Methods: This study utilised the Delphi study between April to June 2019. Face-to-face interviews and a literature review were conducted to propose a set of domains and items for the FDP needs of medical teachers. Two rounds of the Delphi technique were incorporated to obtain a consensus for the proposed questionnaire by 10 expert panels from their respective fields. The consensus was pre-defined as a mean score of four or above and with a percent agreement of 75%.

Results: Initially, four domains and 26 items were proposed. Finally, a total of six domains and 38 items were endorsed by the expert panels. The selected domains included six competencies, including teaching, assessment, research, curriculum, publication, and public service. These domains consisted of seven, nine, six, seven, four, and five items, respectively.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eighteen (18) participants who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were scanned using a standard non-contrast MRI shoulder protocol including the PDFS pulse sequence and the PROPELLER PDFS pulse sequence using a small flex coil and a dedicated shoulder coil. Two experienced musculoskeletal (MSK) radiologists evaluated and graded the presence of artifacts on the MR images and the SNR and CNR were measured quantitatively.

RESULTS: The non-parametric Wilcoxon Signed Rank test revealed a significant reduction in motion and pulsation artifacts between the PROPELLER PDFS pulse sequence and the standard PDFS pulse sequence. In addition, the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test revealed that the mean rank of SNR for the standard sequence was statistically significant when compared to the PROPELLER sequence for both coil types. The CNR of the PROPELLER sequence was statistically significant between fat-fluid, bone-fluid, bonetendon, bone-muscle, and muscle-fluid when using SFC and DSC.

METHODS: Twenty healthy male (19-23 years) Muslim subjects were followed up during the fasting month of Ramadan. Anthropometry and blood samples were taken one week before and during the fourth week of fasting. Plasma glucose, insulin and adiponectin were estimated and insulin sensitivity indices were estimated using the Homeostasis Model Assessment.

Methods: A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted on a group of Universiti Sains Malaysia medical students who had finished the Community and Family Case Study (CFCS) program. Data were gathered through focused group discussions and student reflective journals. Participants were sampled using the maximal variation technique of purposive sampling. Three steps of thematic analysis using the Atlasti software were employed to identify categories, subthemes, and themes.

Results: Personal, role, social, and research identities were generated that contribute to the PID of medical students through the CFCS program. The results indicate that the CFCS program nurtured personal identity through the development of professional skills, soft skills, and personal values. Pertaining to role identity, this is related to patient care in terms of primary care and interprofessional awareness. Pertaining to social identity, the obvious feature was community awareness related to culture, society, and politics. A positive outcome of the CFCS program was found to be its fostering of research skills, which is related to the use of epidemiology and research methods.

Materials and methods: Clinical and radiographic records of all pediatric patients who had pulpotomy of primary molar teeth between July 2005 and October 2008 were evaluated. A total of 55 pulpotomized primary molars were observed. Clinical assessments were carried out during the second visit to assess the presence of sinus tract, gingival swelling, excessive tooth mobility, tenderness to percussion, and abnormal exfoliation of the treated teeth. Periapical radiographs were reviewed for evidence of pathologic root resorption, radicular and/or periapical radiolucency, and abnormal pulp canal calcification. Treatments were regarded as failure in the presence of one or more of the above clinical and/or radiographic signs and symptoms.

Results: Of 55 pulpotomized teeth, 26 (47.3%) remained free from any clinical signs and symptoms and 48 (87.3%) showed no pathological radiographic findings. The clinical success rates of ferric sulfate and formocresol pulpotomy were 44.4% and 60.0%, respectively, whereas the radiographic success rates of ferric sulfate and formocresol pulpotomy were 86.7% and 90.0%, respectively. Although teeth treated with formocresol had higher both clinical and radiographic success rates compared with those treated with ferric sulfate, it was not statistically significant.

Conclusion: The clinical success rates of pulpotomy were lower compared with radiographic success rates. Ferric sulfate is an alternative to formocresol; however, the use of both agents in the dental undergraduate teaching at Universiti Sains Malaysia can still be recommended.

Clinical significance: Formocresol and ferric sulfate are advocated as pulpotomy agents in primary molar teeth since both agents showed comparable clinical and radiographic success rates.

METHODS AND RESULTS: The POME final discharge, upstream (unpolluted by POME), and downstream (effluent receiving point) parts of the rivers from two sites were physicochemically characterized. The taxonomic and gene profiles were then evaluated using de novo metatranscriptomics, while the metabolites were detected using qualitative metabolomics. A similar bacterial community structure in the POME final discharge samples from both sites was recorded, but their composition varied. Redundancy analysis showed that several families, particularly Comamonadaceae and Burkholderiaceae [Pr(>F) = 0.028], were positively correlated with biochemical oxygen demand (BOD5) and chemical oxygen demand (COD). The results also showed significant enrichment of genes regulating various metabolisms in the POME-receiving rivers, with methane, carbon fixation pathway, and amino acids among the predominant metabolisms identified (FDR  4, and PPDE > 0.95). This was further validated through qualitative metabolomics, whereby amino acids were detected as the predominant metabolites.

METHODS: A prospective, randomized, single-blinded control trial was performed on eligible diabetic patients with full-thickness cavity wounds. Patients' demographics, size and site of wounds, and baseline routine blood investigations were recorded. The wounds were dressed every other day with Kelulut honey for the intervention group or gel for the control group. The wound size reduction and granulation tissue formation percentage were calculated every 6 days for 1 month.

METHODS: A self-administered validated questionnaire was used to obtain data from the nationally representative samples of school-going adolescents aged 11-19 years in Malaysia. Prevalence rates were computed and chi-squared tests and multiple logistic regression were conducted.

RESULTS: Of the participants, 23.3% reported exposure to SHS at least once in the car of their parents/guardians during the last 7 days before the survey. The prevalence and likelihood of SHS exposure were significantly higher in Malays, descendants of natives of Sabah and Sarawak, schools in rural areas, females, and current smokers. However, age group and knowledge on the harmful effects of SHS were not significant after adjusting for confounding effects.