1.Survival Analysis and Prognostic Factors for Peri-ocular Malignancies in Malaysia
Dhashani Sivaratnam ; Radzlian Othman ; Navin Kumar Devaraj ; Yap Ming Teck ; Vincent Ng Teng Fung ; Ew Shao Chen ; Ramizah Md Rozi ; Nur Najlaa Baharudin ; Kirbashini Kanasan ; Abdul Hanif Khan Yusof Khan ; Vasudevan Ramachandran ; Siew Moi Ching
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2024;20(No.1):60-69
		                        		
		                        			
		                        			Introduction: This study aims to determine the prognostic factors and survival outcomes of patients that underwent 
this surgery. Method: A retrospective review of 43 patients who underwent exenteration for periocular malignancies 
over a 14-year period was carried out. Patient demographics, tumour histology, treatment details, surgical margins’ 
status and post-operative survival were recorded. The survival outcome examined was the overall survival (OS) 
rate. Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier analysis were used to evaluate post-exenteration survival. Results: In total, 
20 females and 23 males with a median age of 62 ± 17.3 years were identified. The most common indication for 
exenteration was basal cell carcinoma (20.9%), followed by squamous cell carcinoma (18.6%), adenocystic carcinoma (14%), malignant melanoma (14%) and sebaceous gland carcinoma (11.6%). The independent predictors for 
worse OS on multivariate analysis were Chinese ethnicity (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 4.95, p =0.017), sebaceous 
gland carcinoma (aHR 57.61 p=0.006), adenocystic carcinoma (aHR 45.87, p=0.008), clear surgical margins (aHR 
5.41, p=0.025), receiving only chemotherapy (aHR 169.13, p=0.004), and receiving both adjuvant chemotherapy 
and radiotherapy (aHR 41.51, p=0.010). Conclusion: We recommend targeted public health initiatives for Chinese 
patients due to their increased mortality risk from peri-ocular malignancies. In addition, we advise comprehensive 
adjuvant therapy for all patients regardless of whether a clear surgical margin is achieved. Basal cell carcinoma and 
adenocystic carcinoma may also benefit from genetic research. We advocate more training for ophthalmologists to 
identify periocular malignancies earlier for better treatment options and increased chances of survival.
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
2.Barriers and Drivers of Physical Activity Participation Among Older Adults in Malaysia: A Systematic Review
Halimatus Sakdiah Minhat ; Wan Syahirah Wan Ghazali ; Muhammad Ikhwan Mud Shukri ; Norhafizah Mohd Noor ; Mohd Hafiidz Baharudin ; Zhao Yuanyuan ; Raja Nurzatul Efah Raja Adnan
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2024;20(No.1):253-262
		                        		
		                        			
		                        			Introduction: Ageing is commonly linked with physical inactivity. This review was performed to identify the factors 
associated with participation in physical activity among older adults in Malaysia. Methods: A systematic review was 
conducted using five databases; Pubmed, Sagepub, Scopus, Cochrane Library and Science Direct. Observational 
and intervention studies published between January 2010 and December 2020 were included, with Malaysian older 
adults aged 55 years and older being the main subject. Results: A total of 9 articles were included in the review. 
Analysis was guided by the Social Ecological Model for Health Promotion. The review had successfully identified 
gender, age, education level, health reasons, ethnicity and attitude as intrapersonal factors, social support (friend) 
and marital status as interpersonal factors, and locality as well as availability of facilities as environmental factors. 
Conclusions: Physical activity participation among Malaysian older adults were mainly determined by intrapersonal 
factors, particularly gender, health condition and educational level. 
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
3.Pembinaan dan Validasi Soal Selidik Faktor Sosiobudaya berkaitan COVID-19 dalam kalangan Orang Asli di Malaysia
Zaleha Md Isa ; Siti Fairuz Abu Bakar ; Aniza Ismail ; Faiz Daud ; Roszita Ibrahim ; Rozita Ibrahim ; Ummi Mirza Baharudin
International Journal of Public Health Research 2024;14(no.1):1846-1852
		                        		
		                        			Pengenalan:
		                        			Soal selidik sebagai alat untuk mengukur faktor sosiobudaya berkaitan COVID-19 masih belum digunakan secara meluas oleh kebanyakan penyelidik. Di Malaysia, tiada soal selidik yang dibina dan disahkan untuk tujuan tersebut. Oleh itu, tujuan kajian ini adalah untuk membina dan mengesahkan soal selidik sebagai alat ujian yang baru bagi mengukur faktor sosiobudaya berkaitan COVID-19 dalam kalangan Orang Asli di Malaysia.
		                        		
		                        			Metodologi:
		                        			Kajian rintis ini melibatkan 30 orang penduduk Orang Asli di Pos Lenjang, Kuala Lipis, Pahang. Indeks Kesahan Kandungan (CVI) digunakan untuk menguji kesahan kandungan soal selidik, manakala kesahan konstruk dan kebolehpercayaan konsistensi dalaman soal selidik ditentukan menggunakan Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) dan Cronbach’s Alpha.
		                        		
		                        			Hasil Kajian:
		                        			Satu set soal selidik terdiri daripada empat konstruk telah dibina iaitu kepercayaan, amalan perubatan tradisional, adat dan budaya tradisional, dan sokongan sosial. Sebanyak 16 item telah dikekalkan di dalam EFA dengan nilai Cronbach’s Alpha setiap konstruk adalah 0.617, 0.778, 0.773 dan 0.779.
		                        		
		                        			Rumusan
		                        			Soal selidik yang telah dibina ini berjaya divalidasi dan boleh digunakan untuk mengukur faktor sosiobudaya berkaitan COVID-19 dalam kalangan Orang Asli. Walau bagaimanapun, penambahbaikan masih perlu dilakukan dari masa ke semasa untuk memastikan soal selidik ini relevan terutamanya jika ia digunakan ke atas populasi atau dari negara yang berbeza dari Malaysia, dengan mengambil kira juga penyakit yang berbeza.
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
4.Antioxidative responses of Melon Manis Terengganu (MMT) against Fusarium sp.
Norhasnita Md. Baharudin ; Nur Fatin Wahida Abdul Rani ; Nurul Faziha Ibrahim ; Norhayati Yusuf
Malaysian Journal of Microbiology 2024;20(no.2):188-196
		                        		
		                        			Aims:
		                        			Melon Manis Terengganu, MMT is one of the economically important fruits in Terengganu, which contains numerous nutritional values and bioactive compounds that benefit human health. The major problem is MMT has been affected by Fusarium sp., which is the common fungus in the Cucurbitaceae family resulting in Fusarium wilt disease and lowering melon production. It may also affect the antioxidant value of MMT; however, limited study has been conducted on this issue. Hence, the objective of this study was to determine the non-enzymatic as well as enzymatic activities in response to Fusarium sp. (S2 and S4) infection. 
		                        		
		                        			Methodology and results:
		                        			In this study, MMT leaves were incubated in culture filtrate (CF) obtained from Murashige and Skoog (MS) liquid medium. The antioxidative responses were assayed at 0, 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 days of treatment. In response to Fusarium infection, the ascorbic acid, α-tocopherol and carotenoid content were significantly stimulated at the early stages of the experiment and slowly reduced afterward. This current study also demonstrated that the CAT-specific activities were initially induced in S2 CF-treated leaves. Similar APX and gPOD specific activity patterns were observed in both S2 and S4 CFs treatments. The APX and gPOD-specific activities were induced at the later stages of infection in S4 CF-treated leaves. 
		                        		
		                        			Conclusion, significance and impact of study: 
		                        			The results revealed that enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants worked together to fight against stress caused by the fungal infection, with the activation of the plant defense system.
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
5.Systematic Review of Intervention Programs to Improve the Level of Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices towards Work Safety Culture among Office Workers
Josiah Oluwaseun Odu ; Titi Rahmawati Hamedon ; Aidalina Mahmud ; Mohd Rafee Baharudin
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2023;19(No.1):263-271
		                        		
		                        			
		                        			Introduction: Workplace safety culture (WSC) is crucial in providing a safe working environment. Workers need 
to be reminded regularly of its importance, and therefore effectively, work safety intervention programs need to be 
identified to be used for this purpose. The main objective is to identify workplace intervention programs to improve 
WSC among office workers. The specific goals are to determine the types of intervention (knowledge-based, attitudinal, and practices-based interventions), the theories used, and the effectiveness. Methods: Databases such as 
ProQuest, CINAHL, Medline, and ScienceDirect were used to perform literature searches with the keywords [“safety 
culture training” OR “safety culture education” OR “safety culture promotion”] AND [“office workers” OR “civil 
servant” OR “white-collar workers” OR “administrative officers” OR “clerical officer”]. The inclusion criteria set for 
the search process included research articles, publication between January 1, 2015, and September 10, 2020, which 
were research articles within five years and eight months of publication to the time of data extraction of this study. 
Availability of full-text articles, articles published in English, and only articles among office workers. Results: This 
review includes seven articles and the techniques used for these studies were knowledge, attitude, and practices towards WSC. Conclusion: As the number and scope of intervention of studies on WSC seem scarce, the nature of jobs 
nowadays and in the future seems to be more office-based; consequently, more of these studies are recommended 
among office workers. 
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
6.Development of Mobile Application in Assessing Commuting Accident Risk (CommuRisk) Amongst Commuters at Klang Valley
Nur Deana Syafiqah Abdullah ; Muhammad Razif Mahadi ; Mohd Rafee Baharudin
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2023;19(No.3):106-114
		                        		
		                        			
		                        			Introduction: Globally, commuting accident risks are always neglected in an organisation. There is a need to assess 
the impact of commuting accidents based on sociodemographic, human, vehicle, road, and environmental factors 
and to find suitable and effective mitigation strategies to alleviate the associated undesirable outcomes. Methods:
This research was designed to develop a mobile application to assess commuting accident risk levels using artificial 
intelligence principles, as we are now in the 21st-century technology era. A total of 216 respondents from private 
and government industries participated in this study. Besides, to prove the developed application’s effectiveness, the 
study evaluated the effectiveness of the identified risk factor in determining the level of commuting risks predicted 
by respondents with the risk level calculated by the mobile application. Results: A major contribution of this paper 
is the effectiveness and accuracy of a mobile application known as CommuRisk. The app was developed using Android Studio and natively uses Java. There was a significant difference between with and without mobile applications 
in determining the level of commuting risks, and the effectiveness was proven with a (p-value = 0.001) at a 95% 
confidence interval with large sample size. Conclusion: Thus, this paper proved the effectiveness and accuracy of a 
mobile application in calculating risk levels exposed by commuters compared to risk levels predicted by commuters. 
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
7.Testing Occupational Hazard Self-Evaluation Module (OHSEM) Intervention among Workers of SME (Manufacturing) in Northern Malaysia
Syazwan Syah Zulkifly ; Nor Halim Hasan ; Mohd Rafee Baharudin
Malaysian Journal of Medicine and Health Sciences 2023;19(No.5):108-114
		                        		
		                        			
		                        			Introduction: Workplace accidents have been a persistent problem in Malaysia’s manufacturing industry, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Employee behavior has been identified as a significant contributing factor to these accidents, and research has suggested that improving safety knowledge and attitudes can enhance safety behavior. Despite this, there have been no empirical intervention studies in Malaysia to investigate the 
effectiveness of safety intervention programs aimed at improving SME worker safety behavior. Therefore, this study 
aimed to assess the efficacy of the Occupational Hazard Self-Evaluation Module (OHSEM) intervention in enhancing 
safety knowledge, attitudes, and behavior (KAB) among SME workers in the manufacturing sector. Methods: A quasi-experimental design with control group was utilized to evaluate the effectiveness of the OHSEM intervention. The 
intervention was implemented over a 12-week period on production workers in the experimental group, while the 
control group received no intervention. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to 88 production workers 
in both groups before and after the intervention to measure the improvement of safety KAB. Descriptive analysis and 
an independent t-test were used to analyse the data. Results: The post-test results showed that safety KAB for the 
control group was moderate (mean = 2.11), while the mean score in the experimental group was high (m=4.17). Furthermore, the t-test result revealed a significant difference in safety KAB mean scores between the experimental and 
control groups. Conclusion: This study provides empirical evidence on the effectiveness of the OHSEM intervention 
in enhancing safety KAB in SMEs in the Malaysian SME (manufacturing) sector. 
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
8.Transtubular Transoral Approach for Irreducible Ventral Craniovertebral Junction Compressive Pathologies: Surgical Technique and Outcome
Ariffin MH ; Mohd-Mahdi SN ; Baharudin A ; M.Tamil A ; Abdul-Rhani S ; Ibrahim K ; Ng BW ; Tan JA
Malaysian Orthopaedic Journal 2023;17(No.2):35-42
		                        		
		                        			
		                        			Introduction: To investigate the use of a tubular retractor to
provide access to the craniovertebral junction (CVJ) sparing
the soft palate with the aim of reducing complications
associated with traditional transoral approach but yet
allowing adequate decompression of the CVJ.
Materials and methods: Twelve consecutive patients with
severe myelopathy (JOA-score less than 11) from ventral
CVJ compression were operated between 2014-2020 using a
tubular retractor assisted transoral decompression. 
Results: All patients improved neurologically statistically
(p=0.02). There were no posterior pharynx wound infections
or rhinolalia. There was one case with incomplete removal of
the lateral wall of odontoid and one incidental durotomy. 
Conclusions: A Tubular retractor provides adequate access
for decompression of the ventral compression of CVJ. As the
tubular retractor pushed away the uvula, soft palate and
pillars of the tonsils as it docked on the posterior pharyngeal
wall, the traditional complications associated with traditional
transoral procedures is completely avoided.
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        	
9.THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS WITH MUSCULOSKELETAL DISORDERS AMONG NURSES AT TERTIARY UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL
Faiz Baharudin ; Marzuki Isahak ; Hazreen Abdul Majid
Journal of University of Malaya Medical Centre 2023;26(1):82-89
		                        		
		                        			Introduction:
		                        			Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) was found to be high among nurses especially those working in the hospital. One of the risk factors of MSDs is psychosocial factors apart from physical and ergonomic factors. However, limited study was found specifically looking at this association among nurses working at tertiary university hospital especially in Malaysia. Hence, the objective of this study is to assess the association between organizational psychosocial risk factors with MSDs among nurses working at tertiary university hospital.
		                        		
		                        			Methods:
		                        			A cross-sectional study was conducted with a total of 550 respondents among nurses in University Malaya Medical Centre working from all nursing working department. Samples was selected using Stratified Random Sampling based on nursing working location ratio. A multiple logistic regression was conducted to determine the association between organizational psychosocial factors with MSDs among study population.
		                        		
		                        			Results:
		                        			 Multiple logistic regression revealed that supervisors support was associated with MSDs (AOR 0.309, 95%CI 0.133-0.716) even after controlled with  confounders such as age, number of children, income, history of musculoskeletal disease, employment grade, total employment duration, work schedule type and selected ergonomic factors. On the other hand, other psychosocial factors which includes decision latitude, psychological job demand, co-worker support, and job insecurity were found not be significant.
		                        		
		                        			Conclusion
		                        			The findings highlighted the relationships between organizational psychosocial factors and MSDs among nurses at tertiary university hospital specifically the role of supervisor support as a protective factor against MSDs among this working population. Hence, hospital top management should incorporate this element as one of the components in their program to reduce MSDs among nurses in the hospital.
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        			Musculoskeletal Diseases
		                        			
		                        		
		                        	
10.Expression of virulence genes in Group B Streptococcus isolated from symptomatic pregnant women with term and preterm delivery
Hanan Hamimi Wahid ; Puteri Fara Diba Mustapha Rounal ; Arvind Raaj Selvakumaran ; Fatin Najihah Anahar ; Mohammed Imad Al-Deen Mustafa Mahmud ; Norsyuhada Alias ; Norhidayah Kamarudin ; Roesnita Baharudin ; Roziah Husin ; Ahmad Muzamir Ahmad Mustafa ; Hamizah Ismail
Malaysian Journal of Microbiology 2022;18(4):370-379
		                        		
		                        			Aims:
		                        			Maternal vaginal Group B Streptococcus (GBS) colonization is considered a risk factor for preterm delivery and, consequently, neonatal infections. Previous studies have portrayed the important roles of these virulence factors, including hemolytic pigment, hyaluronidase (HylB), serine-rich protein (Srr) and bacterial surface adhesion of GBS (BsaB) in mediating GBS colonization and intrauterine ascending infection, causing preterm delivery. This study aimed to investigate the association between mRNA expression of virulence genes in GBS isolates obtained from symptomatic pregnant women and preterm delivery.
		                        		
		                        			Methodology and results:
		                        			GBS isolates were obtained from high vaginal swabs of 40 symptomatic pregnant women of gestational age of less than 37 weeks. RNA was extracted from these GBS isolates and RT-qPCR was performed to determine the relative mRNA expression of GBS virulence genes, including CylE (encode enzyme required for the biosynthesis of the hemolytic pigment), HylB, Srr-1 and BsaB. Socio-demographic details and obstetric history were not found to be associated with the delivery outcomes of these women. The GBS isolates from symptomatic pregnant women who delivered prematurely showed a higher expression of CylE gene and a trend towards an elevated expression of HylB gene compared to women with term delivery. Meanwhile the expression of both Srr-1 and BsaB genes was similar between symptomatic pregnant women who had term or preterm delivery.
		                        		
		                        			Conclusion, significance and impact of study
		                        			The results suggest that following vaginal colonization, both CylE and HylB genes are likely to contribute to intrauterine ascending infection and inflammation, leading to preterm delivery in humans. These virulence factors may be targeted for the pre-clinical stages of vaccine development or therapeutic intervention.
		                        		
		                        		
		                        		
		                        			Streptococcus agalactiae--isolation &
		                        			;
		                        		
		                        			 purification
		                        			;
		                        		
		                        			 Pregnant Women
		                        			
		                        		
		                        	
            

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