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  1. Fulltext Morbidity profiles at three primary care clinics in Perlis, Malaysia
    Kamarudin MF, Mohamad Noh K, Jaafar S
    Med J Malaysia, 2012 Aug;67(4):363-8.
    PMID: 23082442 MyJurnal
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  2. Serum C-reactive protein level and prehypertension in two Asian populations
    Sabanayagam C, Shankar A, Lee J, Wong TY, Tai ES
    J Hum Hypertens, 2013 Apr;27(4):231-6.
    PMID: 22418747 DOI: 10.1038/jhh.2011.117
    Few previous studies in Western populations have reported an association between C-reactive protein (CRP) and prehypertension. However, no previous study has examined this association in Asians. We examined individuals who were free of hypertension from two independent population-based studies in Singapore: the Singapore Prospective Study Programme (SP2, n=2843 Chinese, Malay and Indians aged 24 years) and the Singapore Malay Eye Study (SiMES, n=957 Malays, aged 40-80 years). Prehypertension was defined as systolic blood pressure (BP) 120-139 mm Hg or diastolic BP 80-89 mm Hg. CRP was analyzed as categories (<1, 1-3, >3 mg l(-1)). The prevalence of prehypertension increased with increasing categories of CRP in both cohorts (P for trend <0.05 in both cohorts). After adjusting for potential confounders including body mass index (BMI), smoking and diabetes, persons with higher levels of CRP were more likely to have prehypertension in both SP2 (compared with CRP <1 mg l(-1), odds ratio (OR) 1.23, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.03-1.48 for CRP 1-3 and OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.32-2.10 for >3 mg l(-1)) and SiMES (OR 1.45, 95% CI 1.04-2.01 and OR 1.56, 95% CI 1.07-2.27) respectively. In conclusion, data from two population-based Asian cohorts suggest that elevated serum CRP levels are associated with prehypertension.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  3. Psychological distress as a mediator in the relationships between biopsychosocial factors and disordered eating among Malaysian university students
    Gan WY, Mohd Nasir MT, Zalilah MS, Hazizi AS
    Appetite, 2012 Dec;59(3):679-87.
    PMID: 22885453 DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2012.08.002
    The mechanism linking biopsychosocial factors to disordered eating among university students is not well understood especially among Malaysians. This study aimed to examine the mediating role of psychological distress in the relationships between biopsychosocial factors and disordered eating among Malaysian university students. A self-administered questionnaire measured self-esteem, body image, social pressures to be thin, weight-related teasing, psychological distress, and disordered eating in 584 university students (59.4% females and 40.6% males). Body weight and height were measured. Structural equation modeling analysis revealed that the partial mediation model provided good fit to the data. Specifically, the relationships between self-esteem and weight-related teasing with disordered eating were mediated by psychological distress. In contrast, only direct relationships between body weight status, body image, and social pressures to be thin with disordered eating were found and were not mediated by psychological distress. Furthermore, multigroup analyses indicated that the model was equivalent for both genders but not for ethnic groups. There was a negative relationship between body weight status and psychological distress for Chinese students, whereas this was not the case among Malay students. Intervention and prevention programs on psychological distress may be beneficial in reducing disordered eating among Malaysian university students.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  4. Sun exposure and the risk of prostate cancer in the Singapore Prostate Cancer Study: a case-control study
    Chia SE, Wong KY, Cheng C, Lau W, Tan PH
    Asian Pac J Cancer Prev, 2012;13(7):3179-85.
    PMID: 22994730
    BACKGROUND: Most of the epidemiology studies on the effects of sun exposure and prostate cancer were conducted among the temperate countries of North America and Europe. Little is known about the influence on Asian populations. The purpose of current study was to evaluate any association of sun exposure with risk of prostate cancer in Chinese, Malays and Indians who reside in the tropics.

    METHODS: The Singapore Prostate Cancer Study is a hospital-based case-control study of 240 prostate cancer incident cases and 268 controls conducted in Singapore between April 2007 and May 2009. Detailed information on outdoor activities in the sun, skin colour, sun sensitivity and other possible risk factors were collected in personal interviews. Cases were further classified by Gleason scores and TNM staging. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using unconditional logistic regression analysis, adjusted for age, ethnicity, education, family history of any cancers, BMI and skin colour.

    RESULTS: We found that prostate cancer risk was increased in subjects with black/dark-brown eyes (OR 5.88, 95%CI 3.17-10.9), darker skin colour e.g. tan/dark brown/black (OR 7.62, 95%CI 3.41-17.0), frequent sunburn in lifetime (OR 4.30, 95%CI 1.7-11.2) and increased general sun exposure in adulthood per week (OR 2.03, 95%CI 1.09-3.81). The increased risk was consistent for high grade tumours and advanced stage prostate cancers.

    CONCLUSION: The findings from this study suggest that excessive sun exposure is a risk factor for prostate cancer in Asians.

    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  5. Can body fat distribution, adiponectin levels and inflammation explain differences in insulin resistance between ethnic Chinese, Malays and Asian Indians?
    Gao H, Salim A, Lee J, Tai ES, van Dam RM
    Int J Obes (Lond), 2012 Aug;36(8):1086-93.
    PMID: 21946705 DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2011.185
    Diabetes in Asia constitutes approximately half of the global burden. Although insulin resistance and incidence of type 2 diabetes differ substantially between ethnic groups within Asia, the reasons for these differences are poorly understood. We evaluated to what extent body fatness, adiponectin levels and inflammation mediate the relationship between ethnicity and insulin resistance in an Asian setting.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  6. Fulltext Somatisation disorder and its associated factors in multiethnic primary care clinic attenders
    Khoo EM, Mathers NJ, McCarthy SA, Low WY
    Int J Behav Med, 2012 Jun;19(2):165-73.
    PMID: 21562781 DOI: 10.1007/s12529-011-9164-7
    Background Somatisation disorder (SD) has been reported as common in all ethnic groups, but the estimates of its prevalence have varied and the evidence for its associated factors has been inconsistent.
    Purpose This study seeks to determine the prevalence of SD and its associated factors in multiethnic primary care clinic attenders.
    Methods This cross-sectional study was on clinic attenders aged 18 years and above at three urban primary care clinics in Malaysia. The operational definition of SD was based on ICD-10 criteria for SD for research, frequent attendance, and excluded moderate to severe anxiety and depression. The instruments used were the ICD-10 symptom list, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, a semi-structured questionnaire, and SF-36.
    Results We recruited 1,763 patients (response rate 63.8%). The mean age of respondents was 44.7±15.8 years, 807 (45.8%) were male; there were 35.3% Malay, 30.1% Chinese and 34.6% Indian. SD prevalence was 3.7%; the prevalence in Malay was 5.8%, Indian 3.0% and Chinese 2.1%. Significant associations were found between SD prevalence and ethnicity, family history of alcoholism, blue-collar workers and the physical component summary (PCS) score of SF-36. Multivariate analysis showed that SD predictors were Malay ethnicity (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.6, 4.6), blue-collar worker (OR 2.0, 95% CI 1.2, 3.5) and impaired PCS score of SF-36 (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.90, 0.95).
    Conclusion The prevalence of SD was relatively uncommon with the stringent operational criteria used. SD preponderance in blue-collar workers may be attributable to secondary gain from getting sickness certificates and being paid for time off work.
    Keywords Somatisation disorder . Associated factors . Primary care . Ethnic groups . Prevalence Questionnaire: ICD-10 symptom list; Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale; HADS; SF-36
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  7. Fulltext Lack of association between RANTES-28, SDF-1 gene polymorphisms and systemic lupus erythematosus in the Malaysian population
    Lian LH, Kee BP, Ng HL, Chua KH
    Genet. Mol. Res., 2011;10(4):2841-50.
    PMID: 22095608 DOI: 10.4238/2011.November.17.2
    Regulated on activation, normal T-cell expressed and secreted (RANTES) and stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF-1) are members of the CC- and CXC-chemokine families, respectively. Both genes have been postulated to be involved in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We analyzed position 28 of the RANTES gene promoter region, as well as the SNP observed in the 3' UTR of the SDF-1 gene at position 801, in 130 patients presenting SLE at the Malaya University Medical Centre. Screening of 130 healthy volunteer controls using RFLP was also performed. RANTES-28 polymorphism analysis showed no significant (P = 0.3520) relationship, even though homozygous C/C was more frequent in SLE patients (OR = 1.4183) and heterozygous C/G was more frequent in healthy controls (OR = 0.7051). There were no significant (P = 0.2650) associations between A/A (OR = 0.783), G/G (OR = 1.5914) and G/A (OR = 0.8289) genotypes in the SDF-1 gene polymorphism with SLE. We conclude that there is no significant association of RANTES-28 and SDF-1 gene polymorphisms and occurrence of SLE in Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  8. Fulltext Percutaneous coronary intervention in Asians--are there differences in clinical outcome?
    Koh AS, Khin LW, Choi LM, Sim LL, Chua TS, Koh TH, et al.
    BMC Cardiovasc Disord, 2011;11:22.
    PMID: 21605387 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2261-11-22
    Ethnic differences in clinical outcome after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) have been reported. Data within different Asian subpopulations is scarce. We aim to explore the differences in clinical profile and outcome between Chinese, Malay and Indian Asian patients who undergo PCI for coronary artery disease (CAD).
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  9. Fulltext Public perceptions and attitudes toward thalassaemia: Influencing factors in a multi-racial population
    Wong LP, George E, Tan JA
    BMC Public Health, 2011;11:193.
    PMID: 21447191 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-193
    Thalassaemia is a common public health problem in Malaysia and about 4.5 to 6% of the Malays and Chinese are carriers of this genetic disorder. The major forms of thalassaemia result in death in utero of affected foetuses (α-thalassaemia) or life-long blood transfusions for survival in β-thalassaemia. This study, the first nationwide population based survey of thalassaemia in Malaysia, aimed to determine differences in public awareness, perceptions and attitudes toward thalassaemia in the multi-racial population in Malaysia.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  10. Profiles of women presenting for abortions in Singapore: focus on teenage abortions and late abortions
    Lim L, Wong H, Yong E, Singh K
    Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol, 2012 Feb;160(2):219-22.
    PMID: 22137571 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2011.11.017
    OBJECTIVE: Teenage abortions predispose women to adverse pregnancy outcomes in subsequent pregnancies such as anemia, stillbirths, preterm deliveries and low birth weight babies. We aim to profile the women presenting for abortions in our institution and determine risk factors for late presentation for abortions.
    STUDY DESIGN: In this retrospective cohort study, all women who underwent an abortion at the National University Hospital, Singapore, from 2005 to 2009 were recruited. Data was obtained from a prepared questionnaire during the mandatory pre-abortion counseling sessions. Profiles of women aged <20 years were compared with those ≥ 20 years old using Chi-square test if the assumptions for Chi-square test were met; otherwise, Fisher's exact test was carried out. Logistic regression was used to investigate the risk factors for second trimester termination of pregnancy.
    RESULTS: 2109 women presented for induced abortions, of which 1998 had single abortion throughout the course of the study. The mean age of women with single abortion was 29.1 years (sd 7). In the group of women with single abortion, 182 (9.1%) were teenage abortions. In contrast to women ≥ 20 years of age, pregnant teenagers were more likely not to have used any contraception (51.1% vs. 25.2%) and more likely to present late for abortions (39.6% vs. 15.9%). Other risk factors for late presentation for abortions include Malay ethnicity, singlehood, nulliparity and lack of prior usage of contraception.
    CONCLUSION: Teenagers are more likely to have no prior contraceptive usage and to present late for abortions. Lack of proper sexual education and awareness of contraceptive measures may have a major contributory factor to such a trend in teenage abortions. Recommendations have been made in order to curb this societal problem.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  11. Copy number polymorphisms in new HapMap III and Singapore populations
    Ku CS, Teo SM, Naidoo N, Sim X, Teo YY, Pawitan Y, et al.
    J Hum Genet, 2011 Aug;56(8):552-60.
    PMID: 21677662 DOI: 10.1038/jhg.2011.54
    Copy number variations can be identified using newer genotyping arrays with higher single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) density and copy number probes accompanied by newer algorithms. McCarroll et al. (2008) applied these to the HapMap II samples and identified 1316 copy number polymorphisms (CNPs). In our study, we applied the same approach to 859 samples from three Singapore populations and seven HapMap III populations. Approximately 50% of the 1291 autosomal CNPs were found to be polymorphic only in populations of non-African ancestry. Pairwise comparisons among the 10 populations showed substantial differences in the CNPs frequencies. Additionally, 698 CNPs showed significant differences with false discovery rate (FDR)<0.01 among the 10 populations and these loci overlap with known disease-associated or pharmacogenetic-related genes such as CFHR3 and CFHR1 (age related macular degeneration), GSTTI (metabolism of various carcinogenic compounds and cancers) and UGT2B17 (prostate cancer and graft-versus-host disease). The correlations between CNPs and genome-wide association studies-SNPs were investigated and several loci, which were previously unreported, that may potentially be implicated in complex diseases and traits were found; for example, childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, age-related macular degeneration, breast cancer, response to antipsychotic treatment, rheumatoid arthritis and type-1 diabetes. Additionally, we also found 5014 novel copy number loci that have not been reported previously by McCarroll et al. (2008) in the 10 populations.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  12. Fulltext Antibiotics for URTI and UTI -- prescribing in Malaysian primary care settings
    Teng CL, Tong SF, Khoo EM, Lee V, Zailinawati AH, Mimi O, et al.
    Aust Fam Physician, 2011 May;40(5):325-9.
    PMID: 21597554
    Background: Overprescription of antibiotics is a continuing problem in primary care. This study aims to assess the antibiotic prescribing rates and antibiotic choices for upper respiratory tract infections (URTI) and urinary tract infections (UTI) in Malaysian primary care.
    Method: Antibiotic prescribing data for URTI and UTI was extracted from a morbidity survey of randomly selected primary care clinics in Malaysia.
    Results: Analysis was performed of 1163 URTI and 105 UTI encounters. Antibiotic prescribing rates for URTI and UTI were 33.8% and 57.1% respectively. Antibiotic prescribing rates were higher in private clinics compared to public clinics for URTI, but not for UTI. In URTI encounters, the majority of antibiotics prescribed were penicillins and macrolides, but penicillin V was notably underused. In UTI encounters, the antibiotics prescribed were predominantly penicillins or cotrimoxazole.
    Discussion: Greater effort is needed to bring about evidence based antibiotic prescribing in Malaysian primary care, especially for URTIs in private clinics.
    Keywords: general practice, prescriptions, drug; upper respiratory tract infection; urinary tract infection; antibiotics, guideline; evidence based medicine
    Study site: Klinik Kesihatan, Malaysia
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  13. Mammographic screening practices among Chinese-Australian women
    Kwok C, Fethney J, White K
    J Nurs Scholarsh, 2012 Mar;44(1):11-8.
    PMID: 22151348 DOI: 10.1111/j.1547-5069.2011.01429.x
    To report mammographic screening practice among Chinese-Australian women, and to examine the relationship between demographic characteristics, acculturation factors (English proficiency and length of stay in Australia), cultural beliefs, and having a mammogram as recommended.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  14. Replication of 13 obesity loci among Singaporean Chinese, Malay and Asian-Indian populations
    Dorajoo R, Blakemore AI, Sim X, Ong RT, Ng DP, Seielstad M, et al.
    Int J Obes (Lond), 2012 Jan;36(1):159-63.
    PMID: 21544081 DOI: 10.1038/ijo.2011.86
    Recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified 38 obesity-associated loci among European populations. However, their contribution to obesity in other ethnicities is largely unknown.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  15. Screening for urinary tract infection in women with hyperemesis gravidarum
    Tan PC, King AS, Omar SZ
    J Obstet Gynaecol Res, 2012 Jan;38(1):145-53.
    PMID: 21955280 DOI: 10.1111/j.1447-0756.2011.01652.x
    AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate urine microscopy, dipstick analysis and urinary symptoms in screening for urinary tract infection (UTI) in hyperemesis gravidarum (HG).
    MATERIALS AND METHODS:   A prospective cross-sectional study was performed on women at first hospitalization for HG. A clean-catch mid-stream urine sample from each recruit was sent for microscopy (for bacteria, leucocytes and erythrocytes), dipstick analysis (for leukocyte esterase, nitrites, protein and hemoglobin) and microbiological culture. The presence of current urinary symptoms was elicited by questionnaire. UTI is defined as at least 10(5) colony-forming units/mL of a single uropathogen on culture. Screening test parameters were analyzed against UTI.
    RESULTS: UTI was diagnosed in 15/292 subjects (5.1%). Receiver-operator characteristic curve analysis of microscopic urine leucocytes revealed area under the curve=0.64, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.5-0.79, P=0.063 and erythrocytes area under the curve=0.53, 95%CI 0.39-0.67, P=0.67 for UTI indicating the limited screening utility of these parameters. Microscopic bacteriuria (likelihood ratio [LR] 1.1, 95%CI 0.7-1.5) and urine dipstick leukocyte esterase (LR 1.4, 95%CI 1.1-1.8), nitrites (LR 2.3, 95%CI 0.3-17.2), protein (LR 1.0, 95%CI 0.7-1.6) and hemoglobin (LR 0.8, 95%CI 0.4-1.5) were not useful screening tests for UTI in HG. Elicited symptoms were also not predictive of UTI.
    CONCLUSION: Urine microscopy, dipstick analysis and urinary symptoms were not useful in screening for UTI in HG. UTI should be established by urine culture in HG before starting antibiotic treatment.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  16. Lack of association between synapsin II (SYN2) gene polymorphism and susceptibility epilepsy: a case-control study and meta-analysis
    Haerian BS, Lim KS, Tan HJ, Wong CP, Wong SW, Tan CT, et al.
    Synapse, 2011 Oct;65(10):1073-9.
    PMID: 21465568 DOI: 10.1002/syn.20939
    The SYN2 rs3773364 A>G polymorphism has been proposed to be involved in susceptibility to epilepsy, but research results have been inconclusive. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the SYN2 rs3773364 A>G polymorphism and susceptibility against epilepsy in a case-control study and a meta-analysis.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  17. Genomic copy number variations in three Southeast Asian populations
    Ku CS, Pawitan Y, Sim X, Ong RT, Seielstad M, Lee EJ, et al.
    Hum Mutat, 2010 Jul;31(7):851-7.
    PMID: 20506136 DOI: 10.1002/humu.21287
    Research on the role of copy number variations (CNVs) in the genetic risk of diseases in Asian populations has been hampered by a relative lack of reference CNV maps for Asian populations outside the East Asians. In this article, we report the population characteristics of CNVs in Chinese, Malay, and Asian Indian populations in Singapore. Using the Illumina Human 1M Beadchip array, we identify 1,174 CNV loci in these populations that corroborated with findings when the same samples were typed on the Affymetrix 6.0 platform. We identify 441 novel loci not previously reported in the Database of Genomic Variations (DGV). We observe a considerable number of loci that span all three populations and were previously unreported, as well as population-specific loci that are quite common in the respective populations. From this we observe the distribution of CNVs in the Asian Indian population to be considerably different from the Chinese and Malay populations. About half of the deletion loci and three-quarters of duplication loci overlap UCSC genes. Tens of loci show population differentiation and overlap with genes previously known to be associated with genetic risk of diseases. One of these loci is the CYP2A6 deletion, previously linked to reduced susceptibility to lung cancer.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  18. Translational aspects of genetic factors in the prediction of drug response variability: a case study of warfarin pharmacogenomics in a multi-ethnic cohort from Asia
    Chan SL, Suo C, Lee SC, Goh BC, Chia KS, Teo YY
    Pharmacogenomics J, 2012 Aug;12(4):312-8.
    PMID: 21383771 DOI: 10.1038/tpj.2011.7
    Genetic markers displaying highly significant statistical associations with complex phenotypes may not necessarily possess sufficient clinical validity to be useful. Understanding the contribution of these markers beyond readily available clinical biomarkers is particularly important in pharmacogenetics. We demonstrate the utility of genetic testing using the example of warfarin in a multi-ethnic setting comprising of three Asian populations that are broadly representative of the genetic diversity for half of the population in the world, especially as distinct interethnic differences in warfarin dose requirements have been previously established. We confirmed the roles of three well-established loci (CYP2C9, VKORC1 and CYP4F2) in explaining warfarin dosage variation in the three Asian populations. In addition, we assessed the relationship between ethnicity and the genotypes of these loci, observing strong correlations at VKORC1 and CYP4F2. Subsequently, we established the additional utility of these genetic factors in predicting warfarin dose beyond ethnicity and clinical biomarkers through performing a series of systematic cross-validation analyses of the relative predictive accuracies of various fixed-dose regimen, clinical and genetic models. Through a pharmacogenetics model for warfarin, we show the importance of genetic testing beyond readily available clinical biomarkers in predicting dose requirements, confirming the role of genetic profiling in personalized medicine.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  19. Fulltext Diagnostic value of anti-modified citrullinated vimentin in rheumatoid arthritis
    Maraina CH, Nurdayana AK, Rusni D, Azwany Y
    Int J Rheum Dis, 2010 Oct;13(4):335-9.
    PMID: 21199468 DOI: 10.1111/j.1756-185X.2010.01552.x
    BACKGROUND: Rheumatoid factors (RF) are currently used in the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Several other autoantibodies found in RA are directed to epitopes in citrullinated proteins such as anti-cyclic citrullinated and recently anti-modified citrullinated vimentin (MCV).
    OBJECTIVE: In this study we determined the sensitivity and specificity of anti-MCV in comparison with anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibodies and RF in RA patients and in a control group using the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria as the gold standard.
    MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross sectional study was conducted from January to December 2008 on 100 patients with RA and 153 patients with arthritis or arthralgia but not fulfilling ACR criteria for RA. Serum from each subject was tested for anti-MCV, anti-CCP antibodies and immunoglobulin G (IgG) RF by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Sensitivity and specificity of the tests were evaluated using the ACR criteria as the gold standard.
    RESULTS: The sensitivity of RF was 85% with 74.5% specificity. For anti-CCP antibodies the sensitivity was 71% and the specificity was 94.8%. The sensitivity of anti-MCV antibodies was 80% with 59.5% specificity. The area under the curve for RF was 0.759, for anti-CCP antibodies was 0.866 and for anti-MCV antibodies was 0.681, while for at least one positive test it was 0.691.
    CONCLUSION: Anti-CCP antibodies have higher diagnostic specificity and positive predictive value than RF and anti-MCV antibodies. RF has the highest sensitivity when compared to anti-CCP and anti-MCV antibodies. Thus anti-MCV antibody is not a better marker when compared to RF or anti-MCV antibody in the diagnosis of RA patients.

    Study site: family medicine clinic, rheumatology clinic and immunology laboratory of Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM), Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
  20. Fulltext The prevalence of acute respiratory symptoms and role of protective measures among Malaysian hajj pilgrims
    Deris ZZ, Hasan H, Sulaiman SA, Wahab MS, Naing NN, Othman NH
    J Travel Med, 2010 Mar-Apr;17(2):82-8.
    PMID: 20412173 DOI: 10.1111/j.1708-8305.2009.00384.x
    BACKGROUND: Respiratory symptoms including cough, runny nose, sore throat, and fever are the most common clinical manifestations faced by hajj pilgrims in Mecca. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of respiratory symptoms among Malaysian hajj pilgrims and the effect of a few protective measures taken by hajj pilgrims to reduce respiratory symptoms.
    METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted by distributing survey forms to Malaysian hajj pilgrims at transit center before flying back to Malaysia. The recruitment of respondents to the survey was on a voluntary basis.
    RESULTS: A total of 387 survey forms were available for analysis. The mean age was 50.4 +/- 11.0 years. The common respiratory symptoms among Malaysian hajj pilgrims were: cough 91.5%, runny nose 79.3%, fever 59.2%, and sore throat 57.1%. The prevalence of hajj pilgrims with triad of cough, subjective fever, and sore throat were 40.1%. The symptoms lasted less than 2 weeks in the majority of cases. Only 3.6% did not suffer from any of these symptoms. Seventy-two percent of hajj pilgrims received influenza vaccination before departure and 72.9% wore facemasks. Influenza vaccination was not associated with any of respiratory symptoms but it was significantly associated with longer duration of sore throat. Wearing masks was significantly associated with sore throat and longer duration of sore throat and fever.
    CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of respiratory symptoms was high among Malaysian hajj pilgrims and the current protective measures seemed inadequate to reduce it. Beside standardization of the term used in hajj studies, more collaborative effort should be taken to reduce respiratory symptoms. The hajj authority should prepare for the challenge of pandemic influenza by providing more healthcare facilities and implementation of more strict measures to reduce the transmission of pandemic influenza strain among hajj pilgrims.
    Matched MeSH terms: Malaysia/ethnology
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