Chlorhexidine is a common antiseptic and disinfectant used in the medical field. Allergy to chlorhexidine has been reported in the literature but life-threatening anaphylactic shock is rare. We present a case of severe anaphylactic shock due to chlorhexidine occurring during surgery. Literatures suggest that profound anaphylactic shock to chlorhexidine is commonly preceded by milder, non-specific reactions. These mild symptoms are often dismissed by both the patient and physicians alike. Direct questioning of these symptoms is necessary as a part of the pre-operative assessment and the patient should be referred for further immunology testing if indicated.

Adult ; Alternaria ; immunology ; Alveolitis, Extrinsic Allergic ; immunology ; Animals ; Antibodies ; immunology ; Antibodies, Bacterial ; immunology ; Antibodies, Fungal ; immunology ; Antigens ; immunology ; Antigens, Bacterial ; immunology ; Antigens, Fungal ; immunology ; Aspergillus fumigatus ; immunology ; Asymptomatic Diseases ; Candida albicans ; immunology ; Cladosporium ; immunology ; Columbidae ; immunology ; Female ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; immunology ; Male ; Melopsittacus ; immunology ; Middle Aged ; Mucor ; immunology ; Nocardia ; immunology ; Parrots ; immunology ; Penicillium chrysogenum ; immunology ; Stachybotrys ; immunology ; Thermoactinomyces ; immunology

Introduction: Diabetic foot infection, a complication which can lead to lower limb amputation, is a major source of morbidity and mortality in Malaysia. The objective of this study was to determine the predictive factors of major lower limb amputation among patients with diabetes mellitus in a cluster of three district hospitals in Pahang, Malaysia. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study involved 170 patients who had undergone surgical interventions for diabetic foot infections at three district hospitals from 1st of September 2014 to 31st December 2015. The predictors for major amputation of lower limb were determined using simple logistic regression (LR) and forward LR multiple logistic regression. Results: A total of 21 patients had undergone major amputations of lower limb (15 transtibial and 6 transfemoral). The following factors were associated with major amputation of lower limb; longer duration of disease, age ≥ 60 years, patients from Bentong Hospital, presence of hypertension, presence of fever, history of multiple limbsalvaging surgeries, monomicrobial culture, necrotising fasciitis, anemia and leukocytosis. Upon forward LR multiple logistic regression, only duration of disease, history of more than three previous limb-salvaging surgeries and total white blood cell count ≥15X109/L were found to be significant as predictive factors of major amputation of lower limb. Conclusion: Among the factors analysed in this study, a longer duration of disease, raised total white blood cell count and history of more than three limb-salvaging surgeries were identified as predictors for major amputation of lower limb in diabetic foot infections using stepwise logistic regression analysis.

Supracondylar humeral fracture is the most common elbow injury in children. It may be associated with a vascular injury in nearly 20% of the cases with a pink pulseless limb. We present a unique case of a paediatric pink pulseless supracondylar humeral fracture, seen late, on the 16th-day post-trauma. Open reduction, cross Kirschner wiring, and brachial artery exploration and repair were performed, and the patient recovered well. Early open reduction and exploration of the brachial artery with or without prior CT angiography was a safe approach in treating patients who presented at 16 days.

Introduction: The number of people suffering from diabetic foot infection (DFI) has increased precipitously over the years in Malaysia, owing to increased population, urbanisation, the surge of number of people with obesity and physical inactivity. As one of the most dreaded complications of diabetes mellitus, DFI is associated with high morbidity and mortality. We aim to study the microbiological profile of patients with DFI at a university hospital in Kuantan, Pahang. Materials and methods: This retrospective study was carried out at at Sultan Ahmad Shah Medical Centre @IIUM (SASMEC @IIUM) from 1 January 2018 to 30 April 2019. Patients’ demographic data, types of infection and surgical intervention, and the microbiological profile were obtained from the medical records. Results: A total of 142 causative pathogens were cultured from 130 tissue samples, with an average of 1.09 pathogens per lesion. Majority of the pathogens were gram-negative pathogens (52.8%). Staphylococcus sp. was the most common pathogen isolated (22.5%). This was followed by Streptococcus sp. (10.6%), Pseudomonas sp. (9.2%), Morganella sp. (5.6%), Klebsiella sp. (4.9%), Enterobacter sp. (4.9%), and others. Among the 142 pathogens, there were 9 multidrug-resistant strains observed. Most of the antibiotics were effective against the gram-positive pathogens except benzylpenicillin, tetracyclin, fusidic acid and ciprofloxacin. Meanwhile, cefotaxime, amoxicillin and ampicillin-sulbactam were also not suitable against gramnegative pathogens. Oxacillin and sulfamethoxazole/ trimethoprim can be used as empirical antibiotics against gram-positive pathogens, while vancomycin should be reserved for patients with septic shock or suspected multidrug resistant strain infection. Piperacillin/tazobactam and ceftazidime can be used as empirical antibiotics against gram-negative pathogens. Conclusion: Early initiation of empirical antibiotic(s) is paramount to stymie the infection from getting worse while waiting for the identification of causative pathogens in the management of DFI. This study provides a guide for treating physicians to initiate the most appropriate empirical antibiotic in DFI.

The incidence of humeral osteomyelitis is relatively rare as compared to incidence of lower limb osteomyelitis. Despite having no guideline in the management of humeral osteomyelitis, surgeons have utilised their experience in managing lower limb osteomyelitis to treat humeral osteomyelitis. By adhering to principles including thorough debridement of necrotic bone and soft tissue, staged bony and/or soft tissue reconstruction, and targeted antimicrobial therapy, a good outcome can be achieved in the management of humeral osteomyelitis. We report a case of Cierny-Mader type IV proximal humeral osteomyelitis after a severe crush injury of the left shoulder and its subsequent two-stage reconstruction using internal fixation and pedicled Latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flap.

Introduction: The Malaysian Orthopaedic Journal (MOJ) (ISSN 1985-2533 / 2232-111X) is the official publication of the Malaysian Orthopaedic Association (MOA) and the ASEAN Orthopaedic Association (AOA). In May 2007, MOA published the first standalone issue of MOJ with the aim of disseminating new knowledge and providing updates in orthopaedics, trauma and musculoskeletal research. Since then, MOJ has grown significantly, achieving indexing in numerous databases and attaining a 2nd Quartile (Q2) rank in the Scopus database in 2022. This bibliometric analysis aims to explore the trends and distribution of articles published in MOJ. Materials and methods: Bibliometric data for MOJ was extracted from the SCOPUS database, covering the years from its indexing to 2022. Information such as authors, country, document type, author’s keywords, citations, and other parameters were extracted using the bibliometrix package in the R Studio software. The data were then presented in tables and illustrative graphs using the same software. Results: A total of 305 articles were retrieved from the Scopus database during the study period. Two-thirds of the articles were original articles and review articles. The highest number of citations received by an article is 56, and top ten articles in MOJ were authored by researchers from seven different countries, highlighting the journal’s diversity. Despite receiving submissions from various countries, there is minimal collaboration between authors of different countries. Keywords such as “covid-19” and “pandemic” dominate the authors’ keyword section due to the once-in-alife-time COVID-19 which during the study period, resulting in numerous publications related to this issue. Conclusion: This bibliometric analysis reviews all the articles indexed in the Scopus database and provides insight into the contributors’ information and the trends in orthopaedic research. By identifying the lack of collaboration between countries, it is hoped that this analysis can inspire more orthopaedic surgeons and researchers to collaborate and produce high-quality publications.