Immunisation coverage and its determinants among Rohingya refugee children in Malaysia.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The displacement of populations due to humanitarian emergencies has an adverse impact on the global elimination of vaccine-preventable diseases. However, the level of immunisation coverage among Rohingya refugee children remains unknown. Therefore, this study investigated immunisation coverage and its determinants among Rohingya refugee children in Malaysia. METHOD: A cross-sectional study was conducted from September to November 2020 among the guardians of 243 Rohingya refugee children studying under the sponsorship of the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center, Malaysia. RESULTS: Among the 243 children, 90 (37%) were unimmunised, 147 (60.5%) were partially immunised and only 6 (2.5%) were fully immunised. The country of child's birth, the child's age and access to healthcare services were significantly associated with unimmunisation (all P<0.05). DISCUSSION: This study found low immunisation coverage among Rohingya refugee children in Malaysia. Given the low level of coverage, a public health intervention, such as a vaccination program, for this refugee population is necessary.

Differentiation of lard from other animal fats based on n-Alkane profiles using chemometric analysis.

Adulteration of lard with other fats and oils in food production affects many areas including economics, religion, and health. Previous studies discriminated lard based on major components of fats, i.e. triglycerides and fatty acids. This study aimed to differentiate lard and other animal fats (beef, chicken and mutton fat) based on n-alkane profiles established by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Clustering Analysis (HCA) were able to initiate clustering of lard and other animal fats. Good result was obtained using Random Forest (RF) and Partial Least Squares-Discriminant Analysis (PLS-DA). Statistical models propose tetracosane (C24) as a potential n-alkane marker and it was found that C24 was the major alkane with composition of 15.72% (GC-MS) of total alkanes identified. Based on this finding, more interesting study may potentially be explored for the interest of various fats and oils consumers in vast applications especially using chemometrics analysis.