1.Congenital arhinia – First published case in Malaysia
Ng Rui Lun ; Kokila Rajapathy ; Zainab Ishak
The Medical Journal of Malaysia 2017;72(5):308-310
Congenital arhinia is one of the rare craniofacial
malformation that may cause severe respiratory distress at
birth due to upper airway obstruction. Our patient, whose
abnormalities were only detected after delivery in our centre,
is the first reported case of congenital arhinia in Malaysia.
Contrary to popular belief that neonates are obligate nasal
breather, our patient adapted well to breathing through
mouth before an elective tracheostomy was performed on
day four of life.
Nose
2.Yaws: The forgotten tropical skin disease
Nadiah Md Alwi ; Rosediani Muhamad ; Azlina Ishak ; Wan Noor Hasbee Wan Abdullah
Malaysian Family Physician 2021;16(3):104-107
Yaws is a rare skin disease endemic to tropical countries caused by Treponema pertenue. It is highly infectious and spreads through physical contact. In Malaysia, it was presumably eradicated during the 1960s, with the last reported case published in 1985. Due to its rarity, the disease often goes unrecognised and misdiagnosed. Here, we report the case of a 5-year-old aboriginal boy diagnosed with secondary yaws who presented with fever and an incidental finding of chronic painless ulcerated nodules and plaques on his lower limbs and gluteal region. His diagnosis was confirmed serologically with a venereal disease research laboratory lab test and he was successfully treated with a single dose of intramuscular benzathine penicillin G. Primary care physicians should not ignore this disease since its early recognition and appropriate treatment is vital to its eradication, especially in high-risk communities.