Gastrointestinal stromal tumour (GIST) is relatively rare. The clinical behaviour of GIST ranges from benign to frank sarcoma. The diagnosis is established through histopathological examination and immunohistochemistry profile. In Malaysia, the number of publications related to GIST is relatively rare. This study was therefore conducted to examine the demographic, histopathological and immunohistochemical features of GIST cases diagnosed in the Department of Pathology, Hospital Tengku Ampuan Afzan, Kuantan, Pahang from 2009 until 2014. Methods: Past histopathological records were reviewed. Demographic and histopathological and immunohistochemical data of patients diagnosed were collected. Results: There were 28 cases (14 males and 14 females) diagnosed as GIST. Mean age was 56.4 years, and the majority were above 40 years of age (85.7%). Stomach was the most common location (42.9%), followed by small intestine (28.6%). In 23 cases (82%), the tumours exhibited spindle cell morphology, while epithelioid cell and mixed cell types were seen in 3 cases (11%) and 2 cases (7%), respectively. Five cases were categorised as very low risk to low risk behaviour, while 18 cases were intermediate to high. None of the histological parameters analysed which include tumour morphology, necrosis, haemorrhage, nuclear atypia and mean number of mitoses showed significance difference between the different risk behaviour groups. Positivity with KIT (CD117), considered to be the defining immunohistochemistry feature, was negative in 2 cases. Conclusion: Although this study is a retrospective study, the findings contribute to the knowledge on GISTS in Malaysia. Future research related to GISTs in Malaysia should focus on molecular analyses for KIT and PDGFRA mutations for diagnostic confirmation especially in KIT-negative cases and also for the purpose of therapeutic response correlations.

Objectives: The objective of this research was to evaluate the outcomes of pars plana vitrectomy (PPV) without the use of an ocular tamponade in patients with tractional retinal detachment (TRD) secondary to proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) presenting to Bahawal Victoria Hospital, Bahawalpur, Pakistan. Methods: This was an interventional study conducted at the Department of Ophthalmology, Bahawal Victoria (B.V.) Hospital, Bahawalpur, Pakistan, from July 2011 to July 2012. A total of 75 patients (84 eyes) with TRD secondary to PDR were treated by PPV without using an ocular tamponade. All patients included in the study had a TRD secondary to PDR but did not have or develop retinal breaks before or during the study period. The surgical procedure included a PPV combined with the removal of the tractional retinal membranes and the application of endolaser photocoagulation to the retina. The mean follow-up period was 12 months. Results: The study included 75 patients (84 eyes). Among these, 40 patients were females and 35 males. Successful retinal reattachment was observed in 78 of the operated eyes (92.8%). In these patients, the retina remained attached until the end of the 12 month follow-up period. Improvement in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was seen in 63 eyes (75%). The visual acuity remained unchanged in nine eyes (10.7%). Mean improvement in BCVA was 2.00 ± 1.24 at baseline to 1.24 ± 1.22 (P = 0.010) at the end of the follow-up period. Conclusion: In the absence of retinal breaks, a TRD secondary to PDR can be successfully treated and improved by PPV without the use of an ocular tamponade.

Falls is a global health concern due to its many negative consequences in older adults. Early falls screening and prevention is important among older adults. We developed Falls Screening Mobile Application (FallSA) as a self falls screening tool among older adults. FallSA was developed using data of physical performance test, demographic information and questions to inform falls risk from a larger population based longitudinal study on neuroprotective model for healthy longevity among older adults (LRGS TUA). The aim of this study was to determine validity and reliability of FallSA as a self-screening tool to inform falls risk among Malaysian older adults. This cross sectional study was conducted among 91 community dwelling older adults aged 60 years and above. FallSA was validated against Physiological Profile Assessments (PPA), a comprehensive falls risk assessment tool. Participants used FallSA to test their falls risk by repeating the test twice between an hour. Validity and test–retest reliability of FallSA was examined by using Spearman correlation, Kappa, Sensitivity and Specificity, Intra correlation coefficient (ICC), Cronbach alpha and Bland-Altman respectively. Concurrent validity test was significant with moderate correlation rs = 0.518, p < 0.001, moderate agreement K = 0.516, p < 0.001 and acceptable Sensitivity: 80.4% and Specificity: 71.1%. Reliability of FallSA was shown to be good (ICC: 0.948, CI: 0.921-0.966), good internal consistency α = 0.948, p < 0.001 and good agreement indicate by small mean differences and narrow limits of agreement (LoA). The results of this study suggest that FallSA was a valid and reliable tool to inform falls risk among Malaysian older adults. Further prospective studies are required to determine the accuracy of FallSA to correctly classify older adults into fallers and non-faller groups.

Development of insects in laboratory for minimum post mortem interval estimation (mPMI) or time of colonisation (TOC) in forensic entomology can be affected by the type and quality of food consumed during larval period. Since mPMI estimation also involves analysis of larval specimens collected from burned human remains, it is important to study if burned tissues could affect growth of sarcosaprophagous larvae. This study investigated the effect of burned tissues on the size and developmental period of Megaselia scalaris (Loew) (Diptera: Phoridae), a species of forensic importance. Development of M. scalaris on 75 g burned cow’s liver was compared with control liver in three study replicates. Mean larval length (2.87 ± 0.11 mm) and weight (0.81 ± 0.08 mg) of M. scalaris larvae in burned liver diets were significantly lower than larval length (5.03 ± 0.15 mm) and weight (2.85 ± 0.21 mg) of control liver diets (p < 0.001) whilst mean pupal length (2.53 ± 0.06 mm) and weight (0.92 ± 0.06 mg) in burned liver diets were significantly lower than pupal length (3.52 ± 0.06 mm) and weight (2.84 ± 0.16 mg) in control liver diets (p < 0.001). Development of larvae in burned liver was 5-9 hours slower than those feeding on control liver based on single observation. Although the assessment is preliminary, the findings indicate physical growth of larvae feeding on burned animal tissues was affected and entomological specimens recovered from burned remains should be evaluated carefully to avoid errors in mPMI/TOC estimation. Limitations and suggestions for further research are also presented herein.

People living with HIV/AIDS have been the targets of stigma. For those with HIV/AIDS, stigma has created dire circumstances in the workplace, healthcare and in social settings. There is limited information on stigma among people living with HIV/AIDS West Sumatera in Sumatera Island Indonesia. The purpose of this research is to understand how stigma and stigmatisation among people living with HIV/AIDS in their daily lives. Methods: The study design was Charmaz’s Constructivist Grounded Theory. Data was collected by semistructured interviews, document reviews, and field notes and memos of 25 participants at Ahmad Muchtar Hospital Sumatera. Data analysis used Paillé. Results: The research found 4 categories: (1) denial, (2) low self-esteem, (3) rejection and isolation, and (4) fear. HIV AIDS stigma becomes another life obstacle of people who are already faced with social and economic obstacles. Conclusions: The findings provide some useful information to be incorporated into healthcare education directed toward enabling current and future providers of health services to help people with HIV/AIDS in Sumatera Island Indonesia. Stigma remains a clinical and social justice priority to provide ongoing support for people with HIV/AIDS, to develop and evaluate both general and more targeted anti-stigma interventions. Further researches are needed to understand the stigma toward people with HIV/AIDS in Sumatra Island from families’ and communities’ perspectives. ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry, Vol. 18 (1): January – June 2017: XX XX.

We report a case of a 21 year old girl who presented with sudden onset of abdominal, back and bilateral leg pain, paralysis with unexpected collapse at home. Physical examination was suggestive of acute aortic occlusion. CTangiogram revealed multi-system thrombo-embolic shower. She proceeded to urgent aortic thrombectomy and fasciotomy of the bilateral lower limb. Further investigation revealed atrial myxoma and we report the patient's postoperative progress and eventual transfer to rehabilitation facility.

The present study describes the frequency of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) virus serotypes (O,A and Asia-1) in major regions (all provinces) of Pakistan using Indirect Sandwich ELISA.Also,spatial distribution of various FMD serotypes and their comparison is discussed.A total of 590 samples (Epithelial tissue) have been analyzed during a period of five years (2005-2009).Out of 590 samples,180 were found positive,giving an overall confirmation of FMDV about 33.2 ％.Of the prevalent serotypes,FMDV ‘O’ serotype caused most outbreaks (20.7 ％),followed by serotype A (6.6 ％) and serotype Asia-1 (4.6 ％) while there was no positive case oftype ‘C’.The study clearly showed that the disease was more frequent in the agro-climatic zones than in hilly areas.Based on the data of 590 samples (＞50 outbreaks),the overall prevalence of FMDV in cattle and buffaloes in Pakistan was 33.2 ％,while in cattle alone,it was 37.1％,higher than in buffalo (28.7 ％).There were eight cases of mixed serotypes infection,indicating the presence of endemic state of disease.Another significant feature was the change over time.In phase-I (2005-2007),there was an overall prevalence of 29.4 ％,while the occurrence of the serotype O,A and Asia-1 was 20.4 ％,2.9 ％ and 4.7 ％,respectively.During phase-II (2008-2009),the overall prevalence was 59.21％,while those of serotype O,A and Asia-1 were 22.4 ％,31.6 ％ and 4.0 ％,respectively.This clearly indicated a shift from serotype O to A,which may help to explain the occurrence of more severe outbreaks,despite vaccination.

The main purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of helminths of goats such as Fasciola hepatica, Haemonchus contortus, Paramphistomum cervi, Oesophagostomum columbian, Cotylophoron cotylophorum, Monezia expansa, Oestertagia oestertagi and Oestertagia circumcincta. The overall prevalence of all species of helminthes was 52% in goat. The study was designed to investigate the factors of helminths prevalence on the basis of sex and age of goat with the help of Chi-square. All the results obtained were non-significant due to some factors which directly affects the prevalence of helminths.

Objective: To elucidate the pattern of inheritance and determine the relative magnitude of various genetic effects for maturity and flowering attributes in subtropical maize. Methods:Four white grain maize inbred lines from flint group of corn, two with late maturity and two with early maturity, were used. These contrasting inbred lines were crossed to form four crosses. Six generations (P1, P2, F1, F2, BC1, and BC2) were developed for each individual cross. These were evaluated in triplicate trial for two consecutive years. Results: Both dominance gene action and epistatic interaction played major role in governing inheritance of days to pollen shedding, 50% silking, anthesis silking interval and maturity. Conclusions: Preponderance of dominance gene action for these traits indicated their usefulness in hybrid programs of subtropical maize.

Objective: To investigate the antipyretic and anticonvulsant activities of n-hexane fraction of Viola betonicifolia (V. betonicifolia). Methods: The antipyretic effect was scrutinized using brewer’s yeast induced pyrexia and anticonvlsion effect was tested using pentylenetetrazol and strychnine induced convulsion in mice. Results: N-hexane fraction of V. betonicifolia demonstrated highly significant antipyretic activity during various assessment times (1-5 h) when challenged in yeast induced pyrexia test. The effect was in a dose dependent manner with maximum attenuation (82.50%) observed at 300 mg/kg i.p. When tested in pentylenetetrazol induced convulsion test, the 1st stage (Ear and facial twitching) and 2nd stage (Convulsive wave through the body) was 100% protected during 24 h at all the test doses (300, 400 and 500 mg/kg i.p.), while the latency time of remaining stages was significantly increased. The maximum effect was observed by n-hexane fraction of V. betonicifolia at 400 and 500 mg/kg i.p., as the latency time for generalized clonic-tonic seizure (5th stage) was increased up to 25.34 min. However, n-hexane fraction of V. betonicifolia had no protection in strychnine induced convulsion test. Conclusions:In conclusion, phytopharmacological studies provide scientific foundation to the folk uses of the plant in the treatment of pyrexia and neurological disorders.