RECENT FINDINGS: A major care gap persists throughout the world in the secondary prevention of fragility fractures. Systematic reviews have confirmed that the Fracture Liaison Service (FLS) model of care is associated with significant improvements in rates of bone mineral density testing, initiation of osteoporosis treatment and adherence with treatment for individuals who sustain fragility fractures. Further, these improvements in the processes of care resulted in significant reductions in refracture risk and lower post-fracture mortality. The primary challenge facing health systems now is to ensure that best practice is delivered effectively in the local healthcare setting. Publication of clinical standards for FLS at the organisational and patient level in combination with the establishment of national registries has provided a mechanism for FLS to benchmark and improve their performance. Major efforts are ongoing at the global, regional and national level to improve the acute care, rehabilitation and secondary prevention for individuals who sustain fragility fractures. Active participation in these initiatives has the potential to eliminate current care gaps in the coming decade.
METHODS: A substudy of a prospective interrupted time series cohort study conducted at three time points in EDs in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia of patients presenting to the ED with dyspnoea as a main symptom. Data were collected over three 72-h periods and included demographics, co-morbidities, mode of arrival, usual medications, ED investigations and treatment, ED diagnosis and disposition, and outcome. The primary outcomes of interest are the epidemiology and outcome of patients aged 75 years or older presenting to the ED with dyspnoea.
RESULTS: 1097 patients were included. Older patients with dyspnoea made up 1.8% [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.7-1.9%] of ED presentations. The most common diagnoses were heart failure (25.3%), lower respiratory tract infection (25.2%) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (17.6%). Hospital ward admission was required for 82.6% (95% CI 80.2-84.7%), with 2.5% (95% CI 1.7-3.6%) requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admission. In-hospital mortality was 7.9% (95% CI 6.3-9.7%). Median length of stay was 5 days (interquartile range 2-8 days).
CONCLUSION: Older patients with dyspnoea make up a significant proportion of ED case load, and have a high admission rate and significant mortality. Exacerbations or worsening of pre-existing chronic disease account for a large proportion of cases which may be amenable to improved chronic disease management.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: RCTs comparing postoperative comorbid disease resolution such as hypertension, dyslipidemia, obstructive sleep apnea, joint and musculoskeletal conditions, gastroesophageal reflux disease, and menstrual irregularities following LVSG and LRYGB were included for analysis. The studies were selected from PubMed, Medline, EMBASE, Science Citation Index, Current Contents, and the Cochrane database and reported on at least one comorbidity resolution or improvement. The present work was undertaken according to the Preferred Reporting Items of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). The Jadad method for assessment of methodological quality was applied to the included studies.
RESULTS: Six RCTs performed between 2005 and 2015 involving a total of 695 patients (LVSG n = 347, LRYGB n = 348) reported on the resolution or improvement of comorbid disease following LVSG and LRYGB procedures. Both bariatric procedures provide effective and almost comparable results in improving or resolving these comorbidities.
CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review of RCTs suggests that both LVSG and LRYGB are effective in resolving or improving preoperative nondiabetic comorbid diseases in obese patients. While results are not conclusive at this time, LRYGB may provide superior results compared to LVSG in mediating the remission and/or improvement in some conditions such as dyslipidemia and arthritis.
METHODS: A total of 473 faecal samples were collected: 256 (54.1%) and 217 (45.9%) samples were obtained during the wet (October-November 2014) and the dry season (June 2015), respectively. All fresh faecal samples were subjected to molecular analysis for subtype and allele identification.
RESULTS: Of the 473 samples, 42.6% and 37.8% were positive for Blastocystis ST1, ST2, ST3 and ST4 during wet and dry seasons, respectively. Prevalence of Blastocystis ST1 was significantly higher during the wet season compared to the dry season (Z = 2.146, P
METHODS: Data on demography, diabetes status, management and complications were collected via medical records, interview and laboratory assessments. HbA(1c) was analysed by a central laboratory prospectively.
RESULTS: Patient profile was similar in the 1998 (N = 21,838) and 2003 cohorts (N = 15,549): 95% were diagnosed as type 2 diabetes mellitus and were obese (BMI approximately 25 kg/m(2)). Glycaemic control was unsatisfactory in many patients (mean HbA(1c) approximately 8%; fasting glucose approximately 9 mmol/L). Lipids were well-controlled but hypertension was not. The incidence of neuropathy ( approximately 33%) and cataract ( approximately 27%) were high. The majority ( approximately 71%) of patients in both cohorts were treated with oral antidiabetic drug (OAD) monotherapy; approximately 24% were on insulin therapy. Approximately half of the 2003 cohort reported a healthy state of well-being. Quality of life did not appear to have suffered as a result of having diabetes. However, many patients were worried about hypoglycaemic risk (53.9%) or worsening of diabetes (45.8%) and insulin initiation (64.5%).
CONCLUSIONS: Although both cohorts were separate cross-sectional studies of diabetes management status in Asia, the results showed that the demography profile, glycaemic control and cardiovascular risk factors were remarkably similar in both cohorts 5 years after the first survey. More concerted efforts are needed to increase diabetes awareness and education.
METHODS: All T2DM patients, who made at least one visit to any of the 58 public health clinics in Kedah during August 2016 and July 2017, were included in this study. The sample was selected from the National Diabetes Registry using the stratified random sampling method. The information on the demographic and clinical characteristics, laboratory findings and pharmacological treatment was gathered from medical records of patients. The differences in mean HbA1C levels across subgroups of each variable were tested using the general linear model. The evaluation of the appropriateness of treatment was performed based on the recommendations of the latest Clinical Practice Guidelines for T2DM.
RESULTS: The patients (n = 23,557) were mainly female (63.4%), of Malay ethnicity (80.1%) and middle-aged (62.2%), with a mean duration of T2DM of 6.2±7.16 years. Only 15.6% of them had a HbA1C level <6.5%, and 28.6% did not have their HbA1C levels tested over the 12-month period. Yet, the underutilization of combination treatment (≥2 antidiabetic agents) and insulin in the patients with a poor glycemic control was evident. Retinopathy emerged as the most prevalent diabetes-related complication (12.6%). Along with those with a longer duration of T2DM, the patients who were younger, female and of Indian ethnicity were found to generally have a poorer glycemic control.
CONCLUSION: This study discloses the suboptimal T2DM management at the primary care level in Kedah, which warrants a statewide plan for improvement.