Background: The present research aims to study the association between emotional expressiveness of primary care-givers and quality of life of patients with schizophrenia.
Method: The data for the present study were collected from 174 purposively selected patients with schizophrenia and their primary care-givers. The Quality of Life Interview (QOLI) (Lehman 1988) was used to collect information related to the quality of life of patients. The care-givers‘ emotional expressiveness was assessed using three questions on home environment from Disability Assessment Schedule (WHO/DAS) (WHO 1988).
Results: Three components of emotional expressiveness were included in the present research, namely, emotional involvement, control and attitude of rejection. Among these three components, emotional involvement of key care-givers was found to have a significant association with quality of life of schizophrenia patients.
Conclusion: Based on this result, the present study argues that emotional involvement of key care-givers needs careful attention while planning psychosocial rehabilitation programmes aimed at enhancing the quality of life of schizophrenia patients.
Keywords: emotional expression – quality of life – schizophrenia – emotional involvement – community – Asia
In 1977 and 1978 selected in-patients at the Tegalyoso Hospital, Klaten, Indonesia who had recent onsets of acute fever were serologically studied for evidence for alphavirus and flavivirus infections. A brief clinical history was taken and a check list of signs and symptoms was completed on admission. Acute and convalescent phase sera from 30 patients who showed evidence that a flavivirus had caused their illnesses were tested for neutralizing antibodies to several flaviviruses which occur in South-east Asia. Paired sera from seven patients demonstrated a fourfold rise in antibody titre from acute to convalescent phase. The most common clinical manifestations observed in this series of patients included high fever, malaise, stomach ache, dizziness and anorexia. None of the seven patients had headache or rash despite the fact that headache and rash had been associated with two of the three previously studied. The onsets of illness clustered toward the end of the rainy season when populations of Aedes aegypti, a probable vector in Malaysia, were most abundant.
Eimeria tenggilingi is described from the pangolin or scaly anteater, Manis javanica, in Malaysia. The spheroid to subspheroid oocysts average 18.9 X 17.8 mum. The oocyst wall is composed of 3 layers, each approximately 0.6 mum thick. The 2 outer layers are striated and yellowish green. The inner layer is dark brown. One or 2 polar granules are present, but an oocyst residuum is absent. Ellipsoid sporocysts average 12.4 X 6.2 mum. A sporocyst residuum is present. This is the first Eimeria species reported from a host in the order Pholidota.
Eimeria nebulosa n. sp. and Klossia pachyleparon n. sp. are described from the monitor lizard Varanus nebulosus in Malaysia. The flask shaped oocysts of E. nebulosa average 20.7 by 12.6 mum. The oocyst wall is composed of a single layer. There is a single polar granule but no residuum. Ellipsoidal sporocysts average 11.1 by 5.6 mum. A sporocyst residuum is present. Endogenous stages develop in the epithelial cells of the small intestine. The splerical oocysts of K. pachyleparon average 33.6 mum in diameter. The wall is about 2.5 mum thick and is composed of 3 layers. The spherical sporocysts average 10.8 mum in diameter. Sporocysts contain 4 sporozoites and residuum. Developmental stages were not observed.
Oocysts and endogenous stages of new species of Eimeria and Isospora from the house lizard, Gehyra mutilata, are described. The ellipsoid to subspherical 2-layered oocysts of E. cicaki averaged 24.0 X 21.0 mum. Polar granules are present. Micropyle and oocyst residuum are absent. Ellipsoid sporocysts average 12.2 X 9.0 mum. A sporocyst residuum is present, but the Stieda body is absent. Endogenous stages are in epithelial cells of the small intestine. The subspherical single-layered oocysts of I. thavari average 23.8 X 22.8 mum. The polar granule is present; micropyle and oocyst residuum are absent. Ellipsoid sporocysts average 12.8 X 9.4 mum. Stieda body and sporocyst residuum are present. There are endogenous stages in epithelial cells of the small intestine.
To assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of Imams (Islamic clerics) concerning fluoride toothpaste and fluoridated water to improve oral health in Kelantan.
Consumers' self-assessments of materialism and status consumption may be influenced by external economic conditions. In this study, 239 Malaysian students were asked to describe their levels of materialism using Richins and Dawson's 1992 Materialism scale and status consumption using Eastman, Goldsmith, and Flynn's 1999 Status Consumption Scale. Half the students were told to respond assuming that they were in an expanding economy, and half as if the economy was in a recession. Comparison of the groups' mean scores showed no statistically significant differences.
The use of chemical insecticides has had many adverse effects. This study reports a novel perspective on the application of insect-based compounds to repel and eradicate other insects in a controlled environment. In this work, defense fluid was shown to be a repellent and insecticide against termites and cockroaches and was analyzed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Globitermes sulphureus extract at 20 mg/ml showed the highest repellency for seven days against Macrotermes gilvus and for thirty days against Periplaneta americana. In terms of toxicity, G. sulphureus extract had a low LC50 compared to M. carbonarius extract against M. gilvus. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of the M. carbonarius extract indicated the presence of six insecticidal and two repellent compounds in the extract, whereas the G. sulphureus extract contained five insecticidal and three repellent compounds. The most obvious finding was that G. sulphureus defense fluid had higher potential as a natural repellent and termiticide than the M. carbonarius extract. Both defense fluids can play a role as alternatives in the search for new, sustainable, natural repellents and termiticides. Our results demonstrate the potential use of termite defense fluid for pest management, providing repellent and insecticidal activities comparable to those of other green repellent and termiticidal commercial products.
To better understand depression among adolescent university students, this study was designed to examine coping style as a potential mediator between perfectionism and depression. Participants comprised 510 undergraduate students from Malaysia. Structural Equation Modelling demonstrated that personal standards perfectionism and task-focused coping style were negatively associated with depression, while emotion-focused coping style, avoidant coping style, and evaluative concerns perfectionism were positively associated with depression. Multiple mediator modelling provided evidence that coping styles partially mediated the relationship between perfectionism and depression. These findings advance current knowledge by suggesting how perfectionism may contribute to depression and may inform the development of more effective prevention and intervention programs for depression.
Houseflies (Musca domestica L., Diptera: Muscidae) are cosmopolitan, colonizing, and eusynanthropic. Their distribution in the Malaysian archipelago provides an opportunity to study successive waves of colonization and extinction during the Pleistocene and Recent epochs. We scored single-strand conformation polymorphisms (SSCPs) at 16S2 and COII mitochondrial loci in 47 housefly samples from the Australian, Austro-Malayan, Indo-Malayan, Manchurian and Indo-Chinese subregions of Wallace's zoogeographical classification. We discuss the results in light of the Pleistocene vs. post-Pleistocene dispersal and faunal exchange in the Asia-Pacific area. Fourteen haplotypes were detected, of which 10 were confined to a single subregion. No haplotype was ubiquitous and only one was found in four subregions. Population diversity, HS, was greatest in the Indo-Malayan (0.36) and heterogeneous among subregions. The mean subregional diversity was 0.21 +/- 0.03, representing the probability that two randomly chosen flies, from any subregion, had different haplotypes. The hierarchical partition of diversity indicated restricted maternal gene flow among subregions (GRT = 0.60, Nm approximately 0.32). These results suggest long-standing genetic isolation of houseflies in the Malaysian archipelago and support the hypothesis that they dispersed widely during the Pleistocene. Haplotypes common among mainland populations but shared with island groups in low frequencies (<1%) indicate surprisingly little recent gene flow.
Sabah is a high tuberculosis (TB) burden area with incidence rate of 120 – 138 per 100,000 population. Until now, TB is still unable to control due to high loss to follow up rates. Loss to follow up TB treatment can cause to increase notification rate, prolonged infection, recurrent TB infections, increase multiple drug-resistance, and increase morbidity and mortality rates. To know the factors that contribute towards loss to follow up will better understand the epidemiology of treatment outcome and guide for appropriate strategies planning to improve the situation. Previous study by Liew et al. indicated that, incidence rate for loss to follow up in 2012 in Malaysia was 10.5%.
The feasibility of using the Patients Concerns Inventory (PCI) to identify oral cancer patient concerns during consultation in oral and maxillofacial specialist clinics in Malaysia was assessed. A cross-sectional study was conducted using a consecutive clinical sampling technique of all new and follow-up oral cancer patients. Surgeons and counter staff were also recruited. Two-thirds of patients were elderly, 63.9% female, 55.6% Indian, 63.9% of lower-level education, and half had the lowest level household income. Patient status was mostly post-treatment (87.5%) and most were at cancer stage III/IV (63.9%); 59.7% had surgery. Patients took an average 5.9 min (95% CI 5.1-6.7 min) to complete the PCI. Physical domain appeared highest (94.4%); social/family relationship issues (4.2%) were lowest. Significant associations included patient age-personal function (P=0.02); patient education level-emotional status (P=0.05) and social/family relationship issues (P=0.04), and patient TNM staging-personal function (P=0.03). The patients' mean feasibility score for the PCI was 5.3 (95% CI 5.1-5.5) out of 6. Patients (93.1%) and surgeons (90%) found the PCI to be feasible. Only 57.1% of counter staff agreed on the use of the PCI during patient registration. Overall, the PCI was considered feasible, thus favouring its future use in routine oral cancer patient management.
To assess the cross-sectional construct validity of the Malay-translated and cross-culturally adapted FACT-H&N (v 4.0) for discriminative use in a sample of Malaysian oral cancer patients. A cross-sectional study of adults newly diagnosed with oral cancer. HRQOL data were collected using the FACT-H&N (v 4.0), a global question and a supplementary set of eight questions ('MAQ') obtained earlier in pilot work. Of the 76 participants (61.8% female; 23.7% younger than 50), most (96.1%) had oral squamous cell carcinoma; two-thirds were in Stages III or IV. At baseline, patients' mean FACT summary (FACT-G, FACT-H&N, FACT-H&N TOI, and FHNSI) and subscale (pwb, swb, ewb, fwb, and hnsc) scores were towards the higher end of the range. Equal proportions (36.8%) rated their overall HRQOL as 'good' or 'average'; fewer than one-quarter rated it as 'poor', and only two as 'very good'. All six FACT summary and most subscales had moderate-to-good internal consistency. For all summary scales, those with 'very poor/poor' self-rated HRQOL differed significantly from the 'good/very good' group. All FACT summary scales correlated strongly (r>0.75). Summary scales showed convergent validity (r>0.90) but little discriminant validity. The discriminant validity of the FHNSI improved with the addition of the MAQ. The FACT-H&N summary scales and most subscales demonstrated acceptable cross-sectional construct validity, reliability and discriminative ability, and thus appear appropriate for further use among Malaysian oral cancer patients.
As human populations become more and more urban, decision-makers at all levels face new challenges related to both the scale of service provision and the increasing complexity of cities and the networks that connect them. These challenges may take on unique aspects in cities with different cultures, political and institutional frameworks, and at different levels of development, but they frequently have in common an origin in the interaction of human and environmental systems and the feedback relationships that govern their dynamic evolution. Accordingly, systems approaches are becoming recognized as critical to understanding and addressing such complex problems, including those related to human health and wellbeing. Management of water resources in and for cities is one area where such approaches hold real promise.
In this study, 31 cases of childhood empyema thoracis admitted over 4 1/2 years to the Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia, in Kelantan, Malaysia, were retrospectively reviewed. Twenty-two males and nine females were included, with a mean age of 1.9 years (range: 26 days to 7 years). Frequent symptoms were fever, cough, and dyspnoea, while common signs were temperature above 38 degrees C, decreased breath sounds, dullness to chest percussion, and intercostal recession. Radiography demonstrated unilateral moderate to large effusions in 68 per cent of cases, while consolidated lung was seen in 45 per cent of patients. Pleural fluid cultures were positive for Staphylococcus aureus (48 per cent), Streptococcus pneumoniae (7 per cent), while no growth was seen in 42 per cent of cases. Ninety-four per cent of children had a blood leukocytosis above 10 000 cell/mm3, but blood cultures were negative in 21 out of 26 patients (81 per cent). Most cases were treated with a combination of intravenous antibiotics and chest tube drainage. Antibiotics and pleural tap(s) were used in the remainder. Patients stayed in hospital for an average of 20.7 days (range: 4-52 days). Surgical intervention was necessary in only four children. The mortality rate at the time of discharge was zero, with 100 per cent radiographic resolution among the 23 patients who were followed-up.