METHODS: This retrospective cross-sectional study uses data from the Malaysian Psoriasis Registry (MPR) from January 2007 to December 2018.
RESULTS: Of 21 735 psoriasis patients, 34 (0.16%) had coexistent LE. The male to female ratio among psoriasis patients with coexistent LE was 1:5.8 versus 1.3:1 in patients with psoriasis but without LE. Nearly 70% presented with LE preceding psoriasis. Psoriasis patients with LE had an earlier age of psoriasis onset (27.56 ± 11.51 versus 33.31 ± 16.94 years, P = 0.006), a higher rate of psoriatic arthropathy (26.5% versus 13.0%, P = 0.02), and a significantly greater impairment of quality of life (Dermatology Quality of Life Index >10; 57.6% versus 40.3%, P = 0.04) compared with psoriasis patients without LE. The majority (87.5%) had systemic LE. The incidences of lupus nephritis (72.7% versus 40%) and hematological abnormalities (50% versus 20%) were higher among patients with LE preceding psoriasis compared with those with psoriasis preceding LE. Antinuclear antibody and double-stranded DNA were positive in 59.4% and 28.1% of psoriasis patients with LE, respectively. Hydroxychloroquine triggered the onset of psoriasis in 7 (24.1%) patients. Patients with LE were more likely to receive systemic treatment for psoriasis compared with those without LE (30.3% versus 14.2%, P = 0.008).
CONCLUSIONS: Psoriasis patients with coexistent LE were uncommon, displayed a female preponderance, were more likely to have joint involvement, and had greater quality of life impairment than those without LE. LE preceded psoriasis in most of these patients, and systemic LE was the most common subtype.
METHODS: This is a cross sectional study. Myopic children who had been wearing ortho-K and SVSs for 12 months were recruited, and the questionnaires were distributed online. The PREP scores were obtained using a summary scoring method. The Shapiro-Wilk test was used to determine data normality. Unpaired t-test was performed for normally distributed data, and the Mann-Whitney test for non-normally distributed data. P life of myopic school children in Kuala Lumpur. Thus, it should be considered by more local optometrists when managing myopic children.
METHODS: Three patients diagnosed with CGL2 from our center were reviewed. Data on clinical features, results of laboratory analyses, and previous treatments were retrospectively collected. This study also reviewed studies that reported patients diagnosed with CGL2 in the last 30 years.
RESULTS: All patients presented a lack of subcutaneous fat, hypertriglyceridemia, reversed triangular faces, acanthosis nigricans, and hepatomegaly within the first six months of life. All three patients developed splenomegaly, and mental retardation in later life. Dietary control dramatically lowered triglyceride levels in all patients. One patient presented with diabetes mellitus at 1 year-old. Although combined therapy with low fat diet and metformin maintained normal levels of blood lipid and glucose, this patient developed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy at the age of three. By a literature review on all Chinese cases with CGL2, it is known that classic manifestations such as hypertriglyceridemia, hepatomegaly and diabetes mellitus can occur shortly after birth, and early diagnosis and treatment can improve quality of life. In this cohort, the most frequent variations are c.782dupG and c.974dup in the BSCL2 gene. However, the same genotype may have different clinical phenotypes in patients with CGL2.
CONCLUSIONS: This study not only described the clinical and genetic features of three patients with CGL2 in China, but also reviewed literature about CGL2 around the world.
OBJECTIVES: To assess the effect of psychological interventions on psychological morbidities and quality of life among women with non-metastatic breast cancer. SEARCH METHODS: We searched the Cochrane Breast Cancer Group Specialised Register, CENTRAL, MEDLINE, Embase, CINAHL, PsycINFO, the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (WHO ICTRP) and ClinicalTrials.gov up to 16 March 2021. We also scanned the reference lists of relevant articles.
SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised controlled trials that assessed the effectiveness of psychological interventions for women with non-metastatic breast cancer.
DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors independently appraised, extracted data from eligible trials, and assessed risk of bias and certainty of the evidence using the GRADE approach. Any disagreement was resolved by discussion. Extracted data included information about participants, methods, the intervention and outcomes.
MAIN RESULTS: We included 60 randomised controlled trials comprising 7998 participants. The most frequent reasons for exclusion were non-randomised trials and the inclusion of women with metastatic disease. The updated review included 7998 randomised women; the original review included 3940 women. A wide range of interventions was evaluated. Most interventions were cognitive- or mindfulness-based, supportive-expressive, and educational. The interventions were mainly delivered face-to-face (56 studies) and in groups (50 studies) rather than individually (10 studies). Most intervention sessions were delivered on a weekly basis with an average duration of 14 hours. Follow-up time ranged from two weeks to 24 months. Pooled standardised mean differences (SMD) from baseline indicated that the intervention may reduce depression (SMD -0.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.52 to -0.02; P = 0.04; 27 studies, 3321 participants, I2 = 91%, low-certainty evidence); anxiety (SMD -0.43, 95% CI -0.68 to -0.17; P = 0.0009; 22 studies, 2702 participants, I2 = 89%, low-certainty evidence); mood disturbance in the intervention group (SMD -0.18, 95% CI -0.31 to -0.04; P = 0.009; 13 studies, 2276 participants, I2 = 56%, low-certainty evidence); and stress (SMD -0.34, 95% (CI) -0.55 to -0.12; P = 0.002; 8 studies, 564 participants, I2 = 31%, low-certainty evidence). The intervention is likely to improve quality of life in the intervention group (SMD 0.78, 95% (CI) 0.32 to 1.24; P = 0.0008; 20 studies, 1747 participants, I2 = 95%, low-certainty evidence). Adverse events were not reported in any of the included studies.
AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS: Based on the available evidence, psychological intervention may have produced favourable effects on psychological outcomes, in particular depression, anxiety, mood disturbance and stress. There was also an improvement in quality of life in the psychological intervention group compared to control group. Overall, there was substantial variation across the studies in the range of psychological interventions used, control conditions, measures of the same outcome and timing of follow-up.
METHODS: Using Cochrane, PubMed, and Google Scholar as the search engines, full-text articles in the scope of the study, written in English and within 10 years of publication were selected.
RESULTS: Out of the 677 articles, 27 articles fulfilled the eligibility criteria, where data was compiled into a table, outlining the general characteristics and findings. Throughout the different forms of H2 administration, study design and types of cancers reported, outcomes were found to be consistent.
CONCLUSION: From our analysis, H2 plays a promising therapeutic role as an independent therapy as well as an adjuvant in combination therapy, resulting in an overall improvement in survivability, quality of life, blood parameters, and tumour reduction. Although more comprehensive research is needed, given the promising outcomes, H2 is worth considering for use as a complement to current cancer therapy.
AIMS: This study aims to investigate the effect of cosmetic products on users' quality of life in eight Arab countries.
METHODS: A cross-sectional study was carried out using an online data collection approach. A validated and specialist instrument tool called BeautyQoL, which consists of five domains and a total of 52 questions, was distributed to a sample of 2219 cosmetic users. Descriptive and inferential statistical analysis was done using SPSS® version 26.0.
RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 34 ± 11.25 years, and more women were represented in the sample (71%) than men. The majority of respondents had oily skin type (39.6%) and tan skin tone (30.4%). QoL through cosmetic use is computed with a mean score of 51 out of 100. The users' mean score satisfaction from cosmetic use is centred on attractiveness (56.1), followed by self-confidence (51.8). Cosmetics have a statistically significant effect on participants who are young adults, women, single, and employed with high income. As the respondents' skin tone deepens from very fair to dark, the mean score for each domain significantly increases, whereas when skin type changes from very oily to dry, the mean score for each domain decreases.
CONCLUSION: The effect of cosmetics on the users' QoL is limited, contrary to the narrative commonly portrayed in cosmetics' advertisements. Therefore, the use of cosmetics among the Arab population should be from an informed perspective of their specific needs instead of conforming to the viral trends pedaled by influencers and bloggers on social media, which might be irrelevant for them.
METHODS: Searches were conducted between December 2019 and September 2020 in databases PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Ovid Medline using search terms including traditional, complementary, psoriasis, Kushtha, Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Homeopathy and clinical. Controlled trials, case series and case reports published from India were included.
RESULTS: Data of 17 selected studies were extracted. Treatment efficacy in terms of improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score or/and percentage reduction in score (PASI 50, PASI 75 and PASI 90) or/and patient-reported outcomes using instruments like Dermatology Life Quality Index and Psoriasis Disability Index were noted. All studies reported good improvement as per the study specific outcome. However, study characteristics, including study design, sample size, follow-up period, inclusion and exclusion criteria were heterogeneous, and the choice of outcome measures was not adequate to conclude the effectiveness of intervention. The use of some herbs as common ingredients in several formulations across different systems of medicines were noted in analyzing individual formulation.
CONCLUSIONS: Future studies must incorporate a comprehensive study design with specific outcome measures like PASI, PASI 75, PASI 90, quality of life parameters, compliance to medications, adverse reactions, remission period, relapse rate and cost-effectiveness with long term follow-up. The currently available evidence on the roles of these herbs at molecular level in psoriasis is preliminary.
OBJECTIVE: This Cochrane Review aimed to determine the effects of alternating pressure (active) air beds, overlays or mattresses compared with any support surface in preventing pressure ulcers.
METHODS: The population addressed was people at risk of and with existing pressure ulcers. Studies comparing alternating pressure (active) air surfaces with any beds, overlays or mattresses were included. The outcomes studied were pressure ulcer incidence, patient support-surface-associated comfort, adverse events, health-related quality of life and cost-effectiveness.
RESULTS: There were 32 studies with a total of 9058 participants. There is low certainty evidence that alternating pressure (active) air surfaces compared with foam surfaces may reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers. It is uncertain whether there is a difference in the proportion of people developing new pressure ulcers between alternating pressure (active) air surfaces and reactive water-filled, fibre, air, gel or standard hospital surfaces.
CONCLUSION: The use of alternating pressure (active) air surfaces may reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers compared to foam surfaces. However, it is uncertain if it is superior to reactive air surfaces, water surfaces and fiber surfaces in preventing pressure ulcers.
OBJECTIVE: With the growing body of evidence supporting the use of eHealth interventions, the intention is to conduct a meta-analysis on various health outcomes of eHealth interventions among ischaemic heart disease (IHD) patients.
METHODS: Based on PRISMA guidelines, eligible studies were searched through databases of Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, EBSCOHost, and SAGE (PROSPERO registration CRD42021290091). Inclusion criteria were English language and randomised controlled trials published between 2011 to 2021 exploring health outcomes that empower IHD patients with eHealth interventions. RevMan 5.4 was utilised for meta-analysis, sensitivity analysis, and risk of bias (RoB) assessment while GRADE software for generating findings of physical health outcomes. Non-physical health outcomes were analysed using SWiM (synthesis without meta-analysis) method.
RESULTS: This review included 10 studies, whereby, six studies with 895 participants' data were pooled for physical health outcomes. Overall, the RoB varied significantly across domains, with the majority was low risks, a substantial proportion of high risks and a sizeable proportion of unclear. With GRADE evidence of moderate to high quality, eHealth interventions improved low density lipoprotien (LDL) levels in IHD patients when compared to usual care after 12 months of interventions (SMD -0.26, 95% CI [-0.45, -0.06], I2 = 0%, p = 0.01). Significance appraisal in each domain of the non-physical health outcomes found significant findings for medication adherence, physical activity and dietary behaviour, while half of the non-significant findings were found for other behavioural outcomes, psychological and quality of life.
CONCLUSIONS: Electronic Health interventions are found effective at lowering LDL cholesterol in long-term but benefits remain inconclusive for other physical and non-physical health outcomes for IHD patients. Integrating sustainable patient empowerment strategies with the advancement of eHealth interventions by utilising appropriate frameworks is recommended for future research.