To describe the sociodemographic profile, contraceptive practice, and awareness of HIV infection among unmarried post partum women in the biggest government hospital in Pahang. Methods: A cross sectional questionnaire-proforma-based study was conducted for one year duration from August 2010 until July 2011 by identifying and recruiting all the unmarried women upon admission for delivery. Basic information were obtained from the use of patients’ case notes, and further related and necessary information were obtained from a direct face-to-face interview based on a proforma. Results: A total of 121 unmarried women were identified and recruited. The age ranged from 13 to 36 years with a mean age of 21.6 years. 31.4% were teenagers. Only 16% of patients have tertiary education, and 2.5% never had any formal education. About one third of the women were smokers or ex-smokers, 7.5% had consumed alcohol, but none denied ever use of any recreational drugs. Almost 9% has prior history of being sexually assaulted. About three quarter of the women never used any contraceptive method. Majority of the patients (85.1%) were aware of HIV transmission risk; 75% never had any antenatal checkup or booked at late gestation (> 20 weeks); and 45.8% were not aware of any support groups for single mothers. Conclusion: Single unmarried women are associated with disadvantaged sociodemographic profile. Contraceptive practice was also very low despite significant awareness towards risk of HIV infection. Further follow up, support and care should be offered to these women.

Infections caused by Strongyloides stercoralis (S. stercoralis) in human are generally asymptomatic, however in immunocompromised individual, hyperinfection may develop with dissemination of larvae to extra-intestinal organs. The diagnosis could be easily missed due to asymptomatic presentation and insufficient exposure towards the infection itself, which may lead to low index of suspicion as a consequence. In this report, a case of a Malaysian male with underlying diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cerebrovascular ac-cident, bullous pemphigus and syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion who initially complained of generalized body weakness and poor appetite without any history suggestive of sepsis is presented. However, he developed septicemic shock later, and S. stercoralis larvae was incidentally found in the tracheal aspirate that was sent to look for acid fast bacilli. Regardless of aggressive resuscitation, the patient succumbed due to pulmonary hemorrhage and acute respiratory distress syndrome. It was revealed that the current case has alarmed us via incidental finding of S. stercoralis larvae in the tracheal aspirate, indicating that the importance of the disease should be emphasized in certain parts of the world and population respectively.

Aims: Natural products play a prominent role in the discovery of leads for the development of drugs in the treatment of human diseases. Much of nature remains to be explored, especially marine and microbial environments. Methodology and results: Fifty-five pigmented marine bacteria were isolated from sponges, seawater, mangrove sediment, sea cucumber and mussel from different coastal area of Malaysia. The antimicrobial activities of these bacteria were investigated by disk diffusion method against pathogenic bacteria. Out of 55 isolates, 18 isolates exhibited antimicrobial activity, which based on morphological characterization, 53% of them were Gram positive and 47% were Gram negative. All active isolates were able to tolerate more than 4% NaCl in the nutrient agar medium that indicated they were autochthonous to marine environment and moderate salt tolerant in nature. Molecular identification of isolates by the strong antimicrobial activities indicates that isolates WPRA3 (JX020764) and SM11-3j belong to genus Serratia and isolate SDPM1 (JQ083392) belongs to genus Zooshikella. Conclusion, significance and impact of study: The results of present study revealed that the active isolates are potential producer of antimicrobial secondary metabolites and might be utilized as drug candidate

Sporotrichosis is a fungal infection caused by Sporothrix, a thermally dimorphic fungus that affects humans and animals. It is most commonly associated with cutaneous and subcutaneous tissue exposed to fungus-containing soil, moss, or organic material. Sporotrichosis is challenging to diagnose because it can mimic various other dermatological diseases. Thus, as demonstrated in this case, the importance of making a diagnosis based on history and a thorough physical examination, as misdiagnosis can delay proper treatment. A 53-year-old Malay woman presented with bilateral thumb swelling that had been treated with two courses of antibiotics but had failed, resulting in disease progression. Clinical suspicion of lymphocutaneous sporotrichosis was made based on history, physical examination, and investigations finding. The patient was started on an empirical course of Itraconazole 200mg twice daily, and the lesions responded well.

Infections caused by Strongyloides stercoralis (S. stercoralis) in human are generally asymptomatic, however in immunocompromised individual, hyperinfection may develop with dissemination of larvae to extra-intestinal organs. The diagnosis could be easily missed due to asymptomatic presentation and insufficient exposure towards the infection itself, which may lead to low index of suspicion as a consequence. In this report, a case of a Malaysian male with underlying diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cerebrovascular accident, bullous pemphigus and syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion who initially complained of generalized body weakness and poor appetite without any history suggestive of sepsis is presented. However, he developed septicemic shock later, and S. stercoralis larvae was incidentally found in the tracheal aspirate that was sent to look for acid fast bacilli. Regardless of aggressive resuscitation, the patient succumbed due to pulmonary hemorrhage and acute respiratory distress syndrome. It was revealed that the current case has alarmed us via incidental finding of S. stercoralis larvae in the tracheal aspirate, indicating that the importance of the disease should be emphasized in certain parts of the world and population respectively.

Introduction: Lean healthcare outcome is usually measured with multiple key performance metrics but there is a lack of tools that enabled efficiency assessment. This research aimed to assess the efficiency among lean public emergency departments (ED) through Slack-Based Measure Data Envelopment Analysis (SBM-DEA) and evaluate the impact of lean on the efficiency in public emergency departments. Methods: A retrospective observational study design using data on the number of support staff, number of doctors, number of discharge, arrival to consultant and length of stay. Efficiency scores of 20 Malaysian public EDs were computed using SBM-DEA modelling and compared between before and after lean implementation. Results: A total of 13 out of 20 public EDs exhibited improvement in arrival to consultant and length of stay upon lean implementation. However, only 9 out of the 13 public EDs have had an improvement in efficiency score. Conclusion: Lean healthcare demonstrated a positive impact on the efficiency level of some public EDs. The SBM-DEA model offers the benchmarking capability and slack elimination information that may complement the lean continuous improvement philosophy.

Introduction: Acne is the most common skin disease among adolescents and has significant psychological distress. Our objective is to assess acne severity, functional disability, and its psychological distress among acne patients. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2021 to May 2022 among 163 acne patients attending Dermatology Clinics in the district of Kuantan, Pahang. The severity of acne was graded using the Comprehensive Acne Severity Scale (CASS). The functional disability index was measured using a Cardiff Acne Disability Index (CADI), while Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) questionnaires were used as a screening tool to detect the psychological distress of acne. Data were analysed using a Chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test and multiple logistic regression. Results: The mean age was 23 years, 60.1% were female, 94.5% were Malay, and 68.1% were unemployed. The severity of acne was more prominent in the mild (30.7%) and moderate (28.2%) categories. A total of 20.2%, 11.7%, and 4.9% of the respondents had anxiety, depression, and stress symptoms, respectively. Regarding the respondents’ functional disability, 40.5% had mild impairment, 38.0% had moderate impairment, and 13.5% had severe impairment. Acne severity was found to be significantly associated with the functional disability index (P<0.05). The functional disability index was also found to be significantly associated with depression (p=0.019) and anxiety symptoms (p=0.042). Conclusion: Clinical management of acne patients should include not only pharmacological treatment but also consideration of the disease’s functional disability status and psychological distress.