METHOD: A survey was conducted with 403 migrant workers through phone interviews and online self-administered questionnaires. Piecewise structural equation modelling and multinomial regression were applied to identify predictor variables for food safety KAP and to explore differences across nationalities.
RESULTS: The respondents were Nepalese, Filipino and Indonesian. The majority were male, working in the services industry, had completed high school, aged between 30 and 39 years and had worked in Malaysia for less than ten years. Knowledge was significantly correlated with attitudes and practices. Female respondents had lower knowledge and attitude scores while younger respondents had lower knowledge scores. Indonesian and Filipino respondents had lower knowledge and attitudes scores than Nepalese respondents. Understanding food safety information from social media was positively correlated with the respondents' food safety knowledge and practices.
CONCLUSION: These findings highlighted: (i) the need to target female, younger, Indonesian and Filipino migrant workers, and (ii) the potential of social media to improve public awareness of food safety and hygienic practices.
METHODOLOGY: The study used a prospective follow-up mix methodology approach with six-month follow-ups of patients. The participants included in the study population were those with chronic kidney disease grade 4 and kidney failure. Pre-validated and translated questionnaires (Kidney Disease Quality of Life-Short Form, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale Urdu Version, and Morisky Lewis Greens Adherence Scale) and assessment tools were used to collect data.
RESULTS: This study recruited 314 patients after an initial assessment based on inclusion criteria. The mean age of the study population was 54.64 ± 15.33 years. There was a 47.6% male and a 52.4% female population. Hypertension and diabetes mellitus remained the most predominant comorbid condition, affecting 64.2% and 74.6% of the population, respectively. The study suggested a significant (p < 0.05) deterioration in the mental health composite score with worsening laboratory variables, particularly hematological and iron studies. Demographic variables significantly impact medication adherence. HRQOL was found to be deteriorating with a significant impact on mental health compared to physical health.
CONCLUSIONS: Patients on maintenance dialysis for kidney failure have a significant burden of physical and mental symptoms, depression, and low HRQOL. Given the substantial and well-known declines in physical and psychological well-being among kidney failure patients receiving hemodialysis, the findings of this research imply that these areas related to health should receive special attention in the growing and expanding population of kidney failure patients.
OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this paper were (1) to review the literature for information about post-traumatic stress disorder among Chinese women survivors of intimate partner violence; (2) to provide a synthesis of the literature on post-traumatic stress disorder among abused Chinese women; and (3) to identify implications for practice and to suggest directions for research relating to post-traumatic stress disorder among abused Chinese women.
DESIGN: A systematic review of the literature.
DATA SOURCES: Following a systematic search for relevant literature in computerized databases and manual searches of English and Chinese language publications, five papers reporting on four studies conducted in China, Taiwan, Malaysia, and the United States were included in the review.
REVIEW METHODS: Abstracts meeting the inclusion criteria were reviewed independently by two of the authors and any discrepancies were resolved by discussion. Full papers for selected abstracts were then retrieved and assessed independently by the same reviewers.
RESULTS: The present literature review revealed a paucity of information relating to post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms or diagnoses in abused Chinese women. Nevertheless, a link between post-traumatic stress disorder and intimate partner violence was demonstrated by the reviewed papers.
CONCLUSIONS: Caution should be exercised when making comparison of the findings across the four studies because of the inherent methodological differences. Also, as the assessment tools have not been validated for culture-bound interpretation of trauma and symptom manifestation, comparisons of findings for Chinese women to women in Western literature should be undertaken with due consideration. Implications for practice and recommendations for future research are discussed.
METHODS: Gene panel sequencing was performed for 34 known or suspected breast cancer predisposition genes, of which nine genes (ATM, BRCA1, BRCA2, CHEK2, PALB2, BARD1, RAD51C, RAD51D, and TP53) were associated with breast cancer risk. Associations between PTV carriership in one or more genes and tumor characteristics were examined using multinomial logistic regression. Ten-year overall survival was estimated using Cox regression models in 6477 breast cancer patients after excluding older patients (≥75years) and stage 0 and IV disease.
RESULTS: PTV9genes carriership (n = 690) was significantly associated (p < 0.001) with more aggressive tumor characteristics including high grade (poorly vs well-differentiated, odds ratio [95% confidence interval] 3.48 [2.35-5.17], moderately vs well-differentiated 2.33 [1.56-3.49]), as well as luminal B [HER-] and triple-negative subtypes (vs luminal A 2.15 [1.58-2.92] and 2.85 [2.17-3.73], respectively), adjusted for age at diagnosis, study, and ethnicity. Associations with grade and luminal B [HER2-] subtype remained significant after excluding BRCA1/2 carriers. PTV25genes carriership (n = 289, excluding carriers of the nine genes associated with breast cancer) was not associated with tumor characteristics. However, PTV25genes carriership, but not PTV9genes carriership, was suggested to be associated with worse 10-year overall survival (hazard ratio [CI] 1.63 [1.16-2.28]).
CONCLUSIONS: PTV9genes carriership is associated with more aggressive tumors. Variants in other genes might be associated with the survival of breast cancer patients. The finding that PTV carriership is not just associated with higher breast cancer risk, but also more severe and fatal forms of the disease, suggests that genetic testing has the potential to provide additional health information and help healthy individuals make screening decisions.
METHODS: An outbreak was declared following the detection of P. malariae in July 2020 and active case detection for malaria was performed by collecting blood samples from residents residing within 2 km radius of Moyog village. Vector prevalence and the efficacy of residual insecticides were determined. Health awareness programmes were implemented to prevent future outbreaks. A survey was conducted among villagers to understand risk behaviour and beliefs concerning malaria.
RESULTS: A total of 5254 blood samples collected from 19 villages. Among them, 19 P. malariae cases were identified, including the index case, which originated from a man who returned from Indonesia. His return from Indonesia and healthcare facilities visit coincided with the movement control order during COVID-19 pandemic when the healthcare facilities stretched its capacity and only serious cases were given priority. Despite the index case being a returnee from a malaria endemic area presenting with mild fever, no malaria test was performed at local healthcare facilities. All cases were symptomatic and uncomplicated except for a pregnant woman with severe malaria. There were no deaths; all patients recovered following treatment with artemether-lumefantrine combination therapy. Anopheles balabacensis and Anopheles barbirostris were detected in ponds, puddles and riverbeds. The survey revealed that fishing and hunting during night, and self-treatment for mild symptoms contributed to the outbreak. Despite the index case being a returnee from a malaria-endemic area presenting with mild fever, no malaria test was performed at local healthcare facilities.
CONCLUSION: The outbreak occurred during a COVID-19 movement control order, which strained healthcare facilities, prioritizing only serious cases. Healthcare workers need to be more aware of the risk of malaria from individuals who return from malaria endemic areas. To achieve malaria elimination and prevention of disease reintroduction, new strategies that include multisectoral agencies and active community participation are essential for a more sustainable malaria control programme.
METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted using national administrative data from 1124 public primary care clinics. Eight indicators were selected to measure service utilisation covering antenatal, postnatal, women's health, child health, and immunisation services. Interrupted time-series analysis was used to evaluate changes in levels and trends of indicators during four different periods: pre-pandemic (January 2019-February 2020), during pandemic and first lockdown (March-May 2020), after the first lockdown was lifted (June-December 2020) and after the second lockdown was implemented (January-June 2021).
RESULTS: Most indicators showed no significant trend in monthly utilisation prior to the pandemic. The onset of the pandemic and first lockdown implementation were associated with significant decreasing trends in child health (-19.23%), women's health (-10.12%), antenatal care (-8.10%), contraception (-6.50%), postnatal care (-4.85%) and postnatal care 1-week (-3.52%) indicators. These indicators showed varying degrees of recovery after the first lockdown was lifted. The implementation of the second lockdown caused transient reduction ranging from -11.29% to -25.92% in women's health, contraception, child and two postnatal indicators, but no sustained reducing trend was seen afterwards. Two immunisation indicators appeared unaffected throughout the study period.
CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted MCH services utilisation in Malaysia. While most MCH services were negatively affected by the lockdown implementation with varying degrees of recovery, infant immunisation showed resilience throughout. This highlights the need for a targeted preparedness plan to ensure the resilience of MCH services in future crises.
METHODS: This single-centre cross-sectional study was conducted among patients with CKD stages 3, 4, and 5 (not on dialysis) from the Nephrology Clinic, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre. A total of 84 patients were recruited with an even distribution across all three stages. They underwent fundus photography where images were analysed for vessel calibre (central retinal venular equivalent (CRVE), central retinal arterial equivalent (CRAE), and tortuosity indices. Optical coherence tomography was used to measure macular volume. Blood samples were sent for laboratory measurement of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA). These parameters were analysed in relation to CKD.
RESULTS: The mean age was 58.8 ± 11.7 years, with 52.4% male and 47.6% female patients. Among them, 64.3% were diabetics. Retinal vessel tortuosity (r = -0.220, p-value = 0.044) had a negative correlation with the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). CRVE showed a positive correlation with proteinuria (r = 0.342, p = 0.001) but negative correlation with eGFR (r = -0.236, p = 0.031). Hs-CRP positively correlated with proteinuria (r = 0.313, p = 0.04) and negatively correlated with eGFR (r = -0.370, p = 0.001). Diabetic patients had a higher CRVE compared to non-diabetic patients (p = 0.02). History of ischaemic heart disease was associated with a smaller macula volume (p = 0.038). Male gender (r2 = 0.066, p = 0.031) and HbA1c had a positive influence (r2 = 0.066, p = 0.047) on retinal vessel tortuosity. There was a positive influence of age (r2 = 0.183, p = 0.012) and hs-CRP (r2 = 0.183, p = 0.045) on CRVE. As for macula volume, it negatively correlated with diabetes (r2 = 0.015, p = 0.040) and positively correlated with smoking (r2 = 0.015, p = 0.012).
CONCLUSION: Our study showed that eGFR value affects retinal vessel tortuosity, CRVE and hs-CRP. These parameters bear potential to be used as non-invasive tools in assessing CKD. However, only macula volume may be associated with CVD risk among the CKD population.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: The method used was a cross-sectional study. Self-administered knowledge, attitude, and practice questionnaires were distributed among childbearing women attending Maternal & Child Health Clinics in the East Coast region of Malaysia.
RESULTS: The findings revealed that most respondents (N = 896) had good or moderate knowledge (80.1%) and attitudes (77.3%) regarding PFMT but most of them (87.2%) still lacked practice. However, there was no association between urinary incontinence and PFMT practice. On the contrary, married women showed a higher risk of urinary incontinence.
CONCLUSIONS: The practice of pelvic floor muscle training should be recommended and emphasized to childbearing women by healthcare professionals.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in five districts of the Punjab province of Pakistan between January and March 2022. The participants were recruited using convenience sampling. All data were analyzed using SPSS 22.
RESULTS: We recruited 1622 people with the majority aged between 25-45 years. Of these, 51% were female, including 27 pregnant women and 42 lactating mothers. Most participants had received the Sinopharm (62.6%) or Sinovac (17.8%) vaccines. The incidences of at least one side effect after the first (N = 1622), second (N = 1484), and booster doses (N = 219) of the COVID-19 vaccine were 16.5%, 20.1%, and 32%, respectively. Inflammation/erythema at the injection site, pain at the injection site, fever, and bone/muscle pain were common side effects of vaccination. No significant differences were observed in the adverse effect scores between all demographic variables except for pregnancy (P = 0.012) after the initial dose. No significant association was observed between any variable and the side effect scores of the second and booster doses of the vaccine.
CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed a 16-32% prevalence of self-reported side effects after the first, second, and booster COVID-19 vaccinations. Most adverse effects were mild and transient, indicating the safety of different COVID-19 vaccines.
METHODS: We conducted two independent rounds of large-scale surveys that yielded data from 621 Bangladeshi adolescents (AgeMean ± SD = 16.44 ± 1.32), of which 378 were males, and 244 were females. The participants completed the Bangla CS. A subset of the participants (n = 160) also completed the Bangla Beck's Hopelessness Scale (BBHS)-a measure of hopelessness.
RESULTS: Exploratory factor analysis on the first-round data (n = 340) discarded six items and retained 17 items and revealed a unidimensional factor structure. Confirmatory Factor Analysis on the second-round data (n = 281) supported the unidimensional structure (CFI = 0.94, TLI = 0.93). Measurement invariance analysis indicated that the unidimensional structure was robust across gender (143 males vs 139 females). The scale exhibited a negative correlation with BBHS revealing the scale's concurrent validity (r = - 0.16, p 0.70) across a sizable range of communication skills continuum (θ = - 5.3 to 2.3) and had excellent marginal reliability (0.80). All items had adequate discriminating power (0.90 ± 0.20).
CONCLUSION: The psychometric analysis of the 17-item Bangla-CS indicated that the scale is reliable and valid. We recommend that researchers and mental health practitioners utilize this scale to evaluate communication skills among Bangladeshi adolescents.
CASE: Here we describe three infants with TNMG. Two of them developed symptoms of TNMG within 24 hours of life, but one developed symptoms at 43 hours of life. One of the patients had an atypical form of TNMG with contracture and hypotonia. The other two infants survived a typical form of TNMG with hypotonia and poor sucking. All cases resolved spontaneously by one to two weeks of life with conservative management.
CONCLUSIONS: Infants born to mothers with myasthenia gravis need to be monitored closely for symptoms of TNMG for the first 48 to 72 hours of life. However, the majority of infants with TNMG traverse a benign course and resolve spontaneously with expectant care.
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the knowledge, awareness, attitudes, and practices related to breast cancer risk factors, signs, symptoms and methods of screening among female faculty and students at Hail University in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from January 2021 through February 2021 in the Hail region of Saudi Arabia. A closed-ended questionnaire, which consisted of 37 questions, was distributed online (using a Google Forms link) in both English and Arabic languages. Data was collected from 425 female subjects who participated in the study.
RESULTS: The study showed an overall knowledge level of 46.36% regarding breast cancer. Participants had average knowledge about risk factors, signs, and symptoms, whereas their awareness and practice of breast self-examination and screening methods were weak.
CONCLUSION: The current study concluded that public awareness of breast cancer remains relatively low, and Saudi Arabia still needs several public awareness initiatives using mass media, such as television, the Internet, and radio, as well as social media. Special awareness programs should also be held in places where a large number of women can easily be reached, such as colleges, universities, and hospitals.
METHOD: A large group of adult participants (N = 1897), recruited from eight administrative divisions in Bangladesh, completed an online survey in May and June 2021 when the Movement Control Order was in place. We used the Beck Anxiety Inventory, Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and Perceived Stress Scale-4 to assess the participants' anxiety, depression, and stress. We also gave the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale and Life-Orientation Test-Revised to assess mindfulness and optimism.
RESULTS: The results revealed that the prevalence rates for anxiety and depression were 62.5% and 45.3%, respectively. Multivariate analyses showed that several nonmodifiable factors, such as those who were students, unmarried and females, and those living in the Northern region (Rajshahi and Mymensingh division) and dwelling in the rural areas, suffered from worse mental health (accounted for 5%-23% of the variances in the mental health outcome scores). Modifiable factors accounted for an additional 10%-25% of the variances in the same outcome variables. Adults with higher mindfulness and optimism, living in the country's Southern region (Chattogram division) and those who took both vaccine doses and had no history of mental illness reported better mental health.
CONCLUSION: Anxiety, depression, and stress remained high in Bangladeshi adults after one year of the pandemic. The community-based interventions should aim to increase the mindfulness and optimism levels among the sufferers. More accelerated vaccination programs across the country could protect people from suffering from overall mental distress.