Displaying publications 21 - 40 of 140 in total

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  1. Aziz NA, Muhamad S, Manaf MR, Hamid MZ
    Int J Prev Med, 2013 Jun;4(6):664-70.
    PMID: 23930184
    BACKGROUND: Primary health care workers (PHCW) are the front-liners in any infectious disease outbreaks. The recent outbreak of H1N1 influenza demonstrated that uptake of H1N1 vaccination remained low amongst PCHW despite its proven effectiveness. This trend is worrying as PHCW are the first point of contact in any emerging outbreak of future influenza epidemic. To investigate factors influencing willingness of H1N1 vaccination amongst PHCW.
    METHODS: A cross-sectional survey using self-reported questionnaire assessing perception and practice towards H1N1 Influenza A vaccination. A score of 34/50 was used as a cut-off score that divide good and poor perception. Logistic regression analysis used to explore the association between acceptance to be vaccinated and chosen variables.
    RESULTS: The mean age was 33.91 (SD: 8.20) with mean year of service of 9.23 (SD: 8.0). Acceptance of H1N1 vaccination was 86.3%. A total of 85.9% perceived the vaccination can prevent serious disease. Willingness to be vaccinated influenced by perception at risk of having illness (OR: 10.182, CI: 1.64-63.23, P 0.013) and need for vaccination (OR: 11.35, CI: 4.67-27.56, P < 0.0001).
    CONCLUSIONS: PCHW were generally willing to be vaccinated should H1N1 Influenza epidemic emerges in the future. However, acceptance of vaccination was influenced by factors of benefit to prevent illness and reduction of spread of the illness. Fear of side-effects remained a barrier toward acceptance which should be taken into account in planning of preparation for future wave of outbreak.
  2. Kassab YW, Hassan Y, Aziz NA, Akram H, Ismail O
    J Eval Clin Pract, 2013 Aug;19(4):658-63.
    PMID: 22845427 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2753.2012.01894.x
    RATIONALE: Despite the availability of various prevention guidelines on acute coronary syndrome (ACS), secondary prevention practice utilizing aspirin, beta-blockers, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and statins still can be sub-optimal.
    AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To review and document the utilization of pharmacotherapy for the secondary prevention of ACS in patients discharged from a Malaysian hospital.
    METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary hospital in Penang, Malaysia. Patients with a primary diagnosis of ACS were identified from medical records over a 4-month period. A range of clinical data was extracted from medical records, including medical history, clinical presentation and pharmacotherapy both on admission and at discharge. This audit focused on the use of four guideline-recommended therapies: aspirin ± clopidogrel, beta-blockers, statins and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI)/angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs).
    RESULTS: Data pertaining to a total of 380 ACS patients was extracted and reviewed, the mean age of the study population was 57.49 years and 73.9% of population was males. Patients with unstable angina accounted for 56.6% of the admissions whereas 23.4% and 20% of the patients were admitted for ST-elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-segment elevation infarct respectively. 95.7% of the patients received antiplatelets comprising of at least aspirin, and 82% received aspirin plus clopidogrel. Furthermore, 80.3% of the patients received a beta-blocker at discharge, 95% a statin and 69.7% received either an ACEI or ARB. Compared with patients who presented with myocardial infarction (with or without ST-segment elevation), those presenting with unstable angina were less likely to receive the combination of aspirin plus clopidogrel or an ACEI/ARB at discharge. Patients over 65 years of age were also less likely to receive a beta-blocker at discharge, compared with younger patients.
    CONCLUSIONS: There is a good adherence to evidence-based guidelines for the secondary prevention of ACS in this local setting. However, there is some potential underutilization in the older population and patients presenting with unstable angina.
    KEYWORDS: acute coronary syndromes; evidence-based pharmacotherapy; secondary prevention; utilization
  3. Abdul Aziz NA, Wong LM, Bhat R, Cheng LH
    J Sci Food Agric, 2012 Feb;92(3):557-63.
    PMID: 25363645 DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.4606
    Mango is a highly perishable seasonal fruit and large quantities are wasted during the peak season as a result of poor postharvest handling procedures. Processing surplus mango fruits into flour to be used as a functional ingredient appears to be a good preservation method to ensure its extended consumption.
  4. Hassan Y, Al-Ramahi RJ, Aziz NA, Ghazali R
    Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther, 2010 Sep;48(9):571-6.
    PMID: 20860910
    BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Adverse drug events (ADEs) are a common cause of hospitalization and in-hospital complications. The aim of this study was to determine the rates, types, severity and preventability of pre-admission and in-hospital ADEs in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).

    METHODS: This study was conducted at the nephrology unit at Penang General Hospital. A random sample of 300 adult patients with CKD was included. Medical records and charts were reviewed by a clinical pharmacist every work day to find any evidence of errors or complications related to drug use. If a suspected ADE was found, further investigations were carried out to assess the causality, severity and preventability of the event.

    RESULTS: A total of 159 ADEs were reported in 122 (40.7%) of the patients. We found 86 suspected pre-admission ADEs in 68 (22.7%) of the patients. These were either the cause of admission for some patients or discovered by the initial physical examination and laboratory investigations. During hospitalization, 64 (21.3%) patients had 73 suspected ADEs. Out of the total 159 suspected ADEs, it was highly probable that 31 events were due to medication, while 61 were of lower probability, and 67 were merely possible. A total of 48 (30.2%) events was considered preventable. 46 events (28.9%) were serious, 93 (58.5%) were less serious and 20 (12.6%) were insignificant. The medication classes most frequently involved in ADEs were diuretics, antibacterials, drugs used for diabetes mellitus, antithrombotic agents, mineral supplements and antihypertensive drugs.

    CONCLUSION: ADEs are very common in hospitalized CKD patients, and some of these events are preventable. The service of a clinical pharmacist may help to reduce ADEs.

  5. Hamid MZ, Aziz NA, Anita AR, Norlijah O
    PMID: 21073041
    This study aimed to assess the knowledge of blood-borne diseases transmitted through needle stick injuries amongst health-care workers in a tertiary teaching hospital. We also aimed to assess the practices of universal precautions amongst these workers and its correlation with the facts. We carried out a cross-sectional study from January to July 2008 involving various levels of health-care workers in Serdang Hospital, Selangor, Malaysia. A self-administered questionnaire assessing knowledge of blood-borne diseases and universal precautions, and actual practice of universal precautions was used. Two hundred fifteen respondents participated in this study; 63.3% were staff nurses. The mean knowledge score was 31.84 (SD 4.30) and the mean universal practice score was 9.0 (SD 2.1). There was a small, positive correlation between knowledge and actual practice of universal precautions (r = 0.300, n = 206, p < 0.001) amongst the cohort studied. Factors such as age and years of experience did not contribute towards acquisition of knowledge about blood-borne illnesses or the practice of universal precautions.
  6. Hassan Y, Al-Ramahi RJ, Aziz NA, Ghazali R
    Ann Pharmacother, 2009 Oct;43(10):1598-605.
    PMID: 19776297 DOI: 10.1345/aph.1M187
    Appropriate drug selection and dosing for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is important to avoid unwanted drug effects and ensure optimal patient outcomes.
  7. Aziz NA, Norzila MZ, Hamid MZ, Noorlaili MT
    Med J Malaysia, 2006 Dec;61(5):534-9.
    PMID: 17623952 MyJurnal
    The increasing prevalence of childhood asthma has become a concern among health practitioners. Effective management emphasizes long-term management and inhaled therapy has become the mainstay home management for children. However, proper utilization of medication is pertinent in improving control. Proper asthma education is mandatory in improving skills and confidence amongst parents. To assess the skills of using the metered-dose inhaler (MDI) with a spacer among asthmatic children before and after educational intervention and to analyse any difficulties which may occur amongst the participants in executing the assessment steps. A cross-sectional clinic based study involving 85 parents and children with asthma. A standardized metered-dose inhaler-spacer checklist of eight steps of medication usage and five steps of cleaning the spacer were used as the assessment tools for pre and post intervention. The performance on using the inhaler-spacer and spacer cleaning knowledge pre and two months post intervention was evaluated. One point was given for each correct step and zero points for incorrect answers/steps. The mean score for skills of inhaler technique improved significantly after educational intervention (3.51 to 6.01, p < 0.0001) as did the mean score for parental knowledge of spacer cleaning technique (1.35 to 3.16, p 0.001). Analysis showed only a limited improvement even after an educational session in three steps of inhalation technique: step 5 (23.5%/69.4%), step 6 (28.2%/68.2%) and step 7 (25.9%/61.2%). Parents with asthmatic children had poor skills in utilizing their children's medication. A short-term educational intervention was able to improve overall knowledge and skill but certain skills need more emphasizing and training.
    Study site: Klink HUKM Taman Jaya, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (primary care clinic for Hospital University Kebangsaan Malaysia)
  8. Ping CC, Hassan Y, Aziz NA, Ghazali R, Awaisu A
    J Clin Pharm Ther, 2007 Feb;32(1):101-7.
    PMID: 17286794
    To report a case of early-decompensated liver cirrhosis secondary to discontinuation of penicillamine therapy in a patient with Wilson's disease.
  9. Hassan Y, Awaisu A, Aziz NA, Aziz NH, Ismail O
    J Clin Pharm Ther, 2007 Dec;32(6):535-44.
    PMID: 18021330
    To highlight therapeutic controversies, and present a critical review of the most recent evidence on the management of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT).
  10. Tong SF, Abd Aziz NA, Chin GL, Khairani O
    Malays Fam Physician, 2006;1(1):15-8.
    PMID: 26998201 MyJurnal
    Identifying clinical features that differentiate acute febrile thrombocytopaenia from acute febrile illness without thrombocytopaenia can help primary care physician to decide whether to order a full blood count (FBC). This is important because thrombocytopaenia in viral fever may signify more serious underlying aetiology like dengue infection.
  11. Hassan Y, Awaisu A, Aziz NA, Ismail O
    Pharm World Sci, 2005 Feb;27(1):16-9.
    PMID: 15861930
    Phenytoin has been reported to have major interactions with warfarin. Phenytoin induces warfarin's metabolism. However, there are many case reports which provide conflicting conclusions. Here, we report a case of a 65-year-old man with mechanical heart valve on chronic warfarin therapy who experienced persistent fluctuations of INR and bleeding secondary to probable warfarin-phenytoin interactions. The patient's anticoagulation clinic visits prior to hospitalization were thoroughly evaluated and we continued to follow-up the case for 3 months post-hospitalization. The reported interaction could be reasonably explained from the chronology of events and the pattern of INR fluctuations whenever phenytoin was either added or discontinued from his drug regimen.
  12. Tong CV, Velaiutham S, Aziz NA, Lim SL, Khaw CH
    Med J Malaysia, 2015 Aug;70(4):249-50.
    PMID: 26358023
    We report a case of a 54-year-old man with severe HTG which did not respond to conventional anti lipid therapies. He was treated with intravenous insulin and concurrent dextrose infusions which led to a dramatic reduction in serum triglyceride levels.
  13. Dahlui M, Azahar N, Oche OM, Aziz NA
    Glob Health Action, 2016 Jan;9(1):28822.
    PMID: 28156892 DOI: 10.3402/gha.v9.28822
    Background Low birth weight (LBW) continues to be the primary cause of infant morbidity and mortality. Objective This study was undertaken to identify the predictors of LBW in Nigeria. Design The data for this study was extracted from the 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey conducted by the National Population Commission. Several questionnaires were used in the survey, some covering questions on pregnancy characteristics. The inclusion criteria include mothers who gave birth to a child 5 years before the interview and aged 15-49 years who were either permanent residents or visitors present in the household on the night before the survey conducted. The birth weight of the infants was recorded from written records from the hospital cards or the mothers' recall. Results The prevalence of LBW in this study was 7.3%. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed an adjusted significant odds ratio for mothers from North West region (aOR 10.67; 95% CI [5.83-19.5]), twin pregnancy (aOR 5.11; 95% CI [3.11-8.39]), primiparous mother (aOR 2.08; 95% CI [1.15-3.77]), maternal weight of less than 70 kg (aOR 1.92; 95% CI [1.32-2.78]), and manual paternal employment (aOR 1.91; 95% CI [1.08-3.37]). Conclusions The risk factors for LBW identified in this study are modifiable. In order to reduce this menace in Nigeria, holistic approaches such as health education, maternal nutrition, improvement in socio-economic indices, and increasing the quality and quantity of the antenatal care services are of paramount importance.
  14. Nordin NAM, Aziz NA, Sulong S, Aljunid SM
    NeuroRehabilitation, 2019;45(1):87-97.
    PMID: 31450518 DOI: 10.3233/NRE-192758
    BACKGROUND: The benefits of engaging informal carers or family in the delivery of therapy intervention for people with stroke have not been well researched.

    OBJECTIVES: To assess the effectiveness of a home-based carer-assisted in comparison to hospital-based therapist-delivered therapy for community-dwelling stroke survivors.

    METHODS: An assessor blinded randomised controlled trial was conducted on 91 stroke survivors (mean age 58.9±10.6 years, median time post-onset 13.0 months, 76.5% males) who had completed individual rehabilitation. The control group received hospital-based group therapy delivered by physiotherapists as out-patients and the test group was assigned to a home-based carer-assisted therapy. Targeted primary outcomes were physical functions (mobility, balance, lower limb strength and gait speed). A secondary outcome index was health-related quality of life. An intention-to-treat analysis was used to evaluate outcomes at week 12 of intervention.

    RESULTS: Both therapy groups improved significantly in all the functional measures; mobility (p  0.05).

    CONCLUSIONS: The home-based carer-assisted therapy is as effective as the hospital-based therapist-delivered training in improving post-stroke functions and quality of life.

  15. Zawawi NSM, Aziz NA, Fisher R, Ahmad K, Walker MF
    J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis, 2020 Aug;29(8):104875.
    PMID: 32689648 DOI: 10.1016/j.jstrokecerebrovasdis.2020.104875
    INTRODUCTION: Facilitating stroke survivors and their caregivers to lead a fulfilling life after stroke requires service providers to think about their different needs. Poor post stroke care may lead to unmet needs in stroke survivors and stroke caregivers. This may compromise them in leading their lives optimally after stroke.

    OBJECTIVES & METHODOLOGY: This systematic narrative review examines articles published from 1990 to 2017, generated from Ovid, MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PubMed. The search was also supplemented by an examination of reference lists for related articles via Scopus. We included 105 articles.

    FINDINGS: We found that the type of unmet needs in stroke survivors and the contributing factors were substantially different from their caregivers. The unmet needs in stroke survivors ranged from health-related needs to re-integration into the community; while the unmet needs in stroke caregivers ranged from information needs to support in caring for the stroke survivors and caring for themselves. Additionally, the unmet needs in both groups were associated with different factors.

    CONCLUSION: More research is required to understand the unmet needs of stroke survivors and stroke caregivers to improve the overall post-stroke care services.

  16. Huong KH, Azuraini MJ, Aziz NA, Amirul AA
    J Biosci Bioeng, 2017 Jul;124(1):76-83.
    PMID: 28457658 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiosc.2017.02.003
    Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) [(P(3HB-co-4HB)] copolymer receives attention as next generation biomaterial in medical application. However, the exploitation of the copolymer is still constrained since such copolymer has not yet successfully been performed in industrial scale production. In this work, we intended to establish pilot production system of the copolymer retaining the copolymer quality which has recently discovered to have novel characteristic from lab scale fermentation. An increase of agitation speed has significantly improved the copolymer accumulation efficiency by minimizing the utilization of substrates towards cell growth components. This is evidenced by a drastic increase of PHA content from 28 wt% to 63 wt% and PHA concentration from 3.1 g/L to 6.5 g/L but accompanied by the reduction of residual biomass from 8.0 g/L to 3.8 g/L. Besides, fermentations at lower agitation and aeration have resulted in reduced molecular weight and mechanical strength of the copolymer, suggesting the role of sufficient oxygen supply efficiency in improving the properties of the resulting copolymers. The KLa-based scale-up fermentation was performed successfully in maintaining the yield and the quality of the copolymers produced without a drastic fluctuation. This suggests that the scale-up based on the KLa values supported the fermentation system of P(3HB-co-4HB) copolymer production in single-stage using mixed-substrate cultivation strategy.
  17. Aziz NA, Huong KH, Sipaut CS, Amirul AA
    Bioprocess Biosyst Eng, 2017 Nov;40(11):1643-1656.
    PMID: 28762009 DOI: 10.1007/s00449-017-1820-0
    This study reports an efficient fed-batch strategy to improve poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate-co-4-hydroxybutyrate) [P(3HB-co-3HV-co-4HB)] terpolymer production by Cupriavidus sp. USMAA2-4 with enhanced mechanical properties in bioreactor. The cultivations have been performed by combining oleic acid with γ-butyrolactone at different concentration ratios with 1-pentanol at a fixed concentration. The batch and fed-batch fermentations have resulted in P(3HB-co-3HV-co-4HB) with compositions of 9-35 mol% 3HV and 4-24 mol% 4HB monomers. The DO-stat fed-batch fermentation strategies have significantly improved the production with a maximum 4.4-fold increment of cell dry weight (CDW). Besides, appropriate feeding of the substrates has resulted in an increment of terpolymer productivity from 0.086-0.347 g/L/h, with a significantly shortened cultivation time. The bacterial growth and terpolymer formation have been found to be affected by the concentration of carbon sources supplied. Characterization of P(3HB-co-3HV-co-4HB) has demonstrated that incorporation of 3HV and 4HB monomer has significantly improved the physical and thermodynamic properties of the polymers, by reducing the polymer's crystallinity. The tensile strength, Young's modulus of the terpolymer has been discovered to increase with the increase of M w. The fed-batch fermentation strategies employed in this study have resulted in terpolymers with a range of flexible materials having improved tensile strength and Young's modulus as compared to the terpolymer produced from batch fermentation. Possession of lower melting temperature indicates an enhanced thermal stability which broadens the polymer processing window.
  18. Kamaruzman NI, Aziz NA, Poh CL, Chowdhury EH
    Cancers (Basel), 2019 May 06;11(5).
    PMID: 31064156 DOI: 10.3390/cancers11050632
    Overexpression of oncogenes and cross-talks of the oncoproteins-regulated signaling cascades with other intracellular pathways in breast cancer could lead to massive abnormal signaling with the consequence of tumorigenesis. The ability to identify the genes having vital roles in cancer development would give a promising therapeutics strategy in combating the disease. Genetic manipulations through siRNAs targeting the complementary sequence of the oncogenic mRNA in breast cancer is one of the promising approaches that can be harnessed to develop more efficient treatments for breast cancer. In this review, we highlighted the effects of major signaling pathways stimulated by oncogene products on breast tumorigenesis and discussed the potential therapeutic strategies for targeted delivery of siRNAs with nanoparticles in suppressing the stimulated signaling pathways.
  19. Mad Naser MN, Aziz NA, Karim NKA
    Case Rep Endocrinol, 2019;2019:4825357.
    PMID: 30766735 DOI: 10.1155/2019/4825357
    Macroprolactinoma has the potential to cause base of skull erosion and often extends into the sphenoid sinus. Rapid shrinkage of this invasive tumor following dopamine agonist therapy has been postulated to cause unplugging of the eroded area, leading to cerebrospinal fluid leakage. To the best of our knowledge, the occurrence of spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak in treatment-naive prolactinomas is very rare, the majority of which involve undiagnosed macroprolactinomas. We describe here a lady presented late with giant macroprolactinoma, complicated by cerebrospinal fluid leakage. This case raised the dilemma in the management pertaining to the role of either pharmacotherapy or surgical intervention, or combination of both. As she strictly refused surgery, she was treated with bromocriptine which was later changed to cabergoline. On follow-up, there was cessation of cerebrospinal fluid leak, marked reduction of serum prolactin level, and imaging evidence of tumor shrinkage. The majority of patients with medically induced cerebrospinal fluid leakage will require surgical procedures to overcome this complication; however, there are isolated cases of leakage resolution on continuing dopamine agonist therapy while awaiting surgery. The use of dopamine agonist does not necessarily cause worsening of cerebrospinal fluid leakage and instead may produce spontaneous resolution as in this case.
  20. Yun LS, Hassan Y, Aziz NA, Awaisu A, Ghazali R
    Patient Educ Couns, 2007 Dec;69(1-3):47-54.
    PMID: 17720351 DOI: 10.1016/j.pec.2007.06.017
    Objective: The primary objective of this study was to assess and compare the knowledge of diabetes mellitus possessed by patients with diabetes and healthy adult volunteers in Penang, Malaysia.
    Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 20 February 2006 to 31 March 2006. We randomly selected 120 patients with diabetes mellitus from a diabetic clinic at the General Hospital Penang, Malaysia and 120 healthy adults at a shopping complex in Penang. Each participant was interviewed face-to-face by a pharmacist using a validated questionnaire, and they were required to answer a total of 30 questions concerning knowledge about diabetes mellitus using Yes, No or Unsure as the only response.
    Results: The results showed that patients with diabetes mellitus were significantly more knowledgeable than the healthy volunteers about risk factors, symptoms, chronic complications, treatment and self-management, and monitoring parameters. Educational level was the best predictive factor for diabetes mellitus and public awareness.
    Conclusion: Knowledge about diabetes mellitus should be improved among the general population.
    Practice implications: This study has major implications for the design of an educational programme for diabetics and a health promotion programme as a primary prevention measure for the healthy population in general, and especially for those at high risk. The results could be useful in the design of future studies for evaluating patients' and the general public's knowledge about diabetes mellitus.
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