METHOD: This research was carried out on a sample of 263 participants (age range 12-24 years old), from Klang Valley, Selangor. The survey package comprises demographic information, a measure of reasons for living, social support, depression, anxiety and stress. To analyse the data, correlation analysis and a series of linear multiple regression analysis were carried out.
RESULTS: Findings showed that there were low negative relationships between all subdomains and the total score of reasons for living and depression. There were also low negative relationships between domain-specific of social support (family and friends) and total social support and depression. In terms of the family alliance, self-acceptance and total score of reasons for living, they were negatively associated with anxiety, whereas family social support was negatively associated with stress. The linear regression analysis showed that only future optimism and family social support found to be the significant predictors for depression. Family alliance and total reasons for living were significant in predicting anxiety, whereas family social support was significant in predicting stress.
CONCLUSION: These findings have the potential to promote awareness related to depression, anxiety, and stress among youth in Malaysia.
OBJECTIVES: To summarize and synthesize evidence on the utility and methodological quality of cognitive-based interventions on cognitive performance and associated secondary outcomes among healthy older adults in Asia, as well as novel, culture-specific components of cognitive interventions across the region.
DATA SOURCES: The PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, Scopus, and ScienceDirect databases were searched through May 2020.
ELIGIBILITY: Studies including individuals aged 60 years and above, who had no previous history of physical and/or mental illness. Few restrictions placed on intervention design, duration and mode of delivery, provided that participants were randomized to study conditions, and intervention included components addressing at least one cognitive domain.
RESULTS: A total of 17 studies from six countries met the eligibility criteria and were included in the final review. Evidence from those studies indicated that cognitive interventions may be most effective when the design and aims were directed towards improvement in specific cognitive domains, but evidence regarding long-term effectiveness in preventing progression to clinical-level cognitive deficits is still unclear. Several studies highlighted culture-specific activities as components of their interventions, though these will need to be further outlined and standardized clearly in future research.
METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The scoping review process follows the five-staged Arksey and O'Malley (2005) methodology framework excluding the optional consultation stage (stage 6): the definition of the research questions (step 1); the eligibility criteria and search strategy are defined (stage 2); the study selection process based on the eligibility criteria identified will follow (stage 3); a framework developed for this review will then inform the extraction and charting of data from the included studies (step 4) and results will be aggregated and summarised with criteria relevant for health professionals and policymakers (stage 5). We will search for electronic databases (MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science), grey literature sources and critical studies' reference lists to determine the appropriate inclusion criteria. Three researchers will review all abstracts and full-text studies for inclusion.
ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This scoping review methodology does not require ethical approval since it aims to synthesise information from available publications. A scoping review article will be submitted for publication to a scientific journal following this protocol.
METHOD: Participants comprised of 200 patients experiencing various stages of chronic kidney disease. All participants completed the Short-Form 36 (SF-36), Big Five Inventory (BFI) and the Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) Social Support questionnaires.
RESULTS: Participants consisted of 108 males (54.0%) and 92 females (46.0%) with the mean age of 59.3 years (SD 14.5). Results showed that higher levels of extraversion and lower perceived affectionate social support were associated with higher physical HRQoL, whereas higher levels of neuroticism were associated with poorer mental HRQoL.
CONCLUSION: The current study found that certain personality traits, namely extraversion and neuroticism, were found to be associated with HRQoL. In addition, affectionate social support was also associated with higher HRQoL. Therefore, special attention should be paid to the personality of CKD patients, as well as the type of social support that they have, in planning interventions to improve their health outcomes.
METHODS: This study comprises of three phases, namely (1) items selection phase, (2) pilot study phase, and (3) scale validation phase. During the first phase, the items were selected from items pools which gathered from previous suicide ideation/ attitude scales. Then the pilot study was carried out to examine the items for Yatt Suicide Attitude Scale (YSAS). Lastly, the Yatt Suicide Attitude Scale (YSAS) validation study was conducted with 219 university students.
RESULTS: Initial version of YSAS comprised 16 items and three components. After factor analysis, the questionnaire was reduced into only two components (Suicide Ideation and Suicide Attempt) with 5 items each. Both of the components obtained high reliability value (.89 and.86 respectively) and the questionnaire accounted for 67.84% of the total variance.
CONCLUSION: The analysis showed that YSAS has an acceptable reliability and validity for Malaysian population. Although these findings corroborate literature on development of suicide ideation assessment instrument for specific cultural context, there is a need to further examine its reliability with clinical population and general population of different cultural context in Malaysia.
PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of CC supplement on brain activity using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) among older adults with MCI.
STUDY TYPE: Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.
POPULATION/SUBJECTS: Twenty older adults with mild cognitive impairment (60-75 years old), 14 of them (70%) were female subjects.
FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: A 3.0-T, T1-weighted anatomical images, T2*-weighted imaging data, A single shot, gradient echo-echo planar imaging (EPI) sequence.
ASSESSMENT: All subjects were asked to consume two 500 mg capsules of either CC supplement or placebo (maltodextrin) daily for 12 weeks. Cognitive function was measured using validated neuropsychological tests (i.e. Mini-mental State Examination and Digit Span) and task-based fMRI (N-back and Stroop Color Word Test) at baseline and 12th week. Brodmann's area 9, 46 and anterior cingulate cortex were selected as the regions of interest to define dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in fMRI analysis.
STATISTICAL TESTS: Normality test was performed with the Shapiro-Wilk test. Two-way repeated ANOVA determined the intervention effects of the CC supplementation on brain activity after adjustments for covariates. Significance level at P
METHODS: A total of 160 breast cancer survivors from the University of Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) participated in this cross-sectional study. Their QoL was evaluated with the Malay version of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (QLQ-C30) version 3.0. Cognitive functioning and psychological distress were evaluated using the Malay version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA-BM) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), respectively. Data analysis was performed with Pearson's correlation and multiple regression analyses.
RESULTS: At 1- to 3-year post-chemotherapy, the mean EORTC QLQ-C30 global health status of the breast cancer survivors was relatively low (60.5 over 100, SD = 10.88). One-third (31.9%) of them demonstrated cognitive impairment, and another 3.2% showed moderate to severe anxiety levels. The significant predictors for global health status and functioning included age, psychological distresses, cognitive performance, fatigue, appetite loss, insomnia, pain, and constipation.
CONCLUSION: Our breast cancer survivors demonstrated poor global health status. Health care providers and policymakers must strive to provide holistic intervention strategies to improve the multiple dimensions of QoL and the cognitive and psychological functioning of this vulnerable population.
METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The Delphi consensus technique was conducted online to review and evaluate the framework module. A panel of experts, including rehabilitation medicine physicians, occupational therapists, and clinical psychologists in Malaysia, was invited to participate in this study. For each round, the expert consensus was defined as more than 90% of the expert panel agreeing or strongly agreeing with the proposed items.
RESULTS: A total of 33 practitioners completed the three Delphi rounds. 72.7% of the expert panel have been practising in their relevant clinical fields for more than six years (M = 10.67, SD = 5.68). In Round 1, 23% of the experts suggested that the framework module for attention training required further improvements, specifically in the language (M = 1.97, SD = 0.75) and instructions (M = 2.03, SD = 0.71) provided. In Round 2, 15% of the experts recommended additional changes in the instruction (M = 2.15, SD = 0.67) for attention training. Amendments made to the framework module in line with the recommendations provided by the experts resulted in a higher level of consensus, as 94% to 100% of the experts in Round 3 concluded the framework module was suitable and comprehensive for our breast cancer survivors. Following the key results, the objectives were practical, and the proposed approaches, strategies, and techniques for attention and memory training were feasible. The clarity of the instructions, procedures, verbatim transcripts, and timeframe further enhanced the efficacy and utility of the framework module.
CONCLUSIONS: This study found out that the cognitive intervention framework module for breast cancer survivors with cognitive impairment following chemotherapy can be successfully developed and feasible to be implemented using Delphi technique.