's psychological wellbeing and job performance. Data is collected by survey using online email platforms among academic employees, and the collected data is examined utilizing the Smart PLS approach. This approach allows for an investigation of the proposed links and their statistical importance. This research's ramifications are important for academic institutions since its results can help academic personnel effectively cope with SNS-related stress. Academic employees can better limit their SNS usage and avoid social media tiredness by promoting self-control management practices. As a result, academic employees' job performance and overall wellbeing may increase. The study's findings help to comprehend how self-management might reduce SNS stress and improve staff performance in the academic sector.
Fulltext Public perception on human exposure risk: A case study on endocrine disrupting compounds in the environment

Wee SY, Aris AZ, Yusoff FM, Praveena SM

Ecotoxicol Environ Saf, 2024 Jan 15;270:115830.
PMID: 38141339 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2023.115830

Humans are exposed to environmental risks owing to the broad usage of endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs). However, the subjective evaluation of risk levels and characteristics, as well as the variation in risk processing, have not been thoroughly examined. The objective was to understand the public's perception of the risk associated with human exposure to environmental EDCs and identify any variations in risk perception. In this pioneering study conducted within the distinctive social and cultural context of Malaysia, a developing nation, a quantitative analysis approach was employed to assess the subjective evaluation of risk levels and characteristics among the public while developing a risk perception model. Data gathered from surveys and questionnaires were analyzed to gather information on the public's perception of environmental and health issues pertaining to pesticides, hormones, plastics, medicines, and cosmetics. The analysis revealed that the majority of the public assessed the level of human exposure to environmental risks based on experiential processing, which was influenced by cognitive and affective variables. Interestingly, a higher proportion of individuals in the community had a low risk perception of environmental EDCs, surpassing the overall risk perception by 19.3%. Furthermore, the public showed significant awareness of environmental and health issues related to pesticides, hormones, and plastics but had a lesser inclination to acknowledge the vulnerability of humans to risks associated with medicines and cosmetics. These findings suggest that the public is likely to be exposed to environmental EDCs based on their current perceived risks, and that sociopsychological factors play a significant role in shaping perceptions and judgments. This understanding can inform the development of targeted risk management strategies and interventions to mitigate the potential harm caused by environmental EDCs.
Fulltext Assessing the cost burden of dengue infection to households in Seremban, Malaysia

Mia MS, Begum RA, Er AC, Pereira JJ

Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health, 2016 Nov;47(6):1167-76.
PMID: 29634177

Dengue is endemic in all parts of Malaysia. However, there is limited data regarding the cost burden of this disease at household level. We aimed to
examine the cost of dengue infection at the household level in Seremban District,
Malaysia. This cost assessment can provide an insight to policy-makers about
economic impact of dengue infection in order to guide and prioritize control strategies.
The data were collected via interview. We evaluated120 previous dengue
infection patients registered at the Tuanku Ja’afar Hospital, Seremban District,
Malaysia. The average duration of dengue illness was 9.69 days. The average
household days lost was 18.7; students lost an average of 6.3 days of school and
patients and caregivers lost an average of 12.5 days of work. The mean total cost
per case of dengue infection was estimated to be USD365.16 with the indirect
cost being USD327.90 (89.8% of the total cost) and the direct cost being USD37.26
(10.2% of the total cost). Our findings suggest each episode of dengue infection
imposes a significant financial burden at the household level in Seremban District,
Malaysia; most of the burden being indirect cost. This cost needs to be factored
into the overall cost to society of dengue infection. This data can inform policy
makers when allocating resources to manage public health problems in Malaysia.
Fulltext Dental patient knowledge about the effects of smoking and attitudes about the role of dentists in smoking cessation

Yahya NA, Saub R, Nor MM, Yusoff N

Southeast Asian J Trop Med Public Health, 2017 Mar;48(2):473-84.
PMID: 29642311

Dentists can offer their patients who smoke tobacco assistance with smoking cessation. We conducted this study to assess dental patient knowledge about the effects of smoking and perceptions and attitudes regarding the role of dentists in smoking cessation counselling. We conducted this study to inform tobacco cessation programs that could potentially include dentists. We conducted a cross-sectional study using a self-administered questionnaire among 375 patients. The mean age of subjects was 33.4 years; females comprised 51.5%. Participants were divided into 3 groups: those who never smoked (n = 263, 70.7%), smokers (n = 92, 24.7%), and ex-smokers (n = 17, 4.5%). Significantly more participants (p = 0.046) who never smoked (92.9%) knew smoking can cause bad breath than smokers(86.9%). Significantly more participants (p = 0.002) who never smoked (74.8%) knew smoking can cause periodontal disease than smokers (57.6%). Significantly
more participants (p < 0.001) who never smoked (84.5%) knew smoking can cause
oral cancer than smokers (66.7%). Significantly more participants (p < 0.001) who never smoked (86.7%) knew smoking can cause lung cancer than smokers (69.7%). Significantly more participants who never smoked (85.5%) felt dentists should be interested in the smoking status of their patients (p = 0.004) than smokers (72.6%). Significantly more participants (p = 0.08) who never smoked (69.6%) stated dentists should give smoking cessation advice than smokers/ex-smokers (59.0%). Smoker/ex-smokers had less knowledge about the effects of smoking on oral and general health than non-smokers. Both smokers/ex-smokers and non-smokers felt dentists should provide smoking cessation advice.
Wintergreen oil: a novel method in Wheatley's trichrome staining technique

Salleh FM, Anuar TS, Yasin AM, Moktar N

J Microbiol Methods, 2012 Oct;91(1):174-8.
PMID: 22986100 DOI: 10.1016/j.mimet.2012.08.004

Permanent staining of faecal smears by Wheatley's trichrome technique has been used by many scientists for the detection of parasites in the past and it was found to be highly sensitive. This study was conducted to evaluate the use of Wintergreen oil in comparison with xylene in Wheatley's trichrome staining technique, as the reference technique. In a blind comparison study, 500 collected faecal samples from aboriginal communities were examined. Wintergreen oil was found to be more superior than xylene as a clearing agent in the Wheatley's trichrome staining of polyvinyl alcohol-fixed faecal smears for the identification of intestinal protozoa. Elimination of toxic, carcinogenic, and fire hazards makes Wintergreen oil the preferred choice in routine parasitology examinations.
Factors associated with the timing of antenatal care seeking in Bangladesh

Kamal SM, Hassan CH, Islam MN

Asia Pac J Public Health, 2015 Mar;27(2):NP1467-80.
PMID: 24097925 DOI: 10.1177/1010539513485786

This study investigates the factors affecting the timing of antenatal care (ANC) seeking among Bangladeshi women using the 2007 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey data. Overall, 52% of the most recently pregnant women sought skilled ANC. The most pronounced reason for not receiving the services was that it was "not needed." Of the women who sought ANC, 57% entered for ANC at the fourth month or later. The multivariate regression analysis revealed that maternal age, women's education, residence, wealth index, pregnancy intention status, child's birth order, and wanting more children were the important determinants of ANC services utilization. Wanting more children and contraception use were no longer independent contributors to late ANC entry. These barriers should also be addressed as part of health interventions through information education and communication programs to early entry to ANC. The need to reduce financial barriers to care is a major implication of this study.
Review paper: Organ transplants: ethical, social, and religious issues in a multicultural society

Robson NZ, Razack AH, Dublin N

Asia Pac J Public Health, 2010 Jul;22(3):271-8.
PMID: 20460294 DOI: 10.1177/1010539509357446

Recent advances in the fields of organ donation and organ transplant have introduced new hope for the treatment of serious diseases. However, this promise has been accompanied by several issues. The most common issue raised is ethical implications, but in a multicultural society like Malaysia, additional concerns arise pertaining to social and religious issues. These concerns needs to be addressed as attitudes toward and acceptability of organ donation varies according to social, culture, and religion. The diverse cultural, religious, and traditional concepts pertaining to organ donation may hamper its acceptability and cause a lack of willingness to donate organs. The purpose of this article is to briefly explore the ethical issues involved in organ transplant and the various religious opinions on organ donation. It is hoped that this knowledge and understanding may benefit both health care providers and patients in a multicultural society like Malaysia.
Coronavirus Vaccination for Rohingya Refugees: A Call to Action

Rabby MII, Hossain F, Akhi IJ, Huda SN

Asia Pac J Public Health, 2022 01;34(1):148.
PMID: 34550014 DOI: 10.1177/10105395211048327
Comparative analysis of Ball Mapper and conventional Mapper in investigating air pollutants' behavior

Madukpe VN, Zulkepli NFS, Noorani MSM, Gobithaasan RU

Environ Monit Assess, 2025 Jan 06;197(2):136.
PMID: 39760901 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-024-13477-2

This study investigates the effectiveness and efficiency of two topological data analysis (TDA) techniques, the conventional Mapper (CM) and its variant version, the Ball Mapper (BM), in analyzing the behavior of six major air pollutants (NO2, PM10, PM2.5, O3, CO, and SO2) across 60 air quality monitoring stations in Malaysia. Topological graphs produced by CM and BM reveal redundant monitoring stations and geographical relationships corresponding to air pollutant behavior, providing better visualization than traditional hierarchical clustering. Additionally, a comparative analysis of topological graph structures was conducted using node degree distribution, topological graph indices, and Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) to evaluate the sensitivity and performance of these TDA techniques. Both approaches yielded valuable insights in representing the air quality monitoring stations network; however, the complexity of CM, which requires multiple parameters, poses a challenge in graph construction. In contrast, the simplicity of BM, requiring only a single parameter, is preferable for representing air pollutant behavior. The findings suggest an alternative approach for assessing and identifying redundancies in air quality monitoring stations, which could contribute to improved air quality monitoring management and more effective regulatory policies.
Fulltext Eating Behaviour among Disabled Athletes in Malaysia

Manaf H, Nor NM, Azhari NAM, Ismut NRA

Malays J Med Sci, 2019 May;26(3):129-134.
PMID: 31303857 MyJurnal DOI: 10.21315/mjms2019.26.3.11

Background: Nutrition has always been associated with eating behaviour. The eating behaviour can impact not only the normal population but also athletes' population including disabled athletes too. Athletes have a higher tendency to unhealthy eating behaviour due to intense pressure and competitive environment in sports. It is important to identify the types of eating behaviour among disabled athletes to prevent eating disorder that could affect their performance. Thus, this study aims to identify the types of eating behaviour among disabled athletes in Malaysia.
Methods: This study involved 93 disabled athletes in Malaysia. The setting of the study is at National Sports Council, Malaysia. The data obtained are analysed using chi-square test using SPSS.
Results: This study shows that the most common types of eating behaviour among disabled athletes are emotional eating (37.6%), followed by uncontrolled eating (34.3%) and cognitive restraint (28%). Most of the overweight and obese disabled athletes are prone to emotional eating (19.4%) as compared to non-overweight athletes (18.3%).
Conclusion: As a conclusion, recognising the eating behaviour in disabled athletes is important as more effective and innovative interventions and measures can be undertaken to prevent eating disorder which can enhance sports performance.
Fulltext Comparison of refractive error and visual impairment between Native Iban and Malay in a formal government school vision loss prevention programme

Bakar NF, Chen AH, Noor AR, Goh PP

Malays J Med Sci, 2012 Apr;19(2):48-55.
PMID: 22973137 MyJurnal

The epidemiological study of vision problems is important for developing national strategies for the prevention of visual impairment. There was a lack of information regarding vision problems among school children in East Malaysia. The purpose of this study was to compare the refractive errors and degrees of visual impairment between Native Iban and Malay school children who participated in a formal government vision loss prevention programme conducted in a rural area of Betong Division, Malaysia.
Fulltext Comparison of job satisfaction among eight health care professions in private (non-government) settings

Chen AH, Jaafar SN, Noor AR

Malays J Med Sci, 2012 Apr;19(2):19-26.
PMID: 22973134 MyJurnal

A comparison of the job satisfaction of health care professionals has not been well studied in Malaysia. This study aimed to compare the job satisfaction level among 8 groups of health care professionals in private settings, using the Job Satisfaction Survey (JSS).
Fulltext Genotypic Detection of rpoB and katG Gene Mutations Associated with Rifampicin and Isoniazid Resistance in Mycobacterium Tuberculosis Isolates: A Local Scenario (Kelantan)

Ismail NA, Ismail MF, Noor SS, Camalxaman SN

Malays J Med Sci, 2016 Jan;23(1):22-6.
PMID: 27540322 MyJurnal

Drug resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) remains a public health issue that is of major concern on a global scale. The characterisation of clinical isolates may provide key information regarding the underlying mechanisms of drug resistance, and helps to augment therapeutic options. This study aims to evaluate the frequency of gene mutations associated with Rifampicin (RIF) and Isoniazid (INH) resistance among nine clinical isolates.
COVID-19 Vaccination and Undocumented Migrants

Rafiqul AHM, Hossen MS, Huda SN

Asia Pac J Public Health, 2021 Oct 27.
PMID: 34706576 DOI: 10.1177/10105395211053162
Sexual Violence Against COVID-19-Positive Girls in India

Rabby MII, Hossain F, Akhi IJ, Huda SN

Asia Pac J Public Health, 2021 02 22;33(2-3):316-317.
PMID: 33615829 DOI: 10.1177/1010539521997714
Students' perceptions of 'technology-based' lecture handouts

Islam MN, Majumder MA, Ja'afar R, Rahman S

Malays J Med Sci, 2005 Jan;12(1):26-8.
PMID: 22605944

Lecture handouts are widely used instructional tools. Handouts supplement rather than substitute students' regular reading. It is now a common practice to supply PowerPoint handouts and publish lecture handouts on the web for students' access. A study was conducted among the first year medical students (n=142) of School of Medical Sciences (SMS), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) in order to determine their perceptions and expectations with regards to lecture handouts provided to them. The majority of the students reported that they read the lecture handouts as a reference and found them useful as a guide for future learning. More than half (68%) of the students expressed dissatisfaction with the overall presentation format of the handouts which is mainly technology-related i.e. PowerPoint and photocopying. This study indicated that students' expectations and experiences were positive towards the use of handouts. They used handouts as a means of supplementing rather than substituting their learning. Much care is needed when educators supply computer-based handouts, as this study shows a number of limitations when students use them. Medical schools should consider publishing web-based handouts with online and other facilities to make it interesting and effective.
Fulltext The impact of work rest scheduling for prolonged standing activity

Rahman IA, Mohamad N, Rohani JM, Zein RM

Ind Health, 2018 Nov 21;56(6):492-499.
PMID: 30210096 DOI: 10.2486/indhealth.2018-0043

Prolonged standing can cause discomfort on the body of the workers and can lead to injury and occupational disease. One of the ergonomic intervention is through improving the work-rest scheduling. The purpose of this study are to identify the fatigue level from the perception of the worker and to investigate the impact of the work-rest scheduling to the standing workers for 12 h working time with a different gender. This study involved two methods which are self-assessment of the worker and direct measurement by using electromyography (EMG). For self-assessment, 80 workers have been interviewed using questionnaire in order to identify the fatigue level. For direct measurement, EMG was attached to the 15 selected workers at their respective leg and lower back to analyse the muscle efforts. In terms of perception, the results show the discomfort and fatigue level at the lower body region in the following order as foot ankle, lower back and leg. There is a significant difference between gender on discomfort pain for foot ankle and leg. The results show short frequent break by 10 min can reduce the fatigue at the leg and infrequent long break is preferable in order to reduce the fatigue at the lower back. In conclusion, it was found that prolonged standing affect the muscle fatigue and discomfort especially lower extremities such as foot ankle, lower back and leg. Besides that, different type of work rest scheduling and gender have significant result towards the muscle fatigue development.
Virtual screening, molecular docking, molecular dynamics, and MM-GBSA approaches identify prospective fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase inhibitors from pineapple for diabetes management

Hossain MS, Roney M, Bin Mohd Yunus MY, Shariffuddin JH

J Biomol Struct Dyn, 2024;42(24):13619-13634.
PMID: 37916669 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2023.2276889

Diabetes affects millions globally and poses treatment challenges. Targeting the enzyme fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (FBPase) in gluconeogenesis and exploring plant-based therapies offer potential solutions for improving diabetes management while supporting sustainability and medicinal advancements. Utilizing pineapple (Ananas comosus L. Merr.) waste as a source of drug precursors could be valuable for health and environmental care due to its medicinal benefits and abundant yearly biomass production. Therefore, this study conducted a virtual screening to identify potential natural compounds from pineapple that could inhibit FBPase activity. A total of 112 compounds were screened for drug-likeness and ADMET properties, and molecular docking simulations were performed on 20 selected compounds using blind docking. The lead compound, butane-2,3-diyl diacetate, was subjected to 100 ns MD simulations, revealing a binding energy of -5.4 kcal/mol comparable to metformin (-5.6 kcal/mol). The MD simulation also confirmed stable complexes with crucial hydrogen bonds. Glu20, Ala24, Thr27, Gly28, Glu29, Leu30, Val160, Met177, Asp178, and Cys179 were identified as key amino acids that stabilized the human liver FBPase-butane-2,3-diyl diacetate complex, while Tyr215 and Asp218 played a crucial role in the human liver FBPase-Metformin complex. Our study indicates that the lead compound has high intestinal solubility. Therefore, it would show rapid bloodstream distribution and effective action on the target protein, making butane-2,3-diyl diacetate a potential antidiabetic drug candidate. However, further investigations in vitro, preclinical, and clinical trials are required to thoroughly assess its efficacy and safety.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
Fulltext Sustainable soil stabilization using industrial waste ash: Enhancing expansive clay properties

Almuaythir S, Zaini MSI, Hasan M, Hoque MI

Heliyon, 2024 Oct 30;10(20):e39124.
PMID: 39640816 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39124

This study investigates the use of various industrial waste materials-silica fume (SF), cement kiln dust (CKD), calcium carbide residue (CCR), rice husk ash (RHA), and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS)-as eco-friendly stabilizers for expansive clay soil (ECS). Laboratory tests were conducted to assess the impact of different proportions (3 %, 6 %, and 9 %) of these additives on the soil's physical, mechanical, and microstructural properties. Results indicated that the inclusion of industrial waste significantly improved the soil's behavior, with notable reductions in liquid limit (up to 37.66 %), plasticity index (up to 74.76 %), and swell potential. Additionally, unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and shear strength increased substantially, with UCS values rising from 114.64 kPa to 1582.91 kPa at 30 days of curing for 9 % GGBS. Microstructural analyses confirmed the formation of cementitious compounds, which enhanced soil particle bonding and durability. These findings suggest that industrial waste materials can serve as effective and sustainable alternatives to traditional soil stabilizers, offering both performance improvements and environmental benefits.
Fulltext A social cognitive theory of customer value co-creation behavior: evidence from healthcare

Hasan MM, Chang Y, Lim WM, Kalam A, Shamim A

J Health Organ Manag, 2024 Oct 17;ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print):360-388.
PMID: 39413122 DOI: 10.1108/JHOM-02-2024-0074

PURPOSE: Customer value co-creation behavior is promising but undertheorized. To bridge this gap, this study examines the viability of a social cognitive theory positing that customers' value co-creation behavior is shaped by their co-creation experience, self-efficacy, and engagement.
DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Using healthcare as a case, a stratified random sample comprising 600 patients from 40 hospitals across eight metropolitan cities in an emerging economy was acquired and analyzed using co-variance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM).
FINDINGS: Customers' co-creation experience has a positive impact on their co-creation self-efficacy, co-creation engagement, and value co-creation behavior. While co-creation self-efficacy and engagement have no direct influence on value co-creation behavior, they do serve as mediators between co-creation experience and value co-creation behavior, suggesting that when customers are provided with a co-creation experience, it enhances their co-creation self-efficacy and engagement, ultimately fostering value co-creation behavior.
ORIGINALITY/VALUE: A theory of customer value co-creation behavior is established.

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