Novel variant in NSDHL gene associated with CHILD syndrome and syndactyly- a case report.

BACKGROUND: Congenital hemidysplasia with ichthyosiform erythroderma and limb defects also known as CHILD syndrome is an X-linked dominant, male lethal genodermatosis with a prevalence of 1 in 100,000 live births. Mutations in NSDHL gene located at Xq28 potentially impair the function of NAD(P) H steroid dehydrogenase-like protein and is responsible for its pathogenesis. CASE PRESENTATION: The proband was a 9-month-old twin (T2) girl with a healthy twin sister (T1) of Sri Lankan origin born to non-consanguineous parents. She presented with right sided continuous icthyosiform erythroderma and ipsilateral limb defects and congenital hemidysplasia since birth. Notably the child had ipsilateral hand hypoplasia and syndactyly. There were other visceral abnormalities. We performed whole exome sequencing and found a novel heterozygous variant (NSDHL, c.713C > A, p.Thr238Asn). CONCLUSION: We report a novel missense variant in the NSDHL gene that resides in a highly-conserved region. This variant affects the NAD(P) H steroid dehydrogenase-like protein function via reduction in the number of active sites resulting in the CHILD syndrome phenotype and syndactyly.

Methanol related death in National Institute of Forensic Medicine, Hospital Kuala Lumpur: A case series.

INTRODUCTION: Methanol is a widely available chemical with a range of uses including as solvent, as a fuel, in chemical synthesis and anti-freeze preparations. Most of the cases are accidental exposures to drinking beverages contaminated with methanol. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In mid-September 2018, there was a single outbreak of methanol poisoning in Malaysia especially involving the state of Federal Territory Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. There were 33 reported deaths suspected due to methanol poisoning in this current outbreak where 11 of them were brought in to the Institute of Forensic Medicine (NIFM), Kuala Lumpur. The last outbreak was in the year 2013 with 29 deaths reported out of 44 cases. RESULTS: There were 3 cases (27.2%) died in hospital and the remaining 8 cases (72.8%) were found dead at home and were later brought in dead to the hospital. A full autopsy was carried out for each case. Autopsy findings, as well as lab results pertaining to cases that survived and directly brought in dead, were of a different spectrum. CONCLUSION: Methanol related deaths are almost always as a result of greed. The running truism is 'methanol poisoning is a result of deliberate addition/adulteration with industrial methanol'. Prevention of the illegal production of methanol and methylated spirits should be established to curb this matter in the future.

Reduced bone mineral density in human immunodeficiency virus-infected individuals: a meta-analysis of its prevalence and risk factors.

A meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals. The prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis in HIV-infected and antiretroviral therapy (ART)-treated individuals was significantly higher than respective controls. Evidence regarding bone loss within first year of HIV infection or ART initiation was preliminary. PURPOSE: The aim of the study is to systematically review published literature on the prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis and its associated risk factors in HIV-infected individuals. METHODS: A literature search was conducted from 1989 to 2015 in six databases. Full text, English articles on HIV-infected individuals ≥ 18 years, which used dual X-ray absorptiometry to measure BMD, were included. Studies were excluded if the prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis was without a comparison group, and the BMD/T-score were not reported. RESULTS: Twenty-one cross sectional and eight longitudinal studies were included. The prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis was significantly higher in both HIV-infected [odds ratio (OR) = 2.4 (95%Cl: 2.0, 2.8) at lumbar spine, 2.6 (95%Cl: 2.2, 3.0) at hip] and ART-treated individuals [OR = 2.8 (95%Cl: 2.0, 3.8) at lumbar spine, 3.4 (95%Cl: 2.5, 4.7) at hip] when compared to controls. PI-treated individuals had an OR of 1.3 (95%Cl: 1.0, 1.7) of developing osteopenia/osteoporosis compared to controls. A higher proportion of tenofovir-treated individuals (52.6%) had lower BMD compared to controls (42.7%), but did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.248). No significant difference was found in the percent change of BMD at the lumbar spine, femoral neck, or total hip from baseline to follow-up between HIV-infected, PI-treated, tenofovir-treated, and controls. Older age, history of bone fracture, low BMI, low body weight, being Hispanic or Caucasian, low testosterone level, smoking, low CD4 cell count, lipodystrophy, low fat mass, and low lean body mass were associated with low BMD. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis in HIV-infected and antiretroviral therapy (ART)-treated individuals was two times more compared to controls. However, evidence concerning bone loss within the first year of HIV infection and ART initiation was preliminary.

Reduced bone mineral density in human immunodeficiency virus-infected individuals: a meta-analysis of its prevalence and risk factors: supplementary presentation.

A meta-analysis was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals. The prevalence of osteopenia/osteoporosis in HIV-infected and antiretroviral therapy (ART)-treated individuals was significantly higher than respective controls. Evidence regarding bone loss within first year of HIV infection or ART initiation was preliminary.

Kerosene lighting contributes to household air pollution in rural Uganda.

The literature on the contribution of kerosene lighting to indoor air particulate concentrations is sparse. In rural Uganda, kitchens are almost universally located outside the main home, and kerosene is often used for lighting. In this study, we obtained longitudinal measures of particulate matter 2.5 microns or smaller in size (PM2.5 ) from living rooms and kitchens of 88 households in rural Uganda. Linear mixed-effects models with a random intercept for household were used to test the hypotheses that primary reported lighting source and kitchen location (indoor vs outdoor) are associated with PM2.5 levels. During initial testing, households reported using the following sources of lighting: open-wick kerosene (19.3%), hurricane kerosene (45.5%), battery-powered (33.0%), and solar (1.1%) lamps. During follow-up testing, these proportions changed to 29.5%, 35.2%, 18.2%, and 9.1%, respectively. Average ambient, living room, and kitchen PM2.5 levels were 20.2, 35.2, and 270.0 µg/m3 . Living rooms using open-wick kerosene lamps had the highest PM2.5 levels (55.3 µg/m3 ) compared to those using solar lighting (19.4 µg/m3 ; open wick vs solar, P=.01); 27.6% of homes using open-wick kerosene lamps met World Health Organization indoor air quality standards compared to 75.0% in homes using solar lighting.

Barriers and facilitators to starting insulin in patients with type 2 diabetes: a systematic review.

AIM: To identify the barriers and facilitators to start insulin in patients with type 2 diabetes. METHOD: This was a systematic review. We conducted a systematic search using PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL and Web of Science (up to 5 June 2014) for original English articles using the terms 'type 2 diabetes', 'insulin', and free texts: 'barrier' or 'facilitate' and 'initiate'. Two pairs of reviewers independently assessed and extracted the data. Study quality was assessed with Qualsyst. RESULTS: A total of 9740 references were identified: 41 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility. Twenty-five articles (15 qualitative, 10 quantitative) were included in the review. Good inter-rater reliability was observed for the Qualsyst score (weighted kappa 0.7). Three main themes identified were as follows: patient-related, healthcare professional and system factors. The main patient-related barriers were fear of pain and injection (n = 18), concerns about side effects of insulin (n = 12), perception that insulin indicated end stage of diabetes (n = 11), inconvenience (n = 10), difficulty in insulin administration (n = 7), punishment (n = 7) and stigma and discrimination (n = 7). Healthcare professionals' barriers were as follows: poor knowledge and skills (n = 9), physician inertia (n = 5) and language barriers (n = 4). System barriers included lack of time (n = 5). The most common facilitators were understanding the benefits of insulin (n = 7), not being afraid of injections (n = 5), and patient education and information (n = 5). CONCLUSION: Major barriers to insulin initiation persist despite availability of newer and safer insulin. Healthcare professionals should explore and address these barriers. Targeted interventions should be developed to overcome these barriers.

Post-mortem pulmonary tuberculosis: comparison of available diagnostic methods.

Tuberculosis (TB) caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis remains a serious public health threat with the World Health Organisation (WHO) reporting 5.8 million cases and 1.3 million deaths in the year 2020 due to TB. TB can be diagnosed by imaging, histopathological and bacteriological methods with culture remaining the gold standard. This study was performed to look at the sensitivity and specificity of post-mortem computed tomography (PMCT) imaging when compared to culture in diagnosing pulmonary tuberculosis. This was a retrospective comparative study looking at post mortem cases where lung tissue samples sent for TB culture at Hospital Kuala Lumpur were compared against PMCT imaging. Exclusion criteria included contaminated samples, decomposed cases, immunocompromised subjects and those below 18 years of age. Subjects included 80 medico-legal autopsy cases at the National Institute of Forensic Medicine, Hospital Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia who had whole body PMCT done in accordance with the Institute's protocol and tissue samples sent for bacteriology culture for tuberculosis. PMCT findings were positively associated with acid-fast organisms in 23.5 out of 33 cases (71.2%). Our study also showed that PMCT had a sensitivity of 71.3% and specificity of 54.3% (95% CI: 39.5-68.4) in diagnosing TB based on the protocol set in this study. This study showed that there was relatively good agreement between radiological PMCT findings and bacterial culture, suggesting that radiological examination is a relatively reliable tool for preliminary screening and possible diagnosis of TB prior to a postmortem examination which would be beneficial in reducing the risk of transmission of TB to health workers during autopsy.

The use of polyethylenimine-DNA to topically deliver hTERT to promote hair growth.

The present study investigates the efficacy of polyethylenimine (PEI)-DNA complex that expressed human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) to transfect hair follicle stem cells and produce sufficient hTERT to stimulate hair growth. Transfection with pLC-hTERT-DNA-PEI complex (D+P group) in vitro induced expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen in 35.8% of the purified stem cell population, suggesting enhanced cell proliferation. In vivo transfection efficiency of rat dorsal skin was determined by staining for ß-gal activity. Cells positive for ß-gal were located in the bulge region and dermal sheath of hair follicles. The follicles in the hTERT-transfected region entered anagenon day 15 after transfection, whereas non-transfected (Neg) controls remained in telogen. The similar effect was observed in 50-day-old rat dorsal skin. D+P group displayed a specific expression of hTERT and sufficient to initiate a transition to the anagen phase and promote new hair synthesis 18 days after the transfection. hTERT promoted follicle neogenesis following wounding. In all, 60 days after wounding, tissues of the D+P group showed more newly regenerating hair follicles (83±52 regenerated follicles per rat) in contrast to control group tissues (15±15 regenerated follicles per rat). These studies provide a potential approach for gene therapy of skin disease.

Pharmaceutical care issues encountered by post-menopausal osteoporotic women prescribed bisphosphonates.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Pharmacists have been involved in providing comprehensive interventions to osteoporosis patients, but pharmaceutical care issues (PCIs) encountered during such interventions have not been well documented. Therefore, the aim of this study was to document PCIs encountered by post-menopausal osteoporotic women prescribed bisphosphonates. METHODS: A randomized controlled study was conducted from September 2005-February 2009 in the University Malaya Medical Centre, Malaysia. This main intervention study measured the effects of pharmaceutical care on medication adherence, persistence, quality of life, knowledge and patient satisfaction. However, this manuscript is part of the main intervention study and focuses only on the PCIs encountered. INCLUSION CRITERIA: post-menopausal women diagnosed with osteoporosis (T-score≤-2·5/low-trauma fracture) and prescribed weekly alendronate/risedronate. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: those with metabolic bone disease and could not communicate in English. The PCIs identified were collected via personal interviews or telephone calls, and each participant was followed-up for a period of 2 years. All PCIs were discussed with and confirmed by a physician. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Of the 198 participants recruited, 64 (32·3%) experienced adverse effects because of bisphosphonates whereas one participant (0·5%) refused to start bisphosphonates because of fear of adverse effects. Most adverse effects [50 (74·6%)] were reported during the first 3 months of therapy with gastrointestinal problems being the main issue [23 (11·6%)]. Of the nine participants (4·5%) who discontinued bisphosphonates, only three agreed to take another medication. From the 97 PCIs identified, 77 issues could be classified as drug-related problems [according to the Pharmaceutical Care Network Europe Classification v6·2]. There were 87 causes, 178 interventions and 77 outcomes. The main problem and cause of the PCIs encountered were adverse drug events (83·1% and 74·7% respectively), whereas the main intervention provided was patient counselling (41·0%). All problems were solved (98·5%) except for one because of the lack of cooperation of a patient. After 2 years, 36 participants (20%) were no longer persistent with therapy, 19 (10·6%) did not have clinic follow-up and 53 (26·8%) did not have a bone mineral density scan. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: The main PCIs identified were related to the use of bisphosphonates and its adverse effects. The study showed that the presence of a clinical pharmacist has enabled patients to voice their medication-related issues and to allow appropriate recommendations and actions to be taken to resolve these issues.

Novel frameshift variant in the PCNT gene associated with Microcephalic Osteodysplastic Primordial Dwarfism (MOPD) Type II and small kidneys.

BACKGROUND: Microcephalic Osteodysplastic Primordial Dwarfism (MOPD) Type II is an autosomal recessive condition encompassing a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by symmetrical growth retardation leading to dwarfism, microcephaly, and a range of multiple medical complications including neurovascular diseases. Biallelic pathogenic variants in the pericentrin gene (PCNT) have been implicated in its pathogenesis. CASE PRESENTATION: We performed whole-exome sequencing to ascertain the diagnosis of a 2 year and 6 months old boy who presented with severe failure to thrive, microcephaly, and facial gestalt suggestive of MOPD Type II which included features such as retrognathia, small ears, prominent nasal root with a large nose, microdontia, sparse scalp hair, bilateral fifth finger clinodactyly. He had a small ostium secundum atrial septal defect and bilaterally small kidneys. Microcephalic Osteodysplastic Primordial Dwarfism (MOPD) Type II was confirmed based on a pathogenic compound heterozygous frameshift variant in the PCNT gene c.5059_5060delAA | p. Asn1687fs (novel variant) and c.9535dup (p. Val3179fs). His parents were found to be heterozygous carriers for the variants. CONCLUSION: We report a novel frameshift variant in the PCNT gene and a previously unreported phenotype for Microcephalic Osteodysplastic Primordial Dwarfism (MOPD) Type II.

Effects of pharmaceutical care on adherence and persistence to bisphosphonates in postmenopausal osteoporotic women.

WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE: Studies have shown that comprehensive interventions by pharmacists can improve adherence and persistence to osteoporosis therapy, but the association between adherence and bone turnover markers (BTMs) has never been studied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of pharmaceutical care on medication adherence (and its effects on BTMs), as well as persistence of postmenopausal osteoporotic women to prescribed bisphosphonates. METHODS: A randomized controlled trial was conducted from 2005 to 2009 in the University Malaya Medical Centre, Malaysia. INCLUSION CRITERIA: postmenopausal osteoporotic women diagnosed with osteoporosis with a T-score ≤ -2·5 or who had a low-trauma fracture and prescribed weekly alendronate/risedronate. Intervention participants received counselling on osteoporosis, risk factors, lifestyle modifications, goals of therapy, side effects and the importance of adherence. Adherence was assessed at months 3, 6 and 12, and persistence at month 12. Feedback on BTMs was provided at months 4 and 7. The control group received no counselling. Two BTMs were used: serum C-terminal cross-linking telopeptide of type I collagen (CTX-I) and serum osteocalcin (OC). MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURED: medication adherence, BTMs and persistence. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Intervention participants who received pharmaceutical care reported significantly higher medication adherence at 6 (P = 0·015) and 12 months (P = 0·047) compared with the control group; but this effect was not shown by the BTMs. This is probably due to the long effect of bisphosphonates in bone. A significant difference was found between serum CTX-I and OC in identifying non-responders to anti-resorptive therapy (P < 0·001), indicating the usefulness of BTMs as an objective marker. However, pharmaceutical care did not affect persistence to osteoporosis therapy within a 1-year period [log rank (Mantel-Cox) χ² = 0·496, P = 0·481]. The proportion of participants who were persistent with bisphosphonate therapy after 12 months was 89·8% and 87·0% in the control and intervention group respectively. WHAT IS NEW AND CONCLUSION: The provision of pharmaceutical care improved medication adherence but not persistence. BTMs were not appropriate objective measures for assessing adherence to weekly bisphosphonates but were useful for identifying non-responders to treatment within 3-6 months, much earlier than using bone mineral density. The study indicates that pharmacists have a role in improving medication adherence, but its long-term effect on persistence warrants further studies with longer duration.

Randomized clinical trial of single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy versus minilaparoscopic cholecystectomy.

BACKGROUND: Transumbilical single-incision laparoscopic cholecystectomy (SILC) and minilaparoscopic cholecystectomy (MLC) are both increasingly being used to treat symptomatic gallstones. The present study compared SILC and MLC with respect to outcome in a prospective randomized trial. METHODS: Seventy patients with symptomatic cholelithiasis were randomized to SILC or MLC (35 in each group). The primary outcome measure was postoperative pain. Secondary outcomes were duration of operation, complications, postoperative analgesic requirements, length of hospital stay, cosmetic result, wound length and time to return to work. RESULTS: Surgical complications, postoperative pain scores, analgesic requirements and time to return to work were similar for both procedures. Statistically significant advantages of SILC were a shorter hospital stay, shorter total wound length and better cosmetic appearance. Duration of operation was significantly shorter for MLC. CONCLUSION: SILC is superior to MLC in terms of cosmetic outcome, but not in postoperative pain and requirement for analgesics.

Six Novel ATM Gene Variants in Sri Lankan Patients with Ataxia Telangiectasia.

INTRODUCTION: Ataxia telangiectasia is a rare genetic condition with an estimated prevalence of 1 in 40,000-100,000 live births. This condition predominantly affects the nervous and immune systems. It is characterized by progressive ataxia beginning from early childhood. The neurological deficit associated with this condition affects one's balance, coordination, walking, and speech and can be accompanied by chorea, myoclonus, and neuropathy. They may also have ocular telangiectasias and high levels of blood alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). The ataxia telangiectasia mutated gene (ATM) is associated with this condition and codes for the ATM protein which is a phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase. This gene occupies 150 kb on chromosome 11q22-23 and contains 66 exons encoding a 13 kb transcript. ATM is a relatively large protein with a molecular weight of 350 kDa and 3,056 amino acids. METHODS: Four patients of Sri Lankan origin presenting with features suggestive of ataxia telangiectasia were referred to our genetics center for specialized genetic counseling and testing. Whole-exome sequencing followed by Sanger sequencing was used to confirm the candidate variants. Protein modeling and genotype to phenotype correlation was performed in the identified variants. RESULTS: We observed 6 novel ATM gene variants in four patients with ataxia telangiectasia. The identified variants are as follows: homozygous c.7397C > A (p.Ala2466Glu) and c.510_511delGT (p.Tyr171fs) and compound heterozygous c.5347_5350delGAAA (p.Glu1783fs), c.8137A > T (p.Arg2713 ∗ ) and c.1163A > C (p.Lys388Thr), and c.5227A > C (p.Thr1743Pro). Variant analysis was followed by modeling of the native and altered protein structures. CONCLUSION: We report novel ATM gene variants that have implications on the molecular diagnosis of ataxia telangiectasia.

Air pollution interventions and respiratory health: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Indoor and ambient air pollution exposure is a major risk to respiratory health worldwide, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Interventional trials have mainly focused on alternatives to cooking stoves, with mixed results. Beyond cooking, additional sources of particulate matter also contribute to the burden of air pollution exposure. This review explores evidence from current randomised controlled trials (RCTs) on the clinical effectiveness of interventions to reduce particulate matter in LMICs.METHODS: Twelve databases and the grey literature (e.g., Government reports and policy papers) were searched. Eligible studies were RCTs conducted in LMICs aiming to reduce particulate exposure from any source and reporting on at least one clinical respiratory outcome (respiratory symptoms, lung function or clinical diagnoses). Data from relevant studies were systematically extracted, the risk of bias assessed and narrative synthesis provided.RESULTS: Of the 14 included studies, 12 tested 'improved' cookstoves, most using biomass, but solar and bioethanol cookers were also included. One trial used solar lamps and another was an integrated intervention incorporating behavioural and environmental components for the treatment and prevention of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Of the six studies reporting child pneumonia outcomes, none demonstrated significant benefit in intention-to-treat analysis. Ten studies reported respiratory symptom outcomes with some improvements seen, but self-reporting made these outcomes highly vulnerable to bias. Substantial inter-study clinical and methodological heterogeneity precluded calculation of pooled effect estimates.CONCLUSION: Evidence from the RCTs performed to date suggests that individual household-level interventions for air pollution exposure reduction have limited benefits for respiratory health. More comprehensive approaches to air pollution exposure reduction must be developed so their potential health benefits can be assessed.

Correction of dystrophia myotonica type 1 pre-mRNA transcripts by artificial trans-splicing.

Dystrophia myotonica type 1 (DM1), the most common muscular dystrophy in adults, results from expansion of a CTG repeat in the 3'-untranslated region of the dystrophia myotonica protein kinase gene (DMPK). Correction of the mutant DMPK transcript is a potential therapeutic strategy in DM1. We investigated the efficacy of artificial trans-splicing molecules (ATMs) to target and correct DMPK transcripts. ATMs designed to target intron 14 of DMPK pre-mRNA transcripts were tested for their ability to trans-splice the transcripts of a DMPK mini-gene construct and the endogenous DMPK transcripts of human myosarcoma cells (CCL-136). On agarose gel electrophoresis analysis, six of eight ATMs showed trans-splicing efficacy when applied to DMPK mini-gene construct transcripts, of which three were able to trans-splice endogenous DMPK pre-mRNA transcripts in myosarcoma cells, with trans-splicing efficiency ranging from 1.81 to 7.41%. These findings confirm that artificial trans-splicing can repair DMPK pre-mRNA and provide proof-of-principle evidence for this approach as potential therapeutic strategy for DM1.

Screening of dystrophin gene deletions in Malaysian patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is an X-linked recessive genetic disorder characterized by rapidly progressive muscle weakness. The disease is caused by deletion, duplication or point mutation of the dystrophin gene, located on the X chromosome (Xp21). Deletion accounts for 60% of the mutations within the 79 exons of the dystrophin gene. Seven exons (43, 44, 45, 46, 49, 50, and 51) were found to be most commonly deleted among the Asian patients. To detect the frequency of deletion of these 7 exons in Malaysian DMD patients, we carried out a molecular genetic analysis in 20 Malaysian DMD patients. The mean age of initial presentation was 60 months (SD 32 months, range 5-120 months). Fourteen patients were found to have deletion of at least one of the seven exons. The remaining six patients did not show any deletion on the tested exons. Deletions of exons 49, 50 and 51 were the most frequent (71.43%) and appear to be the hot spots in our cohort of patients.

Exploring the current and future role of the pharmacists in osteoporosis screening and management in Malaysia.

Background Several studies have found that pharmacists can assist in screening and prevention of osteoporosis by referring patients for bone mineral density scans and counselling on lifestyle changes. In Malaysia, screening osteoporosis in all elderly women is not mandatory due to its cost. One approach to address this gap is to develop a pharmacist-led osteoporosis screening and prevention program. However, there is a paucity of data on the perspectives of Malaysian pharmacists in this area. Objective To explore the perspective of stakeholders (policy makers, doctors, pharmacists, nurses and patients) towards the role of pharmacists in osteoporosis screening and management. Setting A primary care clinic located within a teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Method Patients (n = 20), nurses (n = 10), pharmacists (n = 11), doctors (n = 10) and policy makers (n = 5) were individually interviewed using a semi-structured topic guide. Purposive sampling was used. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis. Main outcome measure Perspective of stakeholders on the current and future role of pharmacists. Results All participants perceived pharmacists to be suppliers of medication, although there was some recognition of roles in providing medication advice. Nonetheless, these stakeholders were eager for pharmacists to expand their non-dispensing roles towards counselling, creating awareness and screening of osteoporosis. Interviewed pharmacists referred to their current role as 'robotic dispensers' and unanimously agreed to spread out to osteoporosis management role. Conclusion Under stakeholders there is a willingness to expand the role of pharmacists in Malaysia to non-dispensing roles, particularly in osteoporosis screening and management.

An analysis of inter-professional collaboration in osteoporosis screening at a primary care level using the D'Amour model.

OBJECTIVES: This study describes the perspective of patients, nurses, pharmacists, doctors and policy makers to identify the level of collaboration and the areas for improvement to achieve inter-professional collaboration between doctors, nurses, pharmacists and policy makers in a primary care clinic. METHODS: Patients (n = 20), Nurses (n = 10), pharmacists (n = 11), doctors (n = 10) and policy makers (n = 5) from a primary care were individually interviewed using a semi-structured topic guide. Purposive sampling was used. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis informed by constant comparison. RESULTS: Patients, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and policy makers were eager for pharmacists to be more proactive in creating health awareness and conducting osteoporosis screening at the primary care clinic via inter-professional collaboration. These findings were further examined using the D'Amour's structural model of collaboration which encompasses four main themes: shared goals and visions, internalization, formalization and governance. This model supports our data which highlights a lack of understanding of the pharmacists' role among the doctors, nurses, policy makers and pharmacists themselves. There is also a lack of governance and formalization, that fosters consensus, leadership, protocol and information exchange. Nonetheless, the stakeholders trust that pharmacists have sufficient knowledge to contribute to the screening of osteoporosis. Our primary care clinic can be described as developing towards an inter-professional collaboration in managing osteoporosis but is still in its early stages. CONCLUSIONS: Inter-professional collaboration in osteoporosis management at the primary care level is beginning to be practised. Efforts extending to awareness and acceptance towards the pharmacists' role will be crucial for a successful change.

The impact of epilepsy on academic achievement in children with normal intelligence and without major comorbidities: A systematic review.

PURPOSE: To systematically examine published literature which assessed the prevalence of academic difficulties in children with epilepsy (CWE) of normal intelligence, and its associating factors. METHODS: A search was conducted on five databases for articles published in English from 1980 till March 2015. Included were studies who recruited children (aged 5-18 years), with a diagnosis or newly/recurrent epilepsy, an intelligent quotient (IQ) of ≥70 or attending regular school, with or without a control group, which measured academic achievement using a standardised objective measure, and published in English. Excluded were children with learning difficulties, intellectual disabilities (IQ<70) and other comorbidities such as attention deficits hyperactive disorder or autism. Two pairs of reviewers extracted the data, and met to resolve any differences from the data extraction process. RESULTS: Twenty studies were included. The majority of the studies assessed "low achievement" whist only two studies used the IQ-achievement discrepancy definition of "underachievement". Fourteen studies (70%) reported that CWE had significantly lower academic achievement scores compared to healthy controls, children with asthma or reported norms. The remaining six studies (30%) did not report any differences. CWE had stable academic achievement scores over time (2-4 years), even among those whose seizure frequency improved. Higher parental education and children with higher IQ, and had better attention or had a positive attitude towards epilepsy, were associated with higher academic achievement score. Older children were found to have lower academic achievement score. CONCLUSIONS: In CWE of normal intelligence, the majority of published literature found that academic achievement was lower than controls or reported norms. The high percentages of low achievement in CWE, especially in the older age group, and the stability of scores even as seizure frequency improved, highlights the need for early screening of learning problems, and continued surveillance.

CD133+ brain tumor-initiating cells are dependent on STAT3 signaling to drive medulloblastoma recurrence.

Medulloblastoma (MB), the most common malignant paediatric brain tumor, is currently treated using a combination of surgery, craniospinal radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Owing to MB stem cells (MBSCs), a subset of MB patients remains untreatable despite standard therapy. CD133 is used to identify MBSCs although its functional role in tumorigenesis has yet to be determined. In this work, we showed enrichment of CD133 in Group 3 MB is associated with increased rate of metastasis and poor clinical outcome. The signal transducers and activators of transcription-3 (STAT3) pathway are selectively activated in CD133+ MBSCs and promote tumorigenesis through regulation of c-MYC, a key genetic driver of Group 3 MB. We screened compound libraries for STAT3 inhibitors and treatment with the selected STAT3 inhibitors resulted in tumor size reduction in vivo. We propose that inhibition of STAT3 signaling in MBSCs may represent a potential therapeutic strategy to treat patients with recurrent MB.