Displaying publications 41 - 60 of 191 in total

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  1. Effects of noise in the workplace
    Noor Hassim I
    Family Physician, 1991;3:14-16.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise
  2. Noise and light hazards in modern industry
    Goh CS
    Family Practitioner, 1984;7:39-43.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise
  3. Fulltext CT brain image advancement for ICH diagnosis
    Shaik Amir NS, Kang LZ, Mukari SA, Sahathevan R, Chellappan K
    Healthc Technol Lett, 2020 Feb;7(1):1-6.
    PMID: 32190334 DOI: 10.1049/htl.2018.5003
    A critical step in detection of primary intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) is an accurate assessment of computed tomography (CT) brain images. The correct diagnosis relies on imaging modality and quality of acquired images. The authors present an enhancement algorithm which can improve the clarity of edges on CT images. About 40 samples of CT brain images with final diagnosis of primary ICH were obtained from the UKM Medical Centre in Digital Imaging and Communication in Medicine format. The images resized from 512 × 512 to 256 × 256 pixel resolution to reduce processing time. This Letter comprises of two main sections; the first is denoising using Wiener filter, non-local means and wavelet; the second section focuses on image enhancement using a modified unsharp masking (UM) algorithm to improve the visualisation of ICH. The combined approach of Wiener filter and modified UM algorithm outperforms other combinations with average values of mean square error, peak signal-to-noise ratio, variance and structural similarity index of 2.89, 31.72, 0.12 and 0.98, respectively. The reliability of proposed algorithm was evaluated by three blinded assessors which achieved a median score of 65%. This approach provides reliable validation for the proposed algorithm which has potential in improving image analysis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Signal-To-Noise Ratio
  4. Fulltext Noise exposure and hearing threshold profile among Zumba fitness regulars in Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia
    Ailin Razali, M. S. Othman, M. S. Rahman, N. F.I. Misaridin
    IIUM Medical Journal Malaysia, 2020;19(2):67-73.
    MyJurnal
    Recreational noise exposure has become a major threat to the hearing system, and this
    includes exposure to loud noise during group exercises such as Zumba Fitness, where loud music plays an
    important role. This study aimed to assess the noise exposure and hearing threshold profile among Zumba
    Fitness regulars in Kuantan, Malaysia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Noise exposure and hearing profile
    threshold were measured during Zumba Fitness sessions at a fitness studio in Kuantan, Malaysia from 24th
    June 2014 to 12th August 2014. Noise exposure was measured using a noise dosimeter for one hour of Zumba
    Fitness session with a total of nine sessions run by three different instructors while sound level pressure was
    taken using a sound level meter during ambient, peak session and during cooling down. Thirty participants
    answered questionnaires and underwent pure tone diagnostic audiometry test at a local clinic for hearing
    threshold documentation. RESULTS: Some areas of the hall posed higher risks of causing noise-induced
    hearing loss especially near the amplifiers. There were periods when the hearing level exceeded 115 dBA.
    Early abnormal pattern could be observed in the hearing profiles of some of the participants to suggest
    preliminary hearing problems. CONCLUSION: Zumba Fitness regulars have a risk of developing noise-induced
    hearing loss and preventive steps should be properly addressed as NIHL is permanent and irreversible.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise
  5. Effect of acute noise stress on acetylcholinesterase activity in discrete areas of rat brain
    Sembulingam K, Sembulingam P, Namasivayam A
    Indian J Med Sci, 2003 Nov;57(11):487-92.
    PMID: 14646156
    Effect of various stressor agents on the adrenergic system in brain had been studied extensively. However, reports on the effect of stress on various parameters of central cholinergic system are scanty. And very little is known about the effect of noise stress on the cholinergic system in brain. Hence, it was decided to elucidate the effect of acute noise stress on the activity of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase in discrete areas of brain in albino rats. Male albino rats of Wistar strain were subjected to acute noise stress for 30 minutes. The noise of pure sine wave tone was produced by using a function generator and was amplified. The frequency of noise generated was 1 kHz and the intensity was set at 100 dB. The total acetylcholinesterase activity was determined in the tissues of cerebral cortex, corpus striatum, hypothalamus and hippocampus of brain in these rats. The enzyme activity was estimated by colorimetric method using acetylthiocholine iodide as the substrate. The values were compared with the enzyme activity in the control rats. The activity of the enzyme increased significantly in all the four regions of the brain in rats after exposure to noise stress for 30 minutes. The results of the study indicate that the exposure to acute noise stress could modulate the cholinergic system in these areas of brain in rat.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise/adverse effects*
  6. A study on compliance to hearing conservation programme among industries in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
    Nor Saleha IT, Noor Hassim I
    Ind Health, 2006 Oct;44(4):584-91.
    PMID: 17085919
    Noise is one of the hazards faced by workers. A cross-sectional study was conducted among industries in Negeri Sembilan with the objective to assess their compliance to Hearing Conservation Programme (HCP). The other objectives of this study were to determine the factors influencing it and to show the industries' compliance to each element of the programme. It was also to identify the association between compliance to HCP and the prevalence of hearing impairment and standard threshold shift. Data for this study were collected using questionnaires sent by mail and also the results of the latest audiometric tests. A total of 167 industries were analysed for this study. It was found that 41.3% of these industries fully complied to the programme. It was also found that the industries preferred to provide hearing protection device (92.8%) and least complied to noise control (61.1%). There were significant associations (p<0.05) between compliance and number of employees, status of ownership and the presence of officer in charge of hearing conservation programme. Having at least 150 employees actually raised the compliance to HCP in two folds (beta = 0.717, OR = 2.048, C.I 95% = 1.063 to 3.944). The prevalences of hearing impairment and standard threshold shift were 23.9% and 5.2% respectively. There was no significant association between the prevalence for hearing impairment and compliance to HCP. The prevalence for standard threshold shift was inversely related to compliance. This study showed that compliance percentage need to be improved as an effort to prevent the hearing problems among workers exposed to noise.
    Matched MeSH terms: Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced/etiology; Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced/epidemiology; Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced/prevention & control*; Noise, Occupational/adverse effects*
  7. So much for the city: Urban-rural song variation in a widespread Asiatic songbird
    Hill SD, Aryal A, Pawley MDM, Ji W
    Integr Zool, 2018 Mar;13(2):194-205.
    PMID: 29078034 DOI: 10.1111/1749-4877.12284
    Song plays a fundamental role in intraspecific communication in songbirds. The temporal and structural components of songs can vary in different habitats. These include urban habitats where anthropogenic sounds and alteration of habitat structure can significantly affect songbird vocal behavior. Urban-rural variations in song complexity, song length and syllable rate are not fully understood. In this study, using the oriental magpie-robin (Copsychus saularis) as a model, we investigated urban-rural variation in song complexity, song length, syllable rate, syllable length and inter-syllable interval. Comparing urban and rural songs from 7 countries across its natural Asiatic range (Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand), we found no significant differences in oriental magpie-robin song complexity. However, we found significant differences in temporal song variables between urban and rural sites. Longer songs and inter-syllable intervals in addition to slower syllable rates within urban sites contributed the most to this variance. This indicates that the urban environment may have driven production of longer and slower songs to maximize efficient transmission of important song information in urban habitats.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise
  8. Fulltext Overview of occupational noise management in Malaysia
    Noraidah Ismail, Sarah Rahmat
    International Journal of Allied Health Sciences, 2018;2(3):445-458.
    MyJurnal
    This paper aims to synthesize available literature on occupational noise in Malaysia and to relate this to the current noise management practices and control. The review focuses on several main
    scopes; i) history of occupational noise management in Malaysia; ii) legislative developments and legal precedents of occupational noise in Malaysia ; and iii) the hearing conservation programs (HCP) and hearing loss prevention programs (HLPP). Narrative review and synthesis. Related publications and references were identified through several ways: i) by structured searches in PubMed, Google scholar, Web of Knowledge and Science Direct using the combinations of ‘occupational noise’, ‘noise induced hearing loss; ‘hearing’, ‘knowledge’, awareness’, ‘hearing conservation program’, ‘hearing protection devices’ as key words ii) by inspecting the reference lists of relevant articles. The number of publications within the audiology which address this topic, is rather limited. All the above mentioned scopes were discussed and synthesis of literature from other related fields such as medical, health and occupational safety and health were also referred to facilitate the discussion. This paper concludes that there are an emerging trend for the studies of occupational noise Malaysia in the literature. However, the effectiveness of HCP in Malaysia, and to what extent it is accepted and being implemented is yet to be investigated.
    Matched MeSH terms: Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced; Noise, Occupational
  9. Fulltext The relationship between life-time noise exposure and experience of tinnitus among young adults in the International Islamic University (IIUM) Kuantan
    Zirwatu Hanani, Wan Ahmad Wan Aslynn, Marina L. Alisaputri
    International Journal of Allied Health Sciences, 2019;3(4):914-922.
    MyJurnal
    Introduction: Clinical studies have shown that people suffering from tinnitus are at a high risk of developing serious psychological disturbances or serious psychological distress (Erlandsson &
    Widen, 2004 in Hiller and Goebel, 1998). Thus the purpose of this study was to determine the
    relationship between life-time noise exposure and tinnitus experience among young adults in IIUM Kuantan. Methods: A cross sectional study was used to determine whether there is any association between tinnitus experiences and life-time noise exposure among 11 young adults in IIUM Kuantan from age of 18 to 35 years old who are exposed to the noise. Hearing assessment was done using otoscopy, tympanometry and pure tone audiometry. Participants were asked to fill in a questionnaire on tinnitus experience, and were fitted with a noise dosimeter that measured their noise exposure during waking hours. Values collected from dosimeter were then converted into cumulative life-time noise exposure which refers to the equivalent noise exposure per year (Jokitulppo, Tolvenen & Bjork, 2005). Results: Average cumulative life-time noise exposure of the participants is 72.54 dBA ± 6.9459. Fifty five percent (55%) reported of sometimes having tinnitus. No correlation was found between cumulative life-time noise exposure and tinnitus experience. Conclusion: The cumulative life-time noise exposure among young adults in IIUM Kuantan was found to be lower than the level considered as hazardous. Despite reports of tinnitus experience, there was no evidence that the tinnitus was due to noise exposure.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise
  10. Fulltext Multi-frequency ultrasound imaging: phantom study
    Siti Nur Masturah Abdul Malek, Sayed Inayatullah Shah
    International Journal of Allied Health Sciences, 2018;2(2):304-309.
    MyJurnal
    In ultrasound imaging there is compromise between the penetration of signal at certain depths into the object and image resolution as the ultrasound probe only can transmit single frequency signals in one transmission. Using curvilinear ultrasound probe with 2 to 5 MHz frequency bandwidth, this study investigated the use of multi-frequency imaging to enhance the quality of phantom images.
    Methods: Siemen Acuson X150 with curvilinear ultrasound transducer was used to scan the organs of interest (kidney, gallbladder and pancreas) of the ultrasound abdominal phantom. Different images at the different selected frequencies (2.5, 3.6 and 5.0 MHz) were created by fixing the position and the orientation of the transducer in each of the scanning process. Different-frequency images were generated and combined to produce composite (multi-frequency) image. Results: In this study, the quality of the composite image was evaluated based on signal-to noise ratio (SNR) and the obtained results were compared with the single frequency images. Besides, the comparison was also made in terms of overall image quality (noise and sharpness of organ outline) through perceived image quality analysis. Based on calculated SNR, the composite image of the kidney, gallbladder and pancreas recorded higher SNR value as compared to the single frequency images. However, through perceived image quality, most of the observers viewed that the quality of the composite image of the kidney, gallbladder and pancreas is poor as compared to the single frequency image. Conclusions: Image quality of ultrasound imaging is improved by combining multiple ultrasound frequency images into a single composite image. This is achieved as high SNR is obtained in the composite image. However, through perceived image quality, the overall image quality of the composite image was poor.
    Matched MeSH terms: Signal-To-Noise Ratio
  11. Fulltext Validation of Noise Induced Hearing Loss Questionnaire Among Malay Sawmill Workers in Kelantan Malaysia
    Razman, M.R., Naing, L., Kamarul, I.M.
    International Medical Journal Malaysia, 2010;9(2):51-56.
    MyJurnal
    Introduction: Exposure to excessive noise is the major avoidable cause of permanent hearing impairment. Sawmill is one of the workplaces where workers are exposed to hazardous noise level. This study was conducted to determine the reliability and validity of noise-induced hearing loss questionnaire among sawmill workers. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional study was conducted in March 2007 among 35 consented sawmill workers. A total of 40 items; 10 items for knowledge (8 areas), 20 items for attitude (7 areas) and 10 items for practice (2 areas) were assessed. Statistical analysis for reliability analysis was test by internal consistency and construct validity by exploratory factor analysis using principal components and Varimax rotation method. Results: Cronbach’s alpha coeffi cients were acceptable for attitude (0.90) and practice
    (0.75). However, it was low for knowledge (0.67). Exploratory factor analysis showed three meaningful exploratory factors that could explain the three dimensions in the questionnaire. Conclusion: The results of the validation study suggested that the noise-induced hearing loss questionnaire is reliable and valid tool for assessing knowledge, attitude and practice among sawmill workers.
    Matched MeSH terms: Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced; Noise
  12. Fulltext Environmental and occupational health impact of bauxite mining in Malaysia: a review
    Lee, K.Y., Ho, L.Y., Tan, K.H., Tham, Y.Y., Ling, S.P., Qureshi, A.M., et al.
    International Medical Journal Malaysia, 2017;16(2):137-150.
    MyJurnal
    In the perspective of recent bauxite mining in Malaysia, this review aims to identify the potential
    environmental and health impacts on miners and surrounding communities. The environmental issues of
    bauxite mining include, air, water and soil pollution due to bauxite dust; leaching of bauxite into water
    sources resulting in reduced soil fertility as well as affecting agricultural food products and aquatic life.
    Bauxite occupational exposure affects the health of miners, and has negative consequences on the health of
    surrounding communities, such as increased respiratory symptoms, contamination of drinking water, other
    potential health risks from ingestion of bauxite and heavy metals, including noise-induced hearing loss and
    mental stress. This review discusses the processes of bauxite mining, its constituents and residual trace
    elements, and their impact on the environment and health of exposed workers and communities. It also
    explores the Malaysian legal requirements and standards of occupational exposure to bauxite.
    Matched MeSH terms: Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced
  13. Evaluation of real-world preferences and performance of hearing aids fitted according to the NAL-NL1 and DSL v5 procedures in children with moderately severe to profound hearing loss
    Quar TK, Ching TY, Newall P, Sharma M
    Int J Audiol, 2013 May;52(5):322-32.
    PMID: 23570290 DOI: 10.3109/14992027.2012.755740
    The study aims to compare the performance of hearing aids fitted according to the NAL-NL1 and DSL v5 prescriptive procedure for children.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise/adverse effects
  14. The Malay hearing in noise test
    Quar TK, Mukari SZ, Abdul Wahab NA, Abdul Razak R, Omar M, Maamor N
    Int J Audiol, 2008 Jun;47(6):379-80.
    PMID: 18569117 DOI: 10.1080/14992020801886796
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise*
  15. The effect of non-native and non-regional speech testing on a multi-lingual population
    Quar TK, Soli SD, Chan YF, Ishak WS, Abdul Wahat NH
    Int J Audiol, 2017 02;56(2):92-98.
    PMID: 27686009 DOI: 10.1080/14992027.2016.1210828
    OBJECTIVE: This study was conducted to evaluate the speech perception of Malaysian Chinese adults using the Taiwanese Mandarin HINT (MHINT-T) and the Malay HINT (MyHINT).

    DESIGN: The MHINT-T and the MyHINT were presented in quiet and noise (front, right and left) conditions under headphones. Results for the two tests were compared with each other and with the norms for each test.

    STUDY SAMPLE: Malaysian Chinese native speakers of Mandarin (N = 58), 18-31 years of age with normal hearing.

    RESULTS: On average, subjects demonstrated poorer speech perception ability than the normative samples for these tests. Repeated measures ANOVA showed that speech reception thresholds (SRTs) were slightly poorer on the MHINT-T than on the MyHINT for all test conditions. However, normalized SRTs were poorer by 0.6 standard deviations for MyHINT as compared with MHINT-T.

    CONCLUSIONS: MyHINT and MHINT-T can be used as norm-referenced speech perception measures for Mandarin-speaking Chinese in Malaysia.

    Matched MeSH terms: Noise/adverse effects*
  16. Fulltext Comparison of Low-Pass Filters for SPECT Imaging
    Sayed IS, Ismail SS
    Int J Biomed Imaging, 2020;2020:9239753.
    PMID: 32308670 DOI: 10.1155/2020/9239753
    In single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging, the choice of a suitable filter and its parameters for noise reduction purposes is a big challenge. Adverse effects on image quality arise if an improper filter is selected. Filtered back projection (FBP) is the most popular technique for image reconstruction in SPECT. With this technique, different types of reconstruction filters are used, such as the Butterworth and the Hamming. In this study, the effects on the quality of reconstructed images of the Butterworth filter were compared with the ones of the Hamming filter. A Philips ADAC forte gamma camera was used. A low-energy, high-resolution collimator was installed on the gamma camera. SPECT data were acquired by scanning a phantom with an insert composed of hot and cold regions. A Technetium-99m radioactive solution was homogenously mixed into the phantom. Furthermore, a symmetrical energy window (20%) centered at 140 keV was adjusted. Images were reconstructed by the FBP method. Various cutoff frequency values, namely, 0.35, 0.40, 0.45, and 0.50 cycles/cm, were selected for both filters, whereas for the Butterworth filter, the order was set at 7. Images of hot and cold regions were analyzed in terms of detectability, contrast, and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The findings of our study indicate that the Butterworth filter was able to expose more hot and cold regions in reconstructed images. In addition, higher contrast values were recorded, as compared to the Hamming filter. However, with the Butterworth filter, the decrease in SNR for both types of regions with the increase in cutoff frequency as compared to the Hamming filter was obtained. Overall, the Butterworth filter under investigation provided superior results than the Hamming filter. Effects of both filters on the quality of hot and cold region images varied with the change in cutoff frequency.
    Matched MeSH terms: Signal-To-Noise Ratio
  17. Fulltext Respiratory Motion Correction for Compressively Sampled Free Breathing Cardiac MRI Using Smoothl1-Norm Approximation
    Bilal M, Shah JA, Qureshi IM, Kadir K
    Int J Biomed Imaging, 2018;2018:7803067.
    PMID: 29610569 DOI: 10.1155/2018/7803067
    Transformed domain sparsity of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has recently been used to reduce the acquisition time in conjunction with compressed sensing (CS) theory. Respiratory motion during MR scan results in strong blurring and ghosting artifacts in recovered MR images. To improve the quality of the recovered images, motion needs to be estimated and corrected. In this article, a two-step approach is proposed for the recovery of cardiac MR images in the presence of free breathing motion. In the first step, compressively sampled MR images are recovered by solving an optimization problem using gradient descent algorithm. TheL1-norm based regularizer, used in optimization problem, is approximated by a hyperbolic tangent function. In the second step, a block matching algorithm, known as Adaptive Rood Pattern Search (ARPS), is exploited to estimate and correct respiratory motion among the recovered images. The framework is tested for free breathing simulated andin vivo2D cardiac cine MRI data. Simulation results show improved structural similarity index (SSIM), peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR), and mean square error (MSE) with different acceleration factors for the proposed method. Experimental results also provide a comparison betweenk-tFOCUSS with MEMC and the proposed method.
    Matched MeSH terms: Signal-To-Noise Ratio
  18. Fulltext Effectiveness of a Novel Index System in Preventing Early Hearing Loss among Furniture Industry Skills Training Students in Malaysia
    Abdul Rahim KA, Jewaratnam J, Che Hassan CR, Hamid MD
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2020 10 31;17(21).
    PMID: 33142732 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17218032
    Occupational noise-induced hearing loss (ONIHL) is the most reported occupational disease in Malaysia. ONIHL is aggravated by the presence of early hearing loss amongst the youth prior to entering a real working environment. At technical and vocational education training (TVET) institutions, students may develop early ONIHL because training workshops are designed imitating the industrial working environment to produce skilled workers. The exceeding noise level at workshops and recent risk of non-occupational noise can cause early ONIHL among these students. Therefore, ONIHL must be addressed at the early stage of producing skilled workers. Octa hearing conservation index (OHCI) system is developed as a management and monitoring tool for hearing conservation program (HCP) in TVET institutions. Six existing and two new HCP components were used to build the index system. A pilot test on the effectiveness of the OHCI system was conducted in a selected TVET institution for six months. The post-HCP shows a 52.6% improvement compared to the pre-HCP. The implementation of HCP has shown improved awareness on the hazards of loud noise exposure and active use of hearing protection devices among participants. The OHCI system has a great potential as a tool to improve HCP implementation in TVET institutions, and eventually, industry.
    Matched MeSH terms: Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced
  19. Fulltext Identification of Noise Levels for Skill Training Activities, Equipment, Machines and Power Tools at TVET Institutes in Malaysia
    Abdul Rahim KA, Jewaratnam J, Che Hassan CR
    Int J Environ Res Public Health, 2022 Nov 27;19(23).
    PMID: 36497858 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192315783
    The use of various machines, equipment and power tools at TVET Institute causes the institute's environment to be exposed to noise hazards that are similar to the industry. However, not much data has been published regarding noise exposure at TVET institutes. This study was carried out to document the noise exposure of work activities training in public TVET institutes in Malaysia that implement skill training programs in metal fabrication, furniture manufacturing and automotive maintenance. The identification of excessive noise, task-based noise exposure monitoring and source measurement was conducted. The noise contribution from each work activity to the daily A-weighted noise exposure level and sound pressure level emitted by machines and equipment was documented. The findings of this study recorded 20 activities with task-based noise contribution to the daily A-weighted noise exposure level between 75.3 dB and 95 dB. Based on the findings, the training environment at the TVET institutes has a risk of operating with excessive noise. The documented data can be used in planning the implementation of suitable noise control measures in TVET institutes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Noise; Noise, Occupational*
  20. Fulltext Acoustic cardiac signals analysis: a Kalman filter-based approach
    Salleh SH, Hussain HS, Swee TT, Ting CM, Noor AM, Pipatsart S, et al.
    Int J Nanomedicine, 2012;7:2873-81.
    PMID: 22745550 DOI: 10.2147/IJN.S32315
    Auscultation of the heart is accompanied by both electrical activity and sound. Heart auscultation provides clues to diagnose many cardiac abnormalities. Unfortunately, detection of relevant symptoms and diagnosis based on heart sound through a stethoscope is difficult. The reason GPs find this difficult is that the heart sounds are of short duration and separated from one another by less than 30 ms. In addition, the cost of false positives constitutes wasted time and emotional anxiety for both patient and GP. Many heart diseases cause changes in heart sound, waveform, and additional murmurs before other signs and symptoms appear. Heart-sound auscultation is the primary test conducted by GPs. These sounds are generated primarily by turbulent flow of blood in the heart. Analysis of heart sounds requires a quiet environment with minimum ambient noise. In order to address such issues, the technique of denoising and estimating the biomedical heart signal is proposed in this investigation. Normally, the performance of the filter naturally depends on prior information related to the statistical properties of the signal and the background noise. This paper proposes Kalman filtering for denoising statistical heart sound. The cycles of heart sounds are certain to follow first-order Gauss-Markov process. These cycles are observed with additional noise for the given measurement. The model is formulated into state-space form to enable use of a Kalman filter to estimate the clean cycles of heart sounds. The estimates obtained by Kalman filtering are optimal in mean squared sense.
    Matched MeSH terms: Signal-To-Noise Ratio
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