The objective of this study is to compare the evaluation of postural analysis between a self-report questionnaire and physical assessments methods for students aged 13 to 15 years old in school workshop. 336 students were volunteered as participants to fill in the questionnaire and being observed in the workshop. Total of 104 positions were selected and analyzed while students performing their tasks. Questionnaire data was examined to specify the prevalence of postural stress symptoms. The relationship of postural stress by physical assessment methods (RULA and REBA methods) was defined to identify the risk level of students' working posture. From the results, comparison of four factors categorized from total of 22 questions among ages, the mean values were lower for 13 years old students meaning that they were faced higher posture problems while using the workstation. The obtained results from both physical assessment methods and questionnaire analysis have identified 13 years old students faced higher risk exposure. Analysis results emphasized the fact that self-reports questionnaire method has almost accurate as postural evaluation methods to identify physical risks in workplace. The result also shows that an intervention is needed to overcome the posture problems.
PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to determine the visual function of colour-deficient subjects when wearing special red tint contact lenses.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 17 subjects with congenital colour vision deficiency (14 deutans and 3 protans), voluntarily participated in this study. The average age for the subjects was 23.00 ± 4.06 years old. Visual functions tested were visual acuity (LogMAR), contrast sensitivity (FACT Chart) and stereopsis (TNO and Howard Dolman tests). Two types of special red tint lenses were used in this study; Type I (light red) and Type II (dark red).
RESULTS: The protans and deutans showed no significant changes in visual acuity and contrast sensitivity when wearing either type of contact lens. Stereopsis testing using the Horward-Dolman test gave no significant changes but significant differences were seen using the TNO test. Stereopsis using the TNO test was significantly poorer with the red tinted contact lenses compared to without for both protons and deutans. Testing binocularly with Ishihara plates showed that 88% (n=15) of patients passed the test with Type I and Type II contact lenses. When D15 test was done, 3 patients (17.6%) were 'normal' when using the Type I contact lenses and 2 patients (11.8%) were 'normal' when using the Type II contact lenses. However, with FM100Hue test, most patients showed deutan responses. Total error scores (TES) were found to be higher with Type I and Type II contact lenses compared to without.
CONCLUSIONS: The Type I and II special tinted contact lens used in this study did not cause a reduction of visual acuity and contrast sensitivity for the colour defects. Stereopsis was also not reduced with the Type I and Type II contact lenses for the colour defects except when tested with the TNO test. Colour vision defects became difficult to detect using the Ishihara plates but FM100Hue test did not show any improvement with the Type I and Type II contact lenses.
To assess the validity and reproducibility of a new computer-based physical activity questionnaire (cPAQ) to estimate the habitual physical activity levels in Malaysian adolescents.
Thalassaemia is a common disorder in Malaysia. It is estimated that 4.5% of the population are carriers for beta- or alpha- thalassaemias. We set out to screen Form 4 students aged between 15 and 16 years old in a national school, for thalassaemia in March 2008. Written consent was obtained from 310 students. The carrier rate for the common thalassaemia syndromes was 6.8% (2.9% for beta-thalassaemia, 2.6% for HbE and 1.3% for two-gene deletion for alpha-thalassaemia). Carriers for beta-thalassaemia and two-gene deletion for alpha-thalassaemia were more common in the Chinese (4.3% and 1.4% respectively) while heterozygous HbE was more common in the Malays (3.8%). The laboratory cost of screening one student was RM 45 and the total number of man-hours spent in this screening activity was 600. This screening exercise showed that thalassaemia carriers are common among the Chinese and Malays and it is feasible to carry out a screening programme for secondary school students.
The incidence of thyroid cancer is increasing in several countries. The main objective of this retrospective study was to find and describe province-specific estimates of incidence in males and females by age groups for differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). This study reports on 87 cases of DTC from Baluchistan province of Pakistan treated with post operative radioiodine at the Center for Nuclear Medicine and Radiotherapy (CENAR) Quetta from January 2003 to December 2009. The patient data has been collected from CENAR Quetta. Patients with DTC were confirmed by clinical examination, thyroid scintigraphy (Thyroid scan), blood tests (T3, T4, TSH) and histopathalogy tests and then treated with radioiodine. The Median age of the patients was 35.5 years (Range 12-70 years). The final histological diagnosis was papillary carcinoma in 71 (81.6 %) cases, follicular carcinoma in 6 (6.9%) cases while 10 (11.5%) cases presented with mixed papillary and follicular carcinoma. About 53 % cases were found in females with age 21-40 years. No strike predominance was observed in any age group for males. Four patients presented with recurrence while six patients showed metastasis in cervical lymph nodes. The small annual incidence did not follow any definite pattern. DTC has a small incidence in Baluchistan due to lack of education and health care facilities. The incidence of DTC is higher in females when compared with males as per this study. This preliminary study will provide an insight to incidence of DTC, its treatment facilities and future planning strategies in Baluchistan, Pakistan.
The purpose of the study was to investigate relationships between vocal fold vibrations and voice quality. Laryngeal images obtained from high-speed digital imaging (HSDI) were examined for their open-closed timing characteristics and perturbation values. A customized software delineated the glottal edges and used the Hilbert transform-based method of analysis to provide objective quantification of glottal perturbation. Overlay tracings of the transformed glottal cycles provided visual patterns on the overall vibratory dynamics. In this paper, we described the use of this method in looking at vibratory characteristics of a group of young female speakers (N=23). We found that, females with no voice complaints and who had been perceived to have normal voices were not a homogeneous group in terms of their glottal vibratory patterns during phonation. Their vibratory patterns showed characteristics similar to exemplar voices targeted to be clear (50%), pressed (27%), breathy (15%), or a mixed quality (8%). Perturbation range in terms of cycle-to-cycle frequency and amplitude was small and did not discriminate patterns. All these patterns yielded perceptually normal voices suggesting that in normal young speakers, the level of perturbation may be more important to the judgment than the actual pattern of closure.
To determine the mean values for central corneal thickness (CCT) and intraocular pressure (IOP) and the relationship between these values, in healthy Malay children to serve as reference values in diagnosis and treatment.
Self-regulation theory and research suggests that different types of mental imagery can promote goal-directed behaviors. The present study was designed to compare the efficacy of approach imagery (attainment of desired goal states) and process imagery (steps for enacting behavior) in promoting physical activity among inactive individuals. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 182 inactive adults who received one of four interventions for generating mental images related to physical activity over a 4-week period, with Approach Imagery (approach versus neutral) and Process Imagery (process versus no process) as the intervention strategies. Participants received imagery training and practiced daily. Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed that Approach Imagery: (1) increased approach motivations for physical activity at Week 4; (2) induced greater intentions post-session, which subsequently induced more action planning at Week 4; (3) enhanced action planning when combined with process images at post-session and Week 1; and (4) facilitated more physical activity at Week 4 via action planning. These findings suggest that inducing approach orientation via mental imagery may be a convenient and low-cost technique to promote physical activity among inactive individuals.
BACKGROUND: Self-care plays an important role in diabetes management. One of the instruments used to evaluate self-care in patients with diabetes is the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities (SDSCA) questionnaire. A validated instrument in the Malay language is used to assess self-care practice among children and adolescents with diabetes in Malaysia.
OBJECTIVE: To translate and evaluate the psychometric properties of the revised version of the SDSCA questionnaire in the Malay language.
METHODS:Forward and backward translations were performed. An expert panel reviewed all versions for conceptual and content equivalence. The final version was administered to paediatric patients with diabetes between August 2006 and September 2007. Reliability was analysed using Cronbach's alpha and validity was assessed using exploratory factor analysis.
RESULTS: A total of 117 patients aged 10-18 years were enrolled from nine hospitals. The reliability of overall core items was 0.735 (with item 4) while the reliabilities of the four domains were in the range of 0.539-0.838. As core item number 4 was found to be problematic and it was subtituted by item 5a (from the expanded SDSCA) to suit local dietary education and practice; and the reliabilities of the overall core item (0.782) and the four domains (0.620 - 0.838) improved. Factor loadings of all the items were greater than 0.4, loaded into the original domains, and accounted for 73% of the total variance.
CONCLUSION: The Malay translation of the revised English SDSCA is reliable and valid as a guide for Malaysian children and adolescents suffering from diabetes.
KEYWORDS: Adolescents Diabetes self-care; Children; Malay-translated version of SDSCA
Study site: Pediatric Clinic, University Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Grip strength is an important measure used to monitor the progression of a condition, and to evaluate outcomes of treatment. We assessed how various physical and social factors predict normal grip strength in an adult Malaysian population of mixed Asian ethnicity (254 men, 246 women). Grip strength was recorded using the Jamar dynamometer. The mean grip strength for the dominant hand was 29.8 kg for men and 17.6 kg for women. Multiple regression analysis demonstrated that the dominant hand grip strength was positively associated with height and body mass index, and negatively associated with age for both sexes. Dominant hand grip strength was related to work status for men (p
Toxoplasma gondii is an important parasite in pregnant women. This case-controlled study assessed the seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in 640 pregnant women in southern Thailand and identified their associated risk factors. The overall seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis was 181 (28.3%). Of this, 138 (21.6%) were positive for only anti-Toxoplasma immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody, 43 (6.7%) were positive for both IgG and IgM antibodies, and none were positive for IgM antibody. Multivariate analysis revealed that increasing age (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.64, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.01-2.67), living outside Songkhla province (adjusted OR = 1.56, 95% CI = 1.08-2.24), parity (adjusted OR = 1.65, 95% CI = 1.01-2.68), contact with cats (adjusted OR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.20-2.43), and drinking of unclean water (adjusted OR = 1.70, 95% CI = 1.08-2.68) were factors associated with Toxoplasma seroprevalence. On the basis of the results obtained, a health surveillance program should be initiated as a primary preventive measure for congenital toxoplasmosis and focus on educating women of the child-bearing age group to avoid contact with cats and to strictly practice personal hygiene.
Somnambulism or sleepwalking is a sleep disorder of arousal. Compared to in adults, pediatric and adolescent sleep disorders is still under-researched and poorly described. We report the successful use of low dose quietiapine, an atypical antipsychotic, in the treatment of a 15-year-old Indian male who presented with significant somnambulism. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the use of quetiapine for the treatment of somnambulism in the literature. The presence of high voltage delta waves in sleepwalkers has been offered as a possible explanation for the patho-physiology of sleepwalking Quetiapine has been reported to decrease brain delta activity, and we postulate that this may be the mechanism on how it was beneficial for our patient.
Asymmetrical eyelid skin crease may be mistaken for ptosis due to apparent narrowing of the palpebral fissure in the eye without the skin crease. This study describes a series of patients who were mistakenly referred for ptosis operation as a result of absent skin crease.
Scoring systems such as POSSUM and P-POSSUM have been developed to help predict mortality and morbidity in patients. The ratio of observed-to-predicted (O/P ratio) mortality and morbidity has been used as a performance indicator to compare different procedures, clinicians or hospitals. The aim of this study was to assess the predictive value of POSSUM compared with P-POSSUM in patients undergoing laparotomy in Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Sabah.
Dural exposure may occur during the course of thinning the tegmen tympani and tegmen mastoideum in mastoid procedure. If large area of dura is exposed or lacerated, cerebrospinal fluid and brain herniation may enter the mastoid cavity. We report a case of a patient with injured dura mater and tegmen mastoideum during mastoidectomy for chronic suppurative otitis media with cholesteatoma managed by using DuraGen. The dura mater and tegmen defect healed totally showing the success of the procedure. A collagen matrix like DuraGen is an option for repairing dural tear in mastoid region.
Forty-two patients with traumatic blunt splenic injuries were admitted over a six year period. Vehicular-related collisions and fall from height accounted for the injuries in 38 (90.5%) of them. Eleven (26.2%) underwent immediate surgery (7 splenectomy and 4 splenorrhaphy), while the remaining 31 patients were treated nonoperatively of which 3 underwent angio-embolisation. Twenty seven patients had either grade III or IV splenic injuries. Operative management was more likely in patients with lower haemoglobin or with more severe splenic injury. Nonoperative management can be adopted in patients with blunt isolated splenic injuries but operative management is still indispensable in certain instances.
A systematic review on the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of school scoliosis screening programme was carried out. A total of 248 relevant titles were identified, 117 abstracts were screened and 28 articles were included in the results. There was fair level of evidence to suggest that school scoliosis screening programme is safe, contributed to early detection and reduction of surgery. There was also evidence to suggest that school-based scoliosis screening programme is cost-effective. Based on the above review, screening for scoliosis among school children is recommended only for high risk group such as girls at twelve years of age.
Keywords: Systematic review, scoliosis screening
The paradise tree snake, Chrysopelea paradisi, is a rear-fanged colubrid. Like other members of the genus Chrysopelea, it is able to glide through the air, and thus, is commonly known as a "flying snake." There are few documented effects of its bite on humans.
Spirometry data of 869 individuals (males and females) between the ages of 10 to 60 years were analyzed. The analysis yielded the following conclusions: 1. The pattern of Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) and Forced Expiratory Volume in One Second (FEV1) for the selected subgroups seems to be gender dependant: in males, the highest values were seen in the Chinese, followed by the Malay, and then the Dayak; in females, the highest values were seen in the Chinese, followed by the Dayak, and then the Malay. 2. Smoking that did not produce respiratory symptom was not associated with a decline in lung function, in fact we noted higher values in smokers as compared to nonsmokers. 3. Prediction formulae (54 in total) are worked out for FVC & FEV1 for the respective gender and each of the selected subgroups.