METHODS: Thirty patients with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS), age: 29.5 (SD = 5.6) years and 30 healthy gender-, age-, and education-matched control group participants, age: 28.8 (SD = 6.0) years, were recruited for this study. The participants in the healthy group were then randomly assigned into an EI (n = 15) group and a no-EI (n = 15) group. Similarly, the participants in the control group were then randomly assigned into EI (n = 15) and no-EI (n = 15) groups. The participants performed a serial reaction time (SRT) task and reaction times. A retention test was performed after 48 hours.
RESULTS: All participants reduced their reaction times across acquisition (MS group: 46.4 (SD = 3.3) minutes, P < 0.001, and healthy group: 39.4 (SD = 3.3) minutes, P < 0.001). The findings for the within-participants effect of repeated measures of time were significant (F(5.06, 283.7) = 71.33. P < 0.001). These results indicate that the interaction between group and time was significant (F(5.06, 283.7) = 6.44. P < 0.001), which indicated that the reaction time in both groups was significantly changed between the MS and healthy groups across times (B1 to B10). The main effect of the group (MS and healthy) (F(1, 56) = 22.78. P < 0.001) and also the main effect of no-EI vs EI (F(1, 56) = 4.71. P < 0.001) were significant.
CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that that RRMS patients are capable of learning new skills, but the provision of EI prior to physical practice is deleterious to implicit learning. It is sufficient to educate MS patients on the aim and general content of the training and only to provide feedback at the end of the rehabilitative session.
METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was performed on patients who received IVIG in Hospital Kuala Lumpur. Data were extracted from the request forms for IVIG recorded in the Pharmacy Department from January 2018 until December 2019. Chi-squared test and t-test analysis were used for statistical analysis, and a P-value of < 0.05 was considered significant.
RESULTS: A total of 482 patients received IVIG in Hospital Kuala Lumpur. There were 243 (50.4%) females and 228 (47.3%) males with median age of the patients was 27 years old. The highest indications for IVIG among all patients were hypogammaglobulinemia and other deficiency states in 127 patients (26.3%). The most common indication for one-off treatment in adults was hypogammaglobulinemia and other deficiency states, 35%; whereas in paediatrics, it was Kawasaki disease, 20.3%. The highest indication for regular therapy among adult patients was chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (23.4%), while in paediatrics it was sepsis (31.1%). The clinical category was associated with the frequency status of IVIG usage in both adult and paediatric cohorts with P = 0.004 and P = 0.017, respectively.
CONCLUSION: There were significant differences between the indication of one-off treatment and regular therapy among adult and paediatric patients. A national guideline on the prescription of IVIG for patients is instantly needed to help clinicians in prescribing IVIG appropriately.
Methods: In the Event-related Potential (ERP) session, electroencephalographic (EEG) data was recorded for 90 participants, 60% of whom were females. The participants responded to 30 universal emotional pictures, randomly chosen from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS), which were classified as invoking high, moderate, and low intensity of emotional arousal.
Results: From the analysis of variance of two-way mixed design, the interaction between sex and emotional intensity was observed in the occipital regions (O2), indexed by the amplitude of P300 and N200 components. Males exhibited higher amplitude of P300 and N200 components (in the occipital region) as responded to high and low emotional arousal stimuli than females.
Conclusion: Sex is a fundamental factor that modulates psychological states in reaction to emotional stimuli.
METHODS: This was a retrospective study. Data were extracted from the hybrid medical records of patients from the Institut Jantung Negara (IJN), Malaysia. Adults with established diagnosis of hypertension and on prescription of Val-based SPC therapies as part of routine medical care from 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2018, with ≥ 1 year of follow-up were included. Primary endpoint was proportion of patients achieving therapeutic BP control (BP < 140/90 mmHg). Secondary outcomes included change from baseline (CFB) in systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP), and subgroup analysis was based on baseline SBP categories and presence of diabetes.
RESULTS: Study included 409 hypertensive patients. The mean (standard deviation [SD]) age of the population was 65.1 (10.6) years old, with male predominance (61.6%). Proportion of patients achieving target BP between baseline and follow-up were 57.0% (P < 0.001). Mean CFB in SBP and DBP were recorded as 19.52 mmHg and 7.47 mmHg, respectively. Over half of the patients achieved the target BP in all subgroups categorised by SBP at baseline, except the subgroup of SBP 160 mmHg-179 mmHg. SPC therapies were continued in 97.3% of patients at 1-year follow-up.
CONCLUSION: Patients using Val-based SPC therapies had significant reduction in BP with good tolerability, with 57% of patients achieving target BP over a prolonged 1-year follow-up period. Uptake of SPC therapy is warranted to improve patient care and outcomes in hypertension.
METHODS: Intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (STZ) was used to induce diabetes in rats at a single dose (60 mg/kg body weight [BW]). Rats were euthanised at 1 month (DM1 group), 2 months (DM2 group) and 4 months (DM4 group) following diabetes induction with six rats in each group. Immunohistochemistry was performed against SOD1, CD68, p53 and p16 antibodies. Messenger RNA (mRNA) expressions of SOD1, SOD2, GPx, CD68, p53, p21 and caspase-3 genes were measured by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction.
RESULTS: Hepatic p53 mRNA expression was significantly higher in DM1, DM2 and DM4 groups compared to the control group. The p21 and caspase-3 mRNA expressions were significantly upregulated in the DM2 and DM4 groups. The p16-positive cells were obviously increased, particularly in the DM4 group. Bivariate correlation analysis showed mRNA expressions of p21 and caspase-3 genes were positively correlated with the p53 gene.
CONCLUSION: Diabetic rats exhibited increased apoptosis and senescence in the liver following a longer period of hyperglycaemia.