Despite publishing and securing research grants being obligatory in research universities, the literature on the factors influencing academic productivity is relatively scarce. Thus, in this study, we aimed to determine the personal and behavioural-related factors that influence the culture of publishing and securing research grants among academicians with lower research-related performance. This cross-sectional study was conducted among 49 academic staff members of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM). A self-administered questionnaire consisting of personal, attitude and behavioural (barriers, perceived stress scale, work extrinsic and intrinsic motivation scale, psychological well-being scale, and basic needs satisfaction scale) questions were distributed during a workshop and online. Simple linear regression (SLR) analyses were performed for each variable, followed by multiple linear regression (MLR) to identify the associated factors of research output. After adjusting for covariates, having a doctoral degree (β=0.396, 95% CI=0.221-2.146, p<0.05) and integrated regulation (β=0.574, 95% CI=0.036-3.612, p<0.05) were found to be associated with research grant acquisition (R2=0.273). Moreover, increasing age (β=0.426, 95% CI=0.088-0.397, p<0.05), living alone (β=0.331, 95% CI=0.944-6.626, p<0.05), having a doctoral degree (β=0.248, 95% CI=0.174-6.747, p<0.05), environmental mastery (β=0.318, 95% CI=0.013-0.347, p<0.05), self-acceptance (β=0.284, 95% CI=0.010-0.242, p<0.05), satisfaction incompetence (β=0.273, 95% CI=0.001-0.200, p<0.05) and relatedness (β=0.280, 95% CI=0.001-0.116, p<0.05) were found to be the factors that influence the publications produced among participants (R2 =0.423). The findings of this study could be used by management to formulate effective strategies to increase the productivity of academics in their research-related performance.

Oropharyngeal Synovial Sarcoma: A Case Report Synovial sarcoma is a rare and aggressive type of sarcoma that develops from mesenchymal cells and accounts for around 8% to 10% of all cases of soft tissue sarcoma. The presence of synovial sarcoma in the head-and-neck region is characterised by aggressive behaviour and a generally unfavourable prognosis. Understanding the various manifestations of synovial sarcoma, particularly uncommon locations like the oropharynx, significantly improves patient outcomes by facilitating early diagnosis and prompt management. We report a case of a 57-year-old Malay woman who presented with a two-month history of sore throat and odynophagia, complicated with partial airway obstruction. She underwent endoscopic excision of the right oropharyngeal tumour via transoral approach, and the histopathological examination revealed monophasic synovial sarcoma. The surgical management, histopathological characteristics, and rarity of the disease are discussed.

Lipoma is a benign, slow growing tumour composed of adipose tissue. In general, it is very unusual for lipoma to form in the head and neck region, let alone achieve a size of more than 10 cm with the involvement of deep neck spaces. We discussed a case of an extremely huge neck lipoma measuring 18 cm x 14 cm with extensive involvement of deep neck spaces, infratemporal fossa and pharynx, closely adherent to submandibular and parotid gland. The diagnostic and therapeutic challenges were discussed, in achieving a surgically complete excision and cosmetically acceptable outcome

Foodborne disease is among the primary illness that causes morbidity and mortality in the world. Several studies show that most students do not have adequate food safety knowledge to protect themselves against foodborne diseases. This study aimed to determine the food safety knowledge, behaviour, and beliefs among undergraduate students at a local university in Malaysia. This cross-sectional study involves 121 respondents from three health science-related faculties at the studied institution. The questionnaire was distributed via an online platform. This study used multiple-choiceformat questions for Food Safety Knowledge and a Likert type scale for Food Safety Behaviour and Belief question statements. Most of the respondents were female (78%). About 16% of the respondents have experience working / volunteering in food services, and half of them are involved in food handling during their services. This study recorded a moderate score in all sections (knowledge, behaviour, beliefs) with a total percentage score of 60.3%, 60.3%, and 66.1%, respectively. A strong but not significant correlation between food safety knowledge and beliefs (r = 0.69 p > 0.05) and between food safety knowledge and behaviour (r = 0.83 p > 0.05) were observed. This study is useful as a basis to develop a targeted food safety education program among undergraduate students. Students with high knowledge of food safety will increase food safety beliefs and behaviour, thus preventing them from getting any foodborne illness.

Objective: To evaluate the antioxidant potential and pancreatic lipase inhibitory action of optimized hydroethanolic extracts of Solanum nigrum. Methods: Optimized extraction for maximum recovery of metabolites was performed using a combination of freeze-drying and ultrasonication followed by determination of antioxidant and antiobesity properties. The ultra-high performance liquid chromatography equipped with mass spectrometry was used to analyze metabolite profiling of Solanum nigrum. Computational studies were performed using molecular docking and electrostatic potential analysis for individual compounds. The hypolipidemic potential of the most potent extract was assessed in the obese mice fed on fat rich diet. Results: The 80% hydroethanolic extract exhibited the highest extract yield, total phenolic contents, total flavonoid contents along with the strongest 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl scavenging activity, total antioxidant power, and pancreatic lipase inhibitory properties. The 80% hydroethanolic extract not only regulated the lipid profile of obese mice but also restricted the weight gain in the liver, kidney, and heart. The 80% hydroethanolic extract also reduced alanine transaminase and aspartate transaminase concentrations in serum. The effects of plant extract at 300 mg/kg body weight were quite comparable with the standard drug orlistat. Conclusions: Solanum nigrum is proved as an excellent and potent source of secondary metabolites that might be responsible for obesity mitigation.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in component alignment between first and second knees in simultaneous bilateral total knee arthroplasty (SBTKA) and unilateral TKA (UTKA). MATERIALS AND METHODS: 274 SBTKAs and 198 UTKAs were included in study. Patients were divided into three groups as SBTKA on the right knee (group A), SBTKA on the left knee (group B) and UTKA (group C). Femoral and tibial component alignment was checked in both coronal plane (alpha [α] and beta [β] angles) and sagittal plane (gamma [γ] and delta [δ] angles) radiographs. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences among groups in the preoperative anatomical varus angle and Kellgren–Lawrence gonarthrosis classification grade (p=0.139 and p=0.329, respectively). In the coronal plane, the alignment of femoral component (α angle) and tibial component (β angle) was similar in all three groups (α angle, 95.01 vs. 95.14 vs. 94.9, p=0.945; β angle, 90.03 vs. 89.67 vs. 89.98, p=0.483). The sagittal plane alignment of femoral component (γ angle) and tibial component (δ angle) did not show significant differences (γ angle, 7.04 vs. 6.98 vs. 7.00, p=0.132; δ angle, 86.56 vs. 87.41 vs. 86.73, p=0.610). CONCLUSIONS: The angular alignment of components was similar between SBTKA and UTKA.
Arthroplasty ; Arthroplasty, Replacement, Knee ; Classification ; Humans ; Knee

Intramuscular haemangioma is relatively rare and accounts for less than 1% of all haemangioma. Most of these tumours occur in the trunk, arms and legs. Only 14% of all intramuscular haemangioma arise from the head and neck region, with masseter muscle representing the most common site of involvement, followed by the trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscles. We present a case of a 60-year-old man with a soft lump in the left cheek. Imaging of the neck showed irregular, dilated enhancing vessels seen in the left masseter muscle suggestive of intramuscular haemangioma. Excisional biopsy was performed, and histopathological findings confirmed the diagnosis.

PURPOSE: This study was performed to assess the clinical and radiological outcomes following one-stage hip reconstruction, consisting of open reduction femoral shortening and pelvic osteotomy, for neglected developmental dislocation of the hip (DDH). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective analysis of 77 hips in 65 patients (46 females and 19 males; 12 had bilateral dislocations), operated at a Ghurki Trust Teaching Hospital in Pakistan between 2013 and 2015. The average age at surgery was 11.02±3.43 years. According to the Tönnis classification, there were 10, 14, 22, and 31 patients in grades 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively. The pelvic procedure utilized in this study was triple osteotomy (47 hips) followed by double and Salter osteotomy (18 and 12 hips, respectively). Postoperative evaluations were conducted using the modified MacKay's scoring system (functional outcomes) and Severin's scoring method (radiological assessment). RESULTS: Postoperatively, there were 38 (49.4%), 19 (24.7%), 14 (18.2%), and 6 (7.8%) hips in Severin grade I, II, III and IV, respectively. According to the modified McKay criteria, there were 22 hips (28.6%) in excellent condition, 44 (57.1%) in good condition, 9 (11.7%) in fair condition and 2 (2.6%) in poor condition. Both patients with poor outcomes had an unstable, painful hip with evidence of avascular necrosis of the femoral head. CONCLUSION: Based on the results presented here, we recommend the single stage procedure of open reduction, femoral shortening and pelvic osteotomy for treatment of DDH in older children with good to excellent functional and radiological outcomes.
Child ; Classification ; Dislocations ; Female ; Head ; Hip Dislocation ; Hip ; Hospitals, Teaching ; Humans ; Male ; Necrosis ; Osteotomy ; Pakistan ; Research Design ; Retrospective Studies

Foreign bodies (FB) are most often lodged in the upper digestive tract and amongst the common encounter in outpatient clinic. In most instances, the ingested FB passes uneventfully through the gastrointestinal tract without any harm but in certain cases, it can migrate extraluminally and lead to serious complication. Long standing migrated FB can cause devastating complications like neck abscess and injuries to the major blood vessels. In the present case, a wooden toothpick had migrated to the soft tissue of the neck. A careful and detailed history with clinical-radiographic investigation helped to locate the ingested FB and aided in its successful removal.
Foreign Bodies ; Neck

Objective: To study the occurrence and serotype diversity of Salmonella isolates in different species of poultry (chicken, emu and duck) and determine their resistance pattern against various antibiotics of different classes. Methods: About 507 samples comprising 202 caecal contents and 305 fecal samples from chicken, emu and duckwere processed for isolation of Salmonella enterica. Salmonellaewere isolated and detected by standard protocol of ISO 6579 Amendment 1: Annex D. Genetic confirmation was also made by using 16S rRNA genus specific PCR. Serotype specific PCR was also done to detect the most common serovars viz. Salmonella Enteritidis, Salmonella Typhimurium and Salmonella Gallinarum. All obtained isolates were subjected to a set of 25 antibiotics to study their antibiogram by using Baeur-Kirby disk diffusion method. Results: Out of 507 samples processed, 32 isolates of Salmonella enterica (18 from caecal contents and 14 from faecal samples) were obtained, of which 24 belonged to 6 different serovars, 6 were untypeable and 2 were rough strains. Salmonella Enteritidis was the most predominant serotype (9), followed by Salmonella Typhimurium (5), Salmonella Virchow (4), Salmonella Gallinarum (3), Salmonella Reading (2) and Salmonella Altona (1). Antibiotic resistance pattern was maximum (100%) to oxacillin, penicillin and clindamycin, followed by ampicillin (68.75%), tetracycline (65.62%), nalidixic acid (56.25%) and colistin (46.87%). High sensitivity of isolates was recorded for chloramphenicol (96.87%) followed by meropenem (84.37%). Conclusions: Occurrence of high proportion of serovars in our study which can cause serious gastroenteritis in humans is a matter of concern. Salmonella Altona has been detected for the first time in India from poultry. This serotype is known to cause serious outbreaks of gastroenteritis in humans. Multidrug resistant isolates were recovered at high percentage which can be attributed to non-judicious use of antibiotics both in prophylaxis and treatment regimen. This observation draws serious attention as poultry serves as an important source of transmission of these multidrug resistant Salmonella serovars to humans.