Gastric cancer (GC) has a good prognosis, if detected at an early stage. The intestinal subtype of GC follows a stepwise progression to carcinoma, which is treatable with early detection and intervention using high-quality endoscopy. Premalignant lesions and gastric epithelial polyps are commonly encountered in clinical practice. Surveillance of patients with premalignant gastric lesions may aid in early diagnosis of GC, and thus improve chances of survival. An expert professional workgroup was formed to summarise the current evidence and provide recommendations on the management of patients with gastric premalignant lesions in Singapore. Twenty-five recommendations were made to address screening and surveillance, strategies for detection and management of gastric premalignant lesions, management of gastric epithelial polyps, and pathological reporting of gastric premalignant lesions.
Adenomatous Polyps ; Endoscopy ; Humans ; Precancerous Conditions/therapy* ; Singapore ; Stomach Neoplasms/therapy*

Metastasis of malignancy to the uterine cervix is a rare event in itself. Breast cancer is a commonly diagnosed malignancy in women that has been extensively studied, and it has been known that common areas of metastasis are the lungs, skin, liver and brain. Since the 1980's, there have been a handful of reported cases of metastasis to the uterine cervix. We present the case of a 64-year-old Gravida 4 Para 1 (1031) who developed postmenopausal bleeding 9 years after treatment of the primary breast cancer, which after work-ups, turns out to be an isolated metastatic lesion to the cervix. In cases such as this one, surgery is reasonable treatment option that is sufficient in itself without the need for chemotherapy or radiation. Our patient was offered a different treatment option, which is chemotherapy, instead of proceeding straight to the treatment option presented by most case reports, which is surgery. This paper aims to highlight a possible route of metastasis, to emphasize the need for regular gynecological examination in patients with breast cancer, as well as the importance of aggressive treatment in the form  of surgery in cases of isolated cervical metastasis.

Human ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Gynecological Examination ; Postmenopause ; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms ; Breast Neoplasms ; Parity ; Liver ; Brain

INTRODUCTIONClinical practice guidelines recommend different levels of dietary protein intake in predialysis chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. It is unknown how effectively these recommendations perform in a multi-ethnic Asian population, with varied cultural beliefs and diets. We assess the profi le of protein intake in a multi-ethnic Asian population, comparing healthy participants and CKD patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODSWe analysed the 24-hour urine collections of the Asian Kidney Disease Study (AKDS) and the Singapore Kidney Function Study (SKFS) to estimate total protein intake (TPI; g/day). We calculated ideal body weight (IDW; kg): 22.99 × height2 (m). Standard statistical tests were applied where appropriate, and linear regression was used to assess associations of continuous variables with protein intake.

RESULTSThere were 232 CKD patients and 103 healthy participants with 35.5% diabetics. The mean TPI in healthy participants was 58.89 ± 18.42 and the mean TPI in CKD patients was 53.64 ± 19.39. By US National Kidney Foundation (NKF) guidelines, 29/232 (12.5%) of CKD patients with measured glomerular filtration rate (GFR) <25 (in mL/min/1.73 m2) had a TPI-IDW of <0.6 g/kg/day. By Caring for Australasians with Renal Impairment (CARI) guidelines, 76.3% (177/232) of CKD patients had TPI-IDW >0.75g/kg/ day. By American Dietetic Association (ADA) guidelines, 34.7% (44/127) of CKD patients with GFR <50 had TPI-IDW between 0.6 to 0.8 g/kg/day. Only 1/6 non-diabetic CKD patients with GFR <20 had a protein intake of between 0.3 to 0.5 g/kg/day. A total of 21.9% (25/114) of diabetic CKD patients had protein intake between 0.8 to 0.9 g/kg/day.

CONCLUSIONOn average, the protein intake of most CKD patients exceeds the recommendations of guidelines. Diabetic CKD patients should aim to have higher protein intakes.

Adult ; Aged ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Dietary Proteins ; administration & dosage ; urine ; Female ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Malnutrition ; ethnology ; Middle Aged ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic ; ethnology ; Singapore

INTRODUCTIONCryotherapy with liquid nitrogen is an effective, safe and convenient form of treatment for plantar warts. EMLA® cream (eutectic mixture of lidocaine 2.5% and prilocaine 2.5%) is a topical local anaesthetic agent that has proven to be effective and well tolerated in the relief of pain associated with various minor interventions in numerous clinical settings.

MATERIALS AND METHODSIn a single-centre, double-blind, randomised placebo-controlled study, 64 subjects were randomised into 2 groups. The subjects had a thick layer of EMLA® cream or placebo cream applied to pared plantar wart(s) and onto the surrounding margin of 1 mm to 2 mm under occlusion for 60 minutes prior to receiving cryotherapy. The pain of cryotherapy was evaluated by the subjects using a self-administered Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) immediately after the cryotherapy.

RESULTSThere was no statistical difference between the mean VAS score for EMLA® cream (47.0 ± 21.4 mm) and placebo (48.9 ± 22.0 mm). Those with more than 1 wart had a significantly higher VAS score than those with only 1 wart (59.1 ± 21.8 vs. 44.3 ± 20.4, P <0.05) but this did not affect the therapeutic effect of EMLA® cream prior to cryotherapy.

CONCLUSIONWe conclude that the application of EMLA® cream prior to cryotherapy does not reduce the pain associated with cryotherapy.

Adult ; Analgesia ; Anesthetics, Local ; therapeutic use ; Cryotherapy ; Double-Blind Method ; Female ; Foot Dermatoses ; therapy ; Humans ; Lidocaine ; therapeutic use ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Ointments ; Prilocaine ; therapeutic use ; Warts ; therapy ; Young Adult

The Academy of Medicine (AMS) and Ministry of Health (MOH) have developed the clinical practice guidelines on Assessment and Management of Infertility at Primary Healthcare Level to provide doctors and patients in Singapore with evidence-based treatment for infertility. This article reproduces the introduction and executive summary (with recommendations from the guidelines) from the AMS-MOH clinical practice guidelines on Assessment and Management of Infertility at Primary Healthcare Level, for the information of SMJ readers. Chapters and page numbers mentioned in the reproduced extract refer to the full text of the guidelines, which are available from the Ministry of Health website: http://www.moh.gov.sg/content/moh_web/healthprofessionalsportal/doctors/guidelines/cpg_medical/2013/cpgmed_infertility.html. The recommendations should be used with reference to the full text of the guidelines. Following this article are multiple choice questions based on the full text of the guidelines.
Evidence-Based Medicine ; Female ; Guidelines as Topic ; Humans ; Infertility ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Male ; Practice Guidelines as Topic ; Primary Health Care ; methods ; standards ; Public Health ; standards ; Singapore

INTRODUCTIONClinical practice guidelines recommend using creatinine-based equations to estimate glomerular filtration rates (GFRs). While these equations were formulated for Caucasian-American populations and have adjustment coefficients for African-American populations, they are not validated for other ethnicities. The Chronic Kidney Disease-Epidemiology Collaborative Group (CKD-EPI) recently developed a new equation that uses both creatinine and cystatin C. We aimed to assess the accuracy of this equation in estimating the GFRs of participants (healthy and with chronic kidney disease [CKD]) from a multiethnic Asian population.

METHODSSerum samples from the Asian Kidney Disease Study and the Singapore Kidney Function Study were used. GFR was measured using plasma clearance of 99mTc-DTPA. GFR was estimated using the CKD-EPI equations. The performance of GFR estimation equations were examined using median and interquartile range values, and the percentage difference from the measured GFR.

RESULTSThe study comprised 335 participants (69.3% with CKD; 38.5% Chinese, 29.6% Malays, 23.6% Indians, 8.3% others), with a mean age of 53.5 ± 15.1 years. Mean standardised serum creatinine was 127 ± 86 μmol/L, while mean standardised serum cystatin C and mean measured GFR were 1.43 ± 0.74 mg/L and 67 ± 33 mL/min/1.73 m2, respectively. The creatinine-cystatin C CKD-EPI equation performed the best, with an estimated GFR of 67 ± 35 mL/min/1.73 m2.

CONCLUSIONThe new creatinine-cystatin C equation estimated GFR with little bias, and had increased precision and accuracy in our multiethnic Asian population. This two-biomarker equation may increase the accuracy of population studies on CKD, without the need to consider ethnicity.

Adult ; Aged ; Biomarkers ; blood ; urine ; China ; ethnology ; Creatinine ; blood ; Cystatin C ; blood ; Female ; Glomerular Filtration Rate ; Healthy Volunteers ; Humans ; India ; ethnology ; Malaysia ; ethnology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Models, Statistical ; Prospective Studies ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic ; blood ; urine ; Reproducibility of Results

INTRODUCTIONClinical practice guidelines recommend using creatinine-based equations to estimate glomerular filtration rates (GFRs). While these equations were formulated for Caucasian-American populations and have adjustment coefficients for African-American populations, they are not validated for other ethnicities. The Chronic Kidney Disease-Epidemiology Collaborative Group (CKD-EPI) recently developed a new equation that uses both creatinine and cystatin C. We aimed to assess the accuracy of this equation in estimating the GFRs of participants (healthy and with chronic kidney disease [CKD]) from a multiethnic Asian population.

METHODSSerum samples from the Asian Kidney Disease Study and the Singapore Kidney Function Study were used. GFR was measured using plasma clearance of 99mTc-DTPA. GFR was estimated using the CKD-EPI equations. The performance of GFR estimation equations were examined using median and interquartile range values, and the percentage difference from the measured GFR.

RESULTSThe study comprised 335 participants (69.3% with CKD; 38.5% Chinese, 29.6% Malays, 23.6% Indians, 8.3% others), with a mean age of 53.5 ± 15.1 years. Mean standardised serum creatinine was 127 ± 86 μmol/L, while mean standardised serum cystatin C and mean measured GFR were 1.43 ± 0.74 mg/L and 67 ± 33 mL/min/1.73 m2, respectively. The creatinine-cystatin C CKD-EPI equation performed the best, with an estimated GFR of 67 ± 35 mL/min/1.73 m2.

CONCLUSIONThe new creatinine-cystatin C equation estimated GFR with little bias, and had increased precision and accuracy in our multiethnic Asian population. This two-biomarker equation may increase the accuracy of population studies on CKD, without the need to consider ethnicity.

Adult ; Aged ; Body Mass Index ; China ; ethnology ; Female ; Healthy Volunteers ; Hospitals, University ; Humans ; Hypertension ; epidemiology ; India ; ethnology ; Linear Models ; Malaysia ; ethnology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Renal Insufficiency, Chronic ; ethnology ; urine ; Sodium, Dietary ; urine

INTRODUCTIONEarlier treatment with intravenous stroke thrombolysis improves outcomes and lowers risk of bleeding complications. The decision-making and consent process is one of the rate-limiting steps in the duration between hospital arrival and treatment initiation. We aim to describe the attitudes and practices of neurologists in Singapore on the consent and decision-making processes for stroke thrombolysis.

MATERIALS AND METHODSA survey of neurologists and neurologists-in-training in 2 large tertiary public hospitals in Singapore was conducted.

RESULTSAmong 46 respondents, 94% of them considered stroke thrombolysis an emergency treatment and 67% of them indicated there is a need for written informed consent. The majority (87%) knew that from a legal perspective, the doctor should be the decision-maker in an emergency treatment for a mentally incapacitated patient. However, 63% of respondents reported that it is the next-of-kin who usually makes the decision in actual practice. If confronted with a mentally incapacitated stroke patient, 57% of them were willing to be the proxy decision-maker and 13% of them were not. In 3 commonly encountered vignettes when a mentally incapacitated patient was being considered for stroke thrombolysis, there was no clear consensus on the respondents' practices.

CONCLUSIONThe next-of-kin is usually the decision-maker for stroke thrombolysis in practice for a mentally incapacitated patient despite most doctors considering thrombolysis an emergency treatment. This, together with the lack of consensus and variance in decision-making and consent practice amongst neurologists for stroke thrombolysis, demonstrates the need to develop best practice guidelines to standardise healthcare practices for greater consistency in health service delivery.

Attitude ; Decision Making ; Humans ; Informed Consent ; legislation & jurisprudence ; Physicians ; Stroke

INTRODUCTIONWe were interested to determine the participation rates for health screening in a multi-ethnic urban low-income community. We assessed the health screening rates at baseline, collected data on reasons for non-participation and assessed the impact that a 5-month intervention had on health screening in this community.

MATERIALS AND METHODSThe study population involved all residents aged ≥40 years, living in heavily subsidised public rental flats in Taman Jurong Constituency, Singapore. From January 2009 to May 2009, we collected baseline information and offered eligible residents free blood pressure, fasting blood glucose and lipid measurements, fecal occult blood testing and Pap smears. Screenings were conducted either at or near the residents' homes.

RESULTSThe participation rate was 60.9% (213/350). At baseline, 18.9% (24/127), 26.4% (42/159) and 18.7% (31/166) had gone for regular hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidaemia screening, respectively; 3.8% (6/157) and 2.9% (2/70) had had regular colorectal and cervical cancer screening, respectively. Post-intervention, rates for hypertension screening increased to 97.6% but increases for other modalities were marginal. High cost, lack of time, not at risk, too old, or unnecessary for healthy people were commonly-cited reasons for skipping regular health screening. Being unemployed was associated with missing regular hypertension screening (adjusted OR = 2.48, CI = 1.12-5.53, P = 0.026); those who did not need financial aid were less likely to miss regular hyperlipidaemia screening (adjusted OR = 0.27, CI = 0.10-0.72, P = 0.008).

CONCLUSIONThe participation rates for health screening were poor in this low-income community. More can be done to encourage regular health screening participation amongst this segment of the populace, both by reducing costs as well as addressing misperceptions.

Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Health Services Research ; Humans ; Male ; Mass Screening ; methods ; utilization ; Middle Aged ; Patient Acceptance of Health Care ; ethnology ; Poverty Areas ; Singapore