METHODS: Head and neck cancer patients were recruited from July 2016 till March 2017 at National Cancer Institute, Ministry of Health, Malaysia. All study participants continued their standard oncology surveillance. Treatment group participants additionally received Chinese herbal treatment. The assessments included unstimulated salivary flow rate (USFR), stimulated salivary flow rate (SSFR), and QoL questionnaire.
RESULTS: Of 42 recruited participants, 28 were in the treatment group and 14 were in the control group. Participants were mainly Chinese (71.4%), stage III cancer (40.5%), and had nasopharynx cancer (76.2%). The commonly used single herbs were Wu Mei, San Qi, and Tian Hua Fen. Sha Shen Mai Dong Tang, Liu Wei Di Huang Wan, and Gan Lu Yin were the frequently prescribed herbal formulas. The baseline characteristics, USFR, SSFR, and QoL between control and treatment groups were comparable (p > 0.05). USFR between control and treatment groups were similar throughout the 6-month study period. SSFR for the treatment group significantly improved from 0.15 ± 0.28 ml/min (baseline) to 0.32 ± 0.22 ml/min (p = 0.04; at the 3rd month) and subsequently achieved 0.46 ± 0.23 ml/min (p = 0.001; at the 6th month). The treatment group had better QoL in terms of speech (p = 0.005), eating (p = 0.02), and head and neck pain (p = 0.04) at the 6th month.
CONCLUSION: Herbal treatment may improve xerostomia and QoL in post-radiotherapy head and cancer patients.
METHODS: We conducted a prospective study of patients with confirmed urodynamic stress incontinence (USI) who underwent a Monarc(TM) TOT procedure in a tertiary center between February 2006 and March 2009 without other concurrent surgical procedures. Urodynamics were conducted at 1 and 3 years postoperatively. Subjective evaluation included Incontinence Impact Questionnaire (IIQ-7), Urinary Distress Inventory Questionnaire (UDI-6), and Pelvic Organ Prolapse/Urinary Incontinence Sexual Questionnaire (PISQ-12). Objective cure was defined as no urinary leakage demonstrable on provocative filling cystometry and/ or 1-h pad test of <2 g. Subjective cure was based on a negative response to question 3 in UDI-6. Paired-samples t test, chi-square, and Fisher exact tests were applied; p
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) using outpatient population diabetic patients. Demographic data on social and clinical characteristics were collected from participants. Several questionnaires were administered, including the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) to measure depressive symptoms, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) to assess anxiety symptoms, the Big Five Inventory (BFI) to evaluate personality traits, and the WHO Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF) to assess QOL. Multivariate binary logistic regression was performed to determine the predictors of poor glycaemic control.
Results: 300 patients with diabetes mellitus were recruited, with the majority (90%) having type 2 diabetes. In this population, the prevalence of poor glycaemic control (HbA1C ≥ 7.0%) was 69%, with a median HbA1C of 7.6% (IQR = 2.7). Longer duration of diabetes mellitus and a greater number of days of missed medications predicted poor glycaemic control, while older age and overall self-perception of QOL protected against poor glycaemic control. No psychological factors were associated with poor glycaemic control.
Conclusion: This study emphasizes the importance of considering the various factors that contribute to poor glycaemic control, such as duration of diabetes, medication adherence, age, and QOL. These findings should be used by clinicians, particularly when planning a multidisciplinary approach to the management of diabetes.
METHODS: A qualitative design, using semi-structured in-depth interviews with 10 young women with breast cancer who underwent mastectomy, was conducted between June to December 2022.
RESULTS: Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data, and five main themes were identified: (1) psychological and emotional well-being (altered self-esteem and femininity, impact on sexual life and relationships, psychological distress associated with mastectomy, mirror trauma and the need for psychological care); (2) body image and breast reconstruction (the dilemma over reconstruction decision, body image and clothing and lack of access to prosthetic information/services); (3) social and interpersonal factors (lack of marriage choices and society's view and stigma); (4) coping mechanisms with mastectomy effects (family support; faith in god almighty; comparing their situation to others and use of prosthetics) and (5) physical health and functioning (physical effects on mobility and function).
CONCLUSION: Mastectomy has significant physical, emotional, and social consequences on young women with breast cancer, particularly in crisis-affected Syria where access to breast reconstruction is limited. It is crucial for healthcare professionals to understand these impacts, to raise awareness, encourage early detection, and promote less aggressive treatments to improve women's quality of life.
METHODS: A cross-sectional survey among community dwelling older persons utilizing stratified cluster sampling was conducted in 2018. Well-trained interviewers conducted a face-to-face interview with older persons aged ≥60 years to collect information on participants' sociodemographic characteristics, self-perception on general as well as oral health using the Geriatric Oral Health Assessment Index (GOHAI). Multivariate analysis of the data collected was performed using SPSS version 23.
RESULTS: Overall, the GOHAI mean ± SD score for older persons in Malaysia was 51.83 ± 7.98, which was an average of fair mean (P
METHODS: A total of 429 respondents diagnosed with urologic cancers (prostate cancer, bladder and renal cancer) from Sarawak General Hospital and Subang Jaya Medical Centre in Malaysia were interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Objective and subjective FT were measured by catastrophic health expenditure (healthcare-cost-to-income ratio greater than 40%) and the Personal Financial Well-being Scale, respectively. HRQoL was measured with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy - General 7 Items scale.
RESULTS: Objective and subjective FT were experienced by 16.1 and 47.3% of the respondents, respectively. Respondents who sought treatment at a private hospital and had out-of-pocket health expenditures were more likely to experience objective FT, after adjustment for covariates. Respondents who were female and had a monthly household income less than MYR 5000 were more likely to experience average to high subjective FT. Greater objective FT (OR = 2.75, 95% CI 1.09-6.95) and subjective FT (OR = 4.68, 95% CI 2.63-8.30) were associated with poor HRQoL.
CONCLUSIONS: The significant association between both objective and subjective FT and HRQoL highlights the importance of reducing FT among urologic cancer patients. Subjective FT was found to have a greater negative impact on HRQoL.
METHODS: This was a prospective, cross-sectional study. A total of 429 respondents diagnosed with urologic cancers (prostate, bladder and renal cancer) from Sarawak General Hospital and Subang Jaya Medical Centre in Malaysia were interviewed by using a structured questionnaire. SPB and HRQoL were measured by the Self-perceived Burden Scale and the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General 7 Item Scale respectively.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Self-perceived burden was experienced by 73.2% of the respondents. Respondents who had a lower education level, a monthly household income
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 728 male workers were recruited in March-July 2005 from 2 major automotive assembly plants in Selangor and Pahang. In this cross-sectional study, information on socio-demography, psychosocial work factors using the 97-item Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ) and an abbreviated 26-item version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life-Brief Version (WHOQOL-BREF) questionnaire containing 4 domains (physical health, psychological, social relationship, and environment) was self-administered to all workers involved.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The prevalence of reported good or very good overall HRQOL and general health was 64.9% and 53.7%, respectively. Multiple linear regression analysis indicated that created skill was positively associated with physical health and psychological domains; whilst, skill discretion was positively associated with social relationship and environment domains. Social support was positively associated with physical health and environment domains; whilst, co-worker support was positively associated with psychological and social relationship domains. Job insecurity and hazardous condition were negatively associated with all domains, whilst psychological job demands was negatively associated with the environment domain of HRQOL.
METHODS: In this randomized, double-blind, time-to-event trial, 143 adults were randomly assigned in a 2:1 ratio to receive either intravenous eculizumab (at a dose of 900 mg weekly for the first four doses starting on day 1, followed by 1200 mg every 2 weeks starting at week 4) or matched placebo. The continued use of stable-dose immunosuppressive therapy was permitted. The primary end point was the first adjudicated relapse. Secondary outcomes included the adjudicated annualized relapse rate, quality-of-life measures, and the score on the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS), which ranges from 0 (no disability) to 10 (death).
RESULTS: The trial was stopped after 23 of the 24 prespecified adjudicated relapses, given the uncertainty in estimating when the final event would occur. The mean (±SD) annualized relapse rate in the 24 months before enrollment was 1.99±0.94; 76% of the patients continued to receive their previous immunosuppressive therapy during the trial. Adjudicated relapses occurred in 3 of 96 patients (3%) in the eculizumab group and 20 of 47 (43%) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.06; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.02 to 0.20; P<0.001). The adjudicated annualized relapse rate was 0.02 in the eculizumab group and 0.35 in the placebo group (rate ratio, 0.04; 95% CI, 0.01 to 0.15; P<0.001). The mean change in the EDSS score was -0.18 in the eculizumab group and 0.12 in the placebo group (least-squares mean difference, -0.29; 95% CI, -0.59 to 0.01). Upper respiratory tract infections and headaches were more common in the eculizumab group. There was one death from pulmonary empyema in the eculizumab group.
CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with AQP4-IgG-positive NMOSD, those who received eculizumab had a significantly lower risk of relapse than those who received placebo. There was no significant between-group difference in measures of disability progression. (Funded by Alexion Pharmaceuticals; PREVENT ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01892345; EudraCT number, 2013-001150-10.).