A cross-sectional study on the sleep quality among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients and its associated factors.

INTRODUCTION: Poor sleep quality is common among patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). It has detrimental effects on physical and psychological health, as well as on quality of life. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of poor sleep quality among T2DM patients and to investigate the factors associated with this disorder. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Klinik Kesihatan Seremban in Seremban district, Negeri Sembilan. Data were collected using the Malay version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI-M) with a cut-off point of >5 as poor sleep quality. The Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) was used to measure level of psychological distress. Data were collected between July 2022 until January 2023. RESULTS: A total of 319 patients with T2DM participated. Their mean age was 63 (11) years, 58% were women and 42.9% were of Indian ethnicity. The mean total score of PSQI was 4.04 (2.21) and 23% of the participants had poor sleep quality. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that poor sleep quality was significantly associated with Indian ethnicity (Adj. OR = 2.25; 95%CI: 1.05, 4.82; p = 0.037), separated or widowed (Adj. OR = 2.16; 95%CI = 1.15, 4.05; p = 0.016), having nocturia (Adj. OR = 2.13; 95%CI = 1.18, 3.84; p = 0.012) and depressive symptoms (Adj. OR = 3.41; 95%CI: 1.01, 11.48; p = 0.048). CONCLUSION: Poor sleep quality was prevalent in almost a quarter of T2DM patients studied. Indian ethnicity, separated or widowed, having nocturia, and depressive symptoms were independently associated with poor sleep quality. Despite lower prevalence of poor sleep quality compared to other studies, identification of those at higher risk warrants further exploration in lifestyle management of patients with T2DM.

Development of an online animated sexting prevention module based on the prototype willingness model to reduce intention and willingness to sexting among diploma students.

INTRODUCTION: Sexting refers to the act of sending and receiving sexually explicit content in the form of in the form of texts, photos, or videos via the Internet and mobile phones. This behaviour is associated with many negative health consequences among young people. However, there is a lack of intervention studies to curb this behaviour. We have developed a new sexting prevention module and tested it using a randomised controlled field trial. This paper reported the phase one of the study i.e., the development of an animated sexting prevention module using the prototype willingness model (PWM) to reduce the intention and willingness to sext amongst diploma students in Malaysia. MATERIALS AND METHOD: The initial phase involved a review of previous interventions, validation from field experts, and the process of developing video. Then the module pilot was tested among 30 diploma students from a public university. They were given access to the newly developed videos posted on a private YouTube channel and asked to evaluate the videos quantitatively and qualitatively by using the acceptability of the intervention module (AIM), intervention appropriateness measure (IAM) and feasibility of the intervention measure (FIM). The minimum and maximum scores of each measure were 12 and 24 respectively whereby a higher score indicated greater acceptability, appropriateness and feasibility. RESULTS: The intervention consisted of five sections addressing the constructs of PWM, namely attitude, perceived norm, prototype perception, as well as intention and willingness of sexting. The contents were then converted into five videos with a total duration of 23 minutes. Based on the pilot test, the scores of AIM, IAM and FIM were not normally distributed and their median and the interquartile range values were 20 (4), 21 (4) and 22 (4) respectively. Most of the respondents gave favourable opinions on the intervention besides providing some input for improvement. CONCLUSION: This animated sexting intervention module based on PWM to reduce the intention and willingness was novel. The module was acceptable, appropriate and feasible to be implemented among undergraduate students. Further evaluation of this intervention module can be performed to provide more comprehensive evidence of its effectiveness.

The effectiveness of theory-based intervention to improve haemoglobin levels among women with anaemia in pregnancy.

BACKGROUND: Anaemia in pregnancy is considered a public health problem throughout the world. The effects of the existing intervention in ensuring compliance to the subscribed regimen and the impact of nutrition education in enhancing dietary modification during pregnancy in Malaysia have been minimal. This study aims to develop, implement and evaluate the effects of the Health Belief Model educational intervention on haemoglobin level among anaemic pregnant women. METHODS: This is a quasi-experimental research with prepost test design with control group involving 81 participants per group from two health clinics in Sepang. The primary outcome was a change in the haemoglobin levels following educational intervention. Secondary outcomes include knowledge on anaemia, Health Belief Model (HBM) constructs, dietary iron intake and compliance towards iron supplementation. The intervention group received a HBMbased education intervention programme. RESULTS: The response rate in the intervention and control group were 83.9% and 82.7% respectively. Generalised estimating equations analysis showed that the intervention was effective in improving the mean haemoglobin level (ß=0.75, 95%CI=0.52, 0.99, p<0.001), the knowledge score (ß=1.42, 95%CI=0.36, 2.49, p=0.009), perceived severity score (ß=2.2, 95%CI= 1.02, 3.39, p<0.001) and increased proportion of high compliance level (AOR=4.59, 95%CI=1.58, 13.35, p=0.005). CONCLUSION: HBM-based health education programme has proven to be effective in improving the haemoglobin levels, knowledge scores, perceived severity scores and compliance level of participants. The study results emphasized on the effectiveness of such an approach, therefore it is recommended that future educational interventions which aim at increasing preventive healthy behaviours in pregnant women may benefit from the application of this model in primary health care settings.

Mid-term impact of home-based follow-up care on health-related quality of life of hypertensive patients at a teaching hospital in Ilorin, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) is an important clinical outcome assessment in hypertension management, given the lifelong (chronicity) nature and the need for daily self-management for hypertensive patents. Of some of the studies that implemented home-based interventions on hypertension globally, the HRQoL is rarely used as a primary outcome measure. This study developed, implemented, and assessed the impact of home-based follow-up care (HBFC) on HRQoL of hypertensive patients attending outpatients' clinics in Ilorin, Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 149 and 150 patients were randomized to intervention and usual care (control) groups, respectively. A 12-month task-shifting (nurse-driven) HBFC intervention was administered to intervention group. The mid-term impact of intervention on HRQoL was assessed after 6 months intervention. Data were analyzed with intention-to-treat principle. Treatment effects were measured with the t-tests, analysis of covariance, and multivariate analysis of covariance analysis. Significant levels were set at P < 0.05 and 95% confidence interval. RESULTS: The between-group treatment effect was not statistically significant (P > 0.05), whereas the within-group treatment effects were statistically significant for both the intervention and control arms (P < 0.05) at 6 months. After controlling for age and baseline HRQoL, the intervention group had an improved physical component of HRQoL than the control group. The intervention group also had statistically significant improvement in blood pressure control, medication adherence, and symptom counts (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The HBFC intervention for hypertensive patients impacted positively on physical component of HRQoL after controlling for baseline HRQoL and age of the patients at 6 months post-intervention.

Antigen expression pattern of acute promyelocytic leukaemia cases in malaysia.

INTRODUCTION: Acute Promyelocytic Leukaemia (APL) is associated with devastating coagulopathy and life threatening condition which requires immediate medical attention. It is crucial to establish an expedited diagnosis as early therapeutic intervention has led to optimal patient management. In this study, we assessed the type and frequency of antigen expressions in APL and correlated these findings with genetic studies. METHODS: Multiparametric immunophenotyping was performed on 30 samples and findings were correlated with karyotypes, FISH for t(15;17) translocation and RT-PCR for PML-RARΑ for detection of breakpoint cluster regions (bcr1,bcr2 and bcr3). RESULTS: On SSC/CD45, APL cells displayed high to moderate SSC, with the expression of CD33 (100%), CD13 (96.8%), cMPO (71%) but lacked CD34 (3.2%) and HLA-DR (9.7%). Aberrant expression of CD4 was seen in 12.9% and CD56 in 6.5% of the cases. A significant association between cumulative aberrant antigen expression and bcr1 were observed bcr1 (X2(2) =6.833,p<.05). However there were no significant association seen in bcr2 and bcr3; (X2(2) =.199,p>.05) and (X2(2)=4.599,p>.05) respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Flow cytometry is a rapid and effective tool in detecting APL. It is interesting to note that there is significant association between cumulative aberrant antigen expression and genotype analysis. Further validation is required to corroborate this relationship.

Factors influencing the role of primary care providers as gatekeepers in the Malaysian public healthcare system.

Primary care providers play an important gatekeeping role in ensuring appropriate referrals to secondary care facilities. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the level, pattern and rate of referrals from health clinics to hospitals in the public sector, and whether the placement of resident family medicine specialist (FMS) had made a significant difference. The study was carried out between March and April in 2012, involving 28 public primary care clinics. It showed that the average referral rate was 1.56% for clinics with resident FMS and 1.94% for those without resident FMS, but it was not statistically significant. Majority of referred cases were considered appropriate (96.1%). Results of the multivariate analysis showed that no prior consultation with senior healthcare provider and illnesses that were not severe and complex were independently associated with inappropriate referrals. Severity, complexity or uncertain diagnosis of patients' illness or injury significantly contributed to unavoidable referrals. Adequate facilities or having more experienced doctors could have avoided 14.5% of the referrals. The low referral rate and very high level of appropriate referrals could indicate that primary care providers in the public sector played an effective role as gatekeepers in the Malaysian public healthcare system.

Quality of life among patients with hematological cancer in a Malaysian hospital.

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of symptoms and problems in hospitalized hematological cancer patients. A cross-sectional design was carried out with 105 respondents in Ampang hospital in Kuala Lumpur. The European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality Of Life questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) was used. Patients with a minimum response of "a little" were defined as having a symptom/problem while patients with a response of "quite a bit" were classified as having a "severe symptom/problem". The four most prevalent symptoms/problems identified were fatigue, financial difficulties, reduced role function and reduced social function. Multiple myeloma patients (MM) were identified as having the most symptoms/problems.

Coping styles in patients with haematological cancer in a Malaysian hospital.

OBJECTIVE: To assess coping styles of haematological cancer patients and investigate factors (major depressive disorders, socio-demographic profiles and clinical factors) that influence them. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the Ampang Hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, which is a tertiary referral centre for haematological diseases. In all, 105 patients with haematological cancer were assessed using the Brief COPE questionnaire to examine the coping styles of patients, and the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview to assess major depressive disorder. RESULTS: The response rate was 83%. The coping strategies used by haematological cancer patients in descending order of frequency were: behavioural disengagement, active coping, denial, venting, self-distraction, substance use, acceptance, humour, use of emotional support, use of instrumental support, religion, positive reframing, planning, and self-blame. The coping styles were found to be associated with major depressive disorder, socio-demographic profiles, and clinical factors. Self-distraction and positive reframing coping styles were significant predictors and related to major depressive disorder. CONCLUSION: The early identification of poor coping styles in cancer patients is important, in order to enhance their survival and prevent relapses.

Prevalence of cardiovascular disease risk factors among attendees of the Batu 9, Cheras Health Centre, Selangor, Malaysia.

This study describes the prevalence of selected cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors screened in patients 30 years and above attending a health centre in Cheras, Selangor. The study involved 3772 patients screened from March 2002 to June 2008. Risk factors screened included blood pressure, height, weight, serum total cholesterol, random blood sugar levels and smoking status. Majority of respondents were between 40 and 49 years of age (58.1%), males (64.7%) and ethnic Malays (74.4%). About two thirds (62.6%) were found to be overweight or obese, two fifths (40.2%) had hypercholesterolemia, a third (34.2%) had hypertension and 31.6% were smokers at some time. Overall 87% and 60% had at least one and two CVD risk factors respectively. Prevalence of four of the five risk factors screened was highest among the Malay middle aged men and lowest among the Chinese. Thus a substantial proportion of middle aged men were at high risk of CVD. Our findings show the need for ongoing monitoring of CVD risk factors and implementation of effective preventive strategies.