A seroepidemiological study was carried out on Orang Asli (Aborigines) children who lead a semi-nomadic life in the deep jungles of Ulu Kelantan, Malaysia. Out of a total of about 190 children below 14 years, 143 were studied. Blood was collected from finger pricks on standard "strip type" filter papers for indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) tests with Plasmodium falciparum antigen. A positive reaction at 1:10 dilution in infants and young children was considered positive and the reasons are given. The P. falciparum antibody prevalence rate was 84.6% compared to 81.8% spleen and 43.4% parasite rates. Both P. Falciparum and P. vivax were present in children. The age-specific patterns of antibody, spleen and parasite rates were those of a hyperendemic community. There was a positive correlation between antibody and spleen rates up to the age of 9 years. In older children, the antibody rates increased while the spleen and the parasite rates dropped.
Dengue infection can cause various effects on the central and peripheral nervous systems. Direct neurotropism and immunological mechanisms are responsible for most such neurological manifestations. We present the case of a 64-year-old woman with rapidly progressive dementia with seizures following dengue infection.
Nationally-representative evidence is limited on factors affecting uptake of cataract surgery in Malaysia. We found the prevalence of cataract among older persons to be 26.8%. The two most common barriers were 'need not felt' (43.5%) and 'fear of surgery or poor result' (16.2%). Reluctance for surgical intervention was greater outside the Central zone.
We report a clinical case of orbital lymphoma masquerading as orbital cellulitis. Orbital lymphoma and lymphoma of the orbital adnexa are relatively rare types of lymphoma. They represent the malignant end of a spectrum of lymphoproliferative lesions that occur in the orbit, conjunctiva and eyelid. Diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL) with variable clinical presentations have a relatively poor prognosis with rapid visual loss. Therefore, thorough evaluation and assessment with a multi-specialty effort are warranted for earlier diagnosis and initiation of treatment to save life and prevent sight loss.
We report the case of a 23-year-old man without any significant premorbid conditions initially presenting to a psychiatrist with suspected depression but later referred to our hospital owing to the possibility of systemic disease and subsequently diagnosed as having disseminated tuberculosis.