A 13-year old Malay girl presented with multiple parasuicide attempts. She made multiple attempts at suicide and at the last attempt she developed liver damage. This article discusses the etiology and different methods used to prevent future suicidal attempts in this patient.
This article chronicles the popular health beliefs of the Malays and Chinese regarding chickenpox, as seen through the eyes of a doctor. The interplay of several factors, namely, a marriage of two major cultures, chickenpox in pregnancy, concurrence of two major festivals make this a unique study in medical socio-anthropology.
The problem of diabetes is large unknown due to lack of good epidemiological studies. The author's own studies showed a prevalence rate, in the Malays, of less than 1.0% in remote rural areas, 3.9% in a village close to Kuala Lumpur, and 3.0% for Malays working in a railway yard in Kuala Lumpur. The prevalence rate for the Chinese was 4.9% in the same survey, and for the Indian it was 16.0%. A survey in GHKL showed that 17.9% of the patients admitted for a month period in 1986 were due to diabetes and its complications. Majority of diabetes in Malaysia are non-insulin-dependent type.
118 cases of cervical dysplasia were followed up by cytological smears for over 9 years to determine their biologic outcome. All grades of dysplasia showed evidence of regression and progression to more severe lesions, including carcinoma. Severe dysplasia however did not regress to normalcy and had the maximum conversion rates to malignancy. The period taken for transition to malignancy was found to be shorter than that generally described. Since even mild dysplasia carries with it a malignant potential, all patients with cervical dysplasia, irrespective of the grade, have to be followed up by repeated clinical and cytological examinations.
The result of the opiate (notably heroin) epidemic in Malaysia has been one of an excessive overload on existing medical and social services. The immediate problem of detoxification and rehabilitation is likely to continue for a while before planned and purpose-built and staffed centres take over to bring the problem, hopefully, to manageable proportions.
A new species, Microchiritahairulii Rafidah (Gesneriaceae) from limestone hills in Perlis, Peninsular Malaysia, is described and illustrated. Diagnostic characters, description, detailed illustrations, geographical distribution, regional provisional conservation status assessment (Endangered) and ecological observations of the new taxon, as well as an updated key to Microchirita species in Peninsular Malaysia, are provided.