Several studies on job stress have been conducted among nurses, teachers, clerks, lecturers, laboratory technicians, petroleum and automotive workers and the calculated prevalences ranged from 20-35%; associated factors identified include high job demand, low job control and poor social support. Thus, the aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence and associated factors of stress in dental healthcare workers of an institution of higher learning in Kelantan. A cross-sectional study of the prevalence and associated factors of stress in 54 dental healthcare workers of an institution of higher learning in Kelantan [response rate of 63.5 percent] was conducted in March 2006. The Malay version of the validated Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale and Karasek’s Job Content Questionnaire were used as research instruments in this study. Informed consents were obtained from all participants. The prevalence of stress was 22.2%. One (1.9%) staff member experienced severe stress whilst 20.4% experienced mild to moderate stress. After controlling for age, sex, marital status and duration of work, psychological job demand (adj. b 0.61, 95% CI 0.21, 1.00, p=0.003), toxic exposures (adj. b 1.41, 95% CI 0.47, 2.35, p=0.004) and overtime work (adj. b 5.67, 95% CI - 1.18, 10.16, p=0.015) were directly associated with reported stress in dental healthcare workers. High psychological job demand, increased toxic exposures at work and increased overtime work were significantly associated with stress in dental healthcare workers. These findings can be used to guide preventive measures to reduce stress in dental healthcare settings.
Ambulatory surgery has now becoming increasingly popular and it is generally well accepted. Major complications following ambulatory surgery are very rare but certain postoperative symptoms can be very unpleasant and distressing to the patients. Follow-up phone calls regarding their well being at home following the surgery may give us the clue and allow us to identify certain problems that can be sorted out immediately or as a reference for a better service in future. The present study was carried out to determine the prevalence of common postoperative symptoms and their subsequent effects within 24 hours after ambulatory surgery by follow-up phone calls. We prospectively studied 199 ASA I and II patients, but only 187 patients were analyzed. Patients had undergone general surgery, orthopaedic, urology, gynaecology or ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgery. Pain was scored based on Numerical Rating Scale (NRS). Majority of patients (70.8%) had only mild pain prior to discharge home. At 24 hours postoperatively, pain was the commonest symptom reported (92.5%) followed by sleepiness (72.2%), dizziness (49.7%), sore throat (17.1%), nausea and vomiting (7.5%) and headache (7%). Sleep was mildly affected in nearly 50% of the patients. Fifty seven percent of patients did not need assistance in performing daily activities during the 24 hours, post surgery. Majority of patients were satisfied (81.3%) with ambulatory surgery. In conclusion, pain was the commonest postoperative symptom encountered following the surgery. Sleep was mildly affected by the postoperative symptoms. Most of the patients did not need assistance in performing their daily activities following surgery. All patients were able to return to at least more than 50% of their normal daily activities at 24 hours after the surgery. Overall satisfaction towards ambulatory surgery was good.
Globally, one person dies every six seconds as a result of tobacco use. This makes tobacco use the cause of every one out of 10 deaths in adults and the single largest and leading cause of preventable death in the world. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of smoking among staff of Universiti Putra Malaysia. For the purpose of this study an analytical cross sectional study design was used and a standardized, pre-tested, while a validated well-structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The prevalence of smoking was found to be 10.0% (26.5% among males and 0.5% among females). In addition, significant associations were found between smoking and gender, religion, marital status, highest educational level, occupation, and family income (p < 0.05). In particular, gender and educational level were significant predictors of smoking. In conclusion, the prevalence of smoking among university staff was shown to be considerably lower than that stated for the national level. However, the University could aim at achieving zero prevalence in the years to come.
As the sugar intake of Malaysians is one of the highest in the Asia Pacific region, we wanted to investigate how this high prevalence of ‘sweet tooth’ is influenced by biological determinants like age, gender, ethnicity and Body Mass Index (BMI). Therefore, this study was to determine the demographic and BMI differences of preference, intake frequency and craving of a list of sweet beverages and food among Malaysian subjects. Convenience sampling was performed around Kuala Lumpur, with informed consents, involving 367 multi-ethnic subjects (163 males, 204 females; 83 Malays, 201 Chinese, 83 Indians; 209 lean, 158 overweight). Demographics and anthropometric measurements were taken and questionnaire on the preference/frequency/craving of a list of 22 sweet food and beverages with a 7 point hedonic scale (from 1= very unpleasant/never/never crave to 7 = very pleasant/at least once a day/ always crave) was performed. Females significantly preferred more, took less frequently but had equal craving of sweet foods compared to males. Lean subjects and those
PURPOSE: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of poor visual acuity, colour blindness and visual field defect of new Malaysian drivers.
METHODS: A total of 3717 new drivers (50.2% males and 49.8% females) age 19±6 years, voluntarily participated in this study. Standard optometric apparatus such as LogMAR Charts, Ishihara plates and HandHeld Bernell Perimeter were used and standard procedures were applied.
RESULTS: The visual examination showed 6.7% (n=250) of subjects achieved less than 0.3 LogMAR with better eye whilst 2.2% (n=83) had failed the Ishihara Test (2.1% males and 0.1% females). Most of the affected drivers were deutranopia. Only 2094 subjects had their visual field using a mobile Handheld Bernell Perimeter. 1.72% (n=36) subjects have less than 120 degrees of peripheral field of vision.
CONCLUSIONS: The visual status among new Malaysian drivers needs to be taken seriously to ensure safe driving. Other factors such as colour vision and visual field screening have to be considered seriously when evaluating the visual performance of a driver. Good visual performance is indispensible for safe driving.
One of the commonest psychological problems that a clinician would encounter in primary care is depression. The prevalence of depression is high in women, the elderly and those with underlying physical problems or during the postpartum period. The spectrum of clinical presentations is wide and somatic complaints are more common in primary care clinics. Depression may present as a primary disorder and co-morbidity with other psychological problems or physical illnesses is high. A good clinical interview is an important form of assessment and a quick screening of depression can be done with the administration of proper rating scales, such as the Patient Health Questionnaire, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale or Geriatric Depression Scale. Repeated use of the same scale in a patient would help the clinician to monitor the progress objectively.
Objective: This review paper will be discussing on mental health of children and adolescents in Malaysia. Behavioural problems, academic failure and underachievement in school are common reasons for referral of children to the medical services. Epidemiological research has substantiated a possible seriously mismatch between the rates of child mental health problems across a broad spectrum and the number of children actually referred to existing services. These data suggest it is imperative in Malaysia to empirically investigate the present realities in the schools in regard to special education needs and their neglect. Methods: The present preliminary study is based on a literature review of epidemiological features of learning disorders and comorbidities using the Cochran library key word search. Available statistics for learning disorders from the WHO are compared with records for the
year 2007 from the Ministry of Education in Malaysia. Results: Findings of this comparison with international prevalence rates of learning disorders and related diseases show a sizable gap between real existing needs in Malaysia, and their perception. Based on quantitative estimates, the findings suggest that some 1.4 million children in Malaysia have mental health difficulties that interfere with normal functioning and development, but adequate services for intervention are largely not available. Conclusion: The present undersupply of adequate service for children with learning difficulties is aggravated by the lack of systematic developmental screening in early childhood in Malaysia. This status affects the outcomes and development of the general education system in efforts to meet challenges in the new century.
Objective: Female sexual dysfunction is a known complication of diabetes mellitus. The aims of this study is to estimate the prevalence of sexual dysfunction and the types of sexual dysfunction experienced by Malay women with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Methods: Cross sectional study was conducted on married Malay women with type 2 diabetes mellitus, receiving treatment from two community clinics in Selangor, Malaysia. Female sexual function was assessed using Malay version of Female Sexual Function Index.
Results: This study found that sexual dysfunction was present among 18.2% women. Lack of libido was the commonest symptom among these women and was observed in 40.9% of women followed by sexual dissatisfaction (36.4%). Sexual arousal disorder was observed in 22.7%, 18.2% complained of lack of lubrication, and 22.7% had vaginal discomfort. Orgasmic dysfunction was found in only 4.5% of these women.
Conclusion: This preliminary research showed sexual desire disorder was the commonest type of sexual disorder among diabetic women.
Objective: This paper aimed to determine the prevalence of sleeping pills use among university students and its associated factors in Malaysia. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in January 2010 among 200 Malaysia. The survey was conducted by distributing self-administered questionnaires. The questionnaire was developed based on the literature review. The students were chosen randomly using convenience sampling.
Results: A total of 200 university students participated in this study. The prevalence of using sleeping pills among university students is 7.5%. The majority of the participants were Malay 146 (73.0%), from urban area 169 (84.5%), from medical and health sciences background 101 (50.5%). This study showed that there is a significant relationship between using sleeping pills and depression (p= 0.03). There is also a significant relationship between
using sleeping pills and inducing sleep by reading (p=0.04). Conclusion: The prevalence of sleeping pills usage among university students is relatively high. This study showed that there is a significant relationship between using sleeping pills and depression.
The objective of this study is to identify the type of occupational related musculoskeletal disorder among Malaysian Shipping Industry workers and to determine the relationship between workers sosio demographic factors with occupational related musculoskeletal disorder and injuries. This is a cross sectional, retrospective study using secondary data that is available at the physiotherapy centre of Malaysia Shipping in Selangor. The study population is the shipping port workers received physiotherapy treatment from 2011 and 2012. A total of 90 samples comprise of 85 male workers and the remaining is female. The mean age is 34.1 (±7.36). Crane operator is the largest number of workers seeks for physiotherapy treatment (68), office (15) and 7 from maintenance. The mean of employment duration is 8.02 (±4.47) years with the maintenance group of workers have longest working duration of 9 years. Muscle and ligament sprain strain known to be the commonest condition (80%) refer for physiotherapy rehabilitation, tendinitis (14%) and fracture (6%). Young age group of workers were significantly 9 times higher (95% CI 1.83 – 40.35) of getting back injuries. The prevalence of musculoskeletal disorder based on work categories vary with office type workers has 4.5 times higher (95% CI 1.06 – 19.7) on hand injuries. This study has revealed that workers age, different type of work categories, working experience, and body mass composition were associates with the occupational related injuries. The training programme emphasise on preventive measures should be tailored to empower the employee on safety measures at work.
Comparative cross sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence of hearing impairment among workers in one of the airport in Malaysia and the factors associated with it. A total of 248 subjects comprising 175 from the exposed group and the remaining control group were sampled. The main tools used in this study were validated questionnaire on hearing assessment and pure tone audiometric test. Response rate was 94%. Both area and personal exposure monitoring have exceeded action level for 8 Hrs TWA in the exposed group but within normal limit in the control group. The prevalence of hearing impairment was 88% among the noise exposed group and 11% in the control group with prevalence odds ratio (POR) 3.569 (95%CI 1.210-10.53, p
Occupational health hazards as a result to exposure to mineral dust containing silica has been established long time ago in occupational health history. Its effects on lung function and symptom was evaluated in a cross sectional studied among 49 small enterprise pottery workers in the county of Sayong clustered in 3 villages. Respiratory symptoms and lung function was evaluated using MRC respiratory questionnaire 86 and standard spirometry performed. The prevalence of chronic cough, phlegm and chest tightness was 24.5%, 16% and16% respectively. There was no significant decrement in lung function parameters from the predicted normal value with the mean predicted FVC; FEV1 and FEV1/FVC ratio was 85.32%, 83.87% and 99.22 respectively. The relationship between lung symptoms and lung function parameters was evaluated and the result was not significant.
Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is the most common enzyme deficiency worldwide including Malaysia. Screening of cord blood for partial G6PD deficiency is important as they are also prone to develop acute haemolysis. In this study, we determined the prevalence of partial G6PD deficient in paediatric population aged 1 month-12 years and normal term female neonates using OSMMR-D kit with haemoglobin (Hb) normalization and compare it with florescence spot test (FST). A total of 236 children, aged between between 1 month-12 years and 614 normal term female neonates were recruited for this study. Determination of normal means for G6PD activity and; cut-off points for partial and severe deficiency were determined according to WHO Working Group (1989). Determination of prevalence for partial deficiency for both groups (female patient) was done using this enzyme assay kit and findings were compared with FST. In this study, 15.7% (18/115) female children were classified as partial G6PD deficient by quantitative enzyme method (G6PD activity: 4.23-5.26U/gHb). However, FST only detected 0.9% (1/115) with minimal G6PD activity. The prevalence of partial G6PD deficiency in female neonate group was 3.42% (21/614) by enzyme assay versus 0.49% (3/614) by FST. This study concluded that our routine screening method using FST was unable to diagnose female heterozygotes. We recommend using this quantitative enzyme assay method by OSMMR-D kit since it was more sensitive in detecting G6PD deficiency in female neonates compared to FST.
The prevalence of tooth loss amongst the elderly is generally very high. Hence mastication and subsequently nutrition is greatly affected leading to the impairment of their general health. Therefore denture construction is an important aspect in the rehabilitation of the oral and general health in most elderlies. However, poorly constructed dentures and lack of maintenance coupled with various other health and healthrelated problems of the elderly, for instance poor general health especially with immunocompromised states, multiple medication intake, xerostomia, reduced mobility, economic status, mental state and ignorance may all lead to discomfort and denture associated lesions in these elderly patients. No regional studies or data on denture-related lesions in the general population have been reported. Previous epidemiological studies of adults in Malaysia (1,2) and other local studies have not investigated lesions of the oral tissues associated with geriatric denture wearers although studies in developed countries, where prevalence of denture usage is high, have noted that denture-related lesions to be the most common group of oral mucosal lesions in the elderly (3-7). As has been reported in most developing countries, the proportion of elderly in Malaysia is also increasing. It has also been noted that the mean number of teeth present decreases as age increases; in those between 15 to 19 years, all 28 teeth are present, 35 to 44 years-old have 23 teeth whereas those above 65 years retain only 12 teeth. Edentulousness increases from 0% to 7.3% to 56.6% in these age groups respectively (2). It is anticipated that with the increasing population of the elderly in Malaysia and the improving economy, the proportion of denture wearers in the population will increase. In view of the lack of investigations in Malaysia focusing exclusively on this group of lesions, it is therefore the aim of this pilot investigation to highlight the prevalence of denture- related lesions in a representative population of the elderly living in the community, both in the urban and rural areas. It may also form a basis against which future studies can be compared.
To date, fluorides has remained to be the best means of controlling dental caries. Fluoride is given either systematically via fluoridated water or topically through other supplements including toothpastes. In recent years increasing prevalence of enamel defects or fluorosis is observed in both populations receiving or not receiving water fluoridation. It is suspected that excessive ingestion of a "standard" 1000 to 1500 ppm fluoride from toothpastes might be a contributing factor to the presence of such defects. In Malaysia, reports of enamel defects occurring amongst 12 to 16 year-old schoolchildren ranged between 67 to 88 percent. Where water fluoridation is available, the amount of fluorides received from the home is between 0.3 to 0.5 ppm F. However, almost all toothpastes sold locally contains fluoride, the content of which is unknown to the consumers. This study reports on the analysis of fluoride levels carried out on 20 toothpaste samples sold locally. Results showed that fluoride levels in all 20 samples ranged between 20 to 1970 ppm F. Only two of the 20 samples analyzed, however, indicated having a level anywhere near the "standard" level. In addition, only two type~ of children's toothpaste with a fluoride concentration of 20 and 450 ppm F were commonly available as compared to adult toothpastes in all the samples studied.
Despite awareness of the detrimental effects of smoking, many adolescents initiate or continue to smoke. One possible explanation for smoking 13 the belief that it can control body weight. The objective of this study was to determine the association between Body Mass Index and smoking among Malay adolescents in Kota Bharu, Kelantan. A cross·sectional study was conducted between January to June 2005 among 1364 students selected from ten co»educational government secondary schools in Kota Bharu using stratified multistage cluster sampling. Guided self-administered questionnaire and anthropometric measurement were taken. Data was entered using SPSS 12.0 and analysed using STATA 8.0. The overall prevalence of smoking was 6. 7%. The prevalence of smoking among boys was 13.8% and among girls was 1.1%. There was no association between Body Mass Index and smoking. However, the findings may not be generalized to out-of·school youth and other ethnic groups in this country. The study was not conducted anonymously and the use of questionnaire to report smoking status can lead to measurement bias. Strategies aimed at correcting the belief that smoking can reduce weight should be included as one of the components in the prevention of smoking.
The high morbidity and mortality caused by smoking is a major public health problem today. Smoking prevention has been acknowledged and identified as a long-term measure to overcome this problem. This is a longitudinal knowledge; attitude and practice (KAP) study among form five students over l year. The response rate at follow‘up was 251/337 (74.5 %). The smoking prevalence changed after 1 year (from 29.7% to 26. 7%) after one year. The male to female smoking rates were 52.1% to 3.1% respectively. Students who smoke were found to have a positive attitude as well as poor knowledge of the risks of smoking. The initiation risk factors identified were being male and having a friend who smokes Positive peer influence also contributed to smoking cessation after a period of one year. Holistic measures that stress on micro macro and approaches such as health education programe to enhance knowledge of smoking hazards and community participation ( cooperation of school, family and community member) should be fomtulated in order to reduce initiation of smoking among the adolescents. Quit smoking programmes must also be readily available.
Recent years have witnessed unprecedented changes in the design and demands of work, and the emergence of job stress as a major concern. The aim of the study was to determine the psychosocial problems in relation to nature of work among female nurses at Hospital Selayang. The study was a cross-sectional study and the study population comprised of female nurses who are currently working at Hospital Selayang. A total of 393 study subjects were randomly selected and each respondent has been given a set of complete validated self-administrated Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire. The result showed that the prevalence of having psychosocial problems was 24.9%. It is show that married nurses with more than three children has 3.54 (95%CI: 1.81-6.94) higher risks to have the problems compared to those with 3 or less children. Shiftwork nurses have 1.74 (95%CI: 1.01-2.99) more risk to have psychosocial problems compared to those who are not doing shiftwork. From the crude odds ratio, nurses who have served the service for more than seven years, there was 1.53 times more risk (95%CI: 0.89-2.63) to have psychosocial problems compared to those who only have service of seven years or less. From multivariate analysis, the risk of having psychosocial problems among nurses who are doing shiftwork found to be two times greater than those who are not doing shiftwork (OR=2.15; 95%CI: 1.12- 4.11) . Psychosocial problems in relation to nature of work among nurses at Hospital Selayang are higher among nurses who are doing shdtwork. The hospital management needs to overcome the problems and organizing the mental health programs among workers.
Children less than 6 years old are the most vulnerable group to get harm from Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) exposure, especially their respiratory system. To determine the prevalence of ETS exposure and its association with asthma like symptoms among children less than 6 years old. A cross sectional study was conducted in between January till April 2014 among parents with children less than 6 years old in Selangor, Malaysia. A total of 142 parents were selected by simple random sampling and data were collected using guided questionnaire on ETS exposure and asthma like symptoms (cough and wheeze) among their children. A total of 52.8% of children found to be exposed to ETS, and 43.7% were exposed from their father. ETS exposure significantly associated with cough without cold (adjusted OR=5.46, 95% CI 2.37, 12.61), dry cough at night (adjusted OR=3.74, 95%CI 1.41, 9.95) and cough upon physical activity (adjusted OR=3.08, 95% 1.07, 8.89) among these children. Children less than 6 years old are vulnerable to respiratory problem due to ETS exposure especially on cough symptoms. More strategies should be developing to reduce the exposure to ETS.
The evolution in lifestyle and dietary habits of the Malaysian people that have taken place over the last few decades can be largely attributed to both family and social environment. These factors are known to affect the nutritional status of the community, in both children and adults. Reduced physical activity and changes in their diet have been one of the contributing factors to the rising prevalence of overweight and obesity. However, in Malaysia, in which nutrition transition has been a norm, it is worrying when the trends of overweight and obesity have been rising steadily over the years especially among children. Although numerous strategies to control obesity in Malaysia have been taking place, many had shown little effect. Analysing strategies implemented at national level is thus crucial in order to ascertain reasons for the shortfalls of these strategies especially among children. Obesity most commonly begins as early as the ages of 5 and 6 years, or during adolescence. Obesity is indeed a major public health concern due to its huge negative impact on the society at large which is well supported by evidence-based literatures. Managing this issue is complex and holistic approach is thus crucial in reducing its incidence and prevalence.