10-year risk for cardiovascular diseases according to the WHO prediction chart: findings from the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2019.

BACKGROUND: There has been a significant increase in the incidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in Malaysia. It is important to identify the group at high risk of CVD. This study aimed to assess the population distribution and factors associated with 10-year CVD risk among adults aged 40 to 74 years in Malaysia. METHODS: This study used secondary data from the NHMS 2019, a nationally representative cross-sectional population study. The following measurements were collected: anthropometric, systolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol, smoking, and sociodemographic. The 2019 WHO Southeast Asia laboratory-based charts were used to estimate individuals' CVD risk. These charts predict significant cardiovascular events over ten years. Multiple logistic regression analysis was employed to ascertain the factors that are linked to elevated or extremely elevated risk of CVD. RESULTS: A total of 5,503 respondents were included in the analysis. Less than one-quarter of the respondents were current smokers and obese. Approximately 41.7%, 30.9%, and 22.5% of the participants had extremely low risk (less than 5%), low risk (between 5% and less than 10%), and moderate risk (between 10% and less than 20%), respectively. A total of 4.9% of the participants were categorised as having high (20% to < 30%) or very high (CVD) risk (≥ 30%). This classification was more prevalent among males (7.3%) than among females (2.5%; p < 0.001). The factors associated with high/very high CVD risk were unemployment (aOR = 1.88, 95% CI = 1.47-2.40), those with non-formal and primary education level (aOR = 2.36, 95% CI = 1.36 - 4.12 and aOR = 3.28, 95% CI = 2.10 - 5.12, respectively), and being physically inactive with obesity (aOR = 2.19, 95% CI = 1.18 - 4.08). CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that almost 5% of the population in Malaysia has a high 10-year CVD risk. These findings highlight Malaysia's urgent need for comprehensive CVD prevention efforts.

The seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Malaysia: 7 August to 11 October 2020.

Background: From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic until mid-October 2020, Malaysia recorded ~15,000 confirmed cases. But there could be undiagnosed cases due mainly to asymptomatic infections. Seroprevalence studies can better quantify underlying infection from SARS-CoV-2 by identifying humoral antibodies against the virus. This study was the first to determine the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in  Malaysia's general population, as well as the proportion of asymptomatic and undiagnosed infections. Methods: This cross-sectional seroprevalence study with a two-stage stratified random cluster sampling design included 5,131 representative community dwellers in Malaysia aged ≥1 year. Data collection lasted from 7 August to 11 October 2020 involving venous blood sampling and interviews for history of COVID-19 symptoms and diagnosis. Previous SARS-CoV-2 infection was defined as screened positive using the Wantai SARS-CoV-2 Total Antibody enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and confirmed positive using the GenScript SARS-CoV-2 surrogate Virus Neutralization Test. We performed a complex sampling design analysis, calculating sample weights considering probabilities of selection, non-response rate and post-stratification weight. Results: The overall weighted prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection was 0.49% (95%CI 0.28-0.85) (N = 150,857). Among the estimated population with past infection, around 84.1% (95%CI 58.84-95.12) (N = 126 826) were asymptomatic, and 90.1% (95%CI 67.06-97.58) (N = 135 866) were undiagnosed. Conclusions: Our study revealed a low pre-variant and pre-vaccination seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Malaysia up to mid-October 2020, with a considerable proportion of asymptomatic and undiagnosed cases. This led to subsequent adoption of SARS-CoV-2 antigen rapid test kits to increase case detection rate and to reduce time to results and infection control measures.

Comorbidities and clinical features related to severe outcomes among COVID-19 cases in Selangor, Malaysia.

BACKGROUND: Pre-existing comorbidities can predict severe disease requiring intensive care unit (ICU) admission among COVID-19 cases. We compared comorbidities, clinical features and other predictive factors between COVID-19 patients requiring ICU admission for intubation/mechanical ventilation and all other COVID-19 cases in Selangor, Malaysia. METHOD: Field data collected during the COVID-19 outbreak in Selangor, Malaysia, up to 13 April 2020 were used, comprising socio-demographic characteristics, comorbidities and presenting symptoms of COVID-19 cases. ICU admission was determined from medical records. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with ICU admission requiring intubation/mechanical ventilation among COVID-19 cases. RESULTS: A total of 1287 COVID-19-positive cases were included for analysis. The most common comorbidities were hypertension (15.5%) and diabetes (11.0%). More than one third of cases presented with fever (43.8%) or cough (37.1%). Of the 25 cases that required intubation/mechanical ventilation, 68.0% had hypertension, 88.0% had fever, 40.0% had dyspnoea and 44.0% were lethargic. Multivariate regression showed that cases that required intubation/mechanical ventilation had significantly higher odds of being older (aged 360 years) [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.9] and having hypertension (aOR = 5.7), fever (aOR = 9.8), dyspnoea (aOR = 9.6) or lethargy (aOR = 7.9) than cases that did not require intubation/mechanical ventilation. CONCLUSION: The COVID-19 cases in Selangor, Malaysia requiring intubation/mechanical ventilation were significantly older, with a higher proportion of hypertension and symptoms of fever, dyspnoea and lethargy. These risk factors have been reported previously for severe COVID-19 cases, and highlight the role that ageing and underlying comorbidities play in severe outcomes to respiratory disease.

Prevalence of chronic kidney disease and its associated factors in Malaysia; findings from a nationwide population-based cross-sectional study.

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in Malaysia was 9.07% in 2011. We aim to determine the current CKD prevalence in Malaysia and its associated risk factors. METHODS: A population-based study was conducted on a total of 890 respondents who were representative of the adult population in Malaysia, i.e., aged ≥18 years old. Respondents were randomly selected using a stratified cluster method. The estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was estimated from calibrated serum creatinine using the CKD-EPI equation. CKD was defined as eGFR < 60 ml/min/1.73m2 or the presence of persistent albuminuria if eGFR ≥60 ml/min/1.73m2. RESULTS: Our study shows that the prevalence of CKD in Malaysia was 15.48% (95% CI: 12.30, 19.31) in 2018, an increase compared to the year 2011 when the prevalence of CKD was 9.07%. An estimated 3.85% had stage 1 CKD, 4.82% had stage 2 CKD, and 6.48% had stage 3 CKD, while 0.33% had stage 4-5 CKD. Hypertension (aOR 3.72), diabetes mellitus (aOR 3.32), increasing BMI (aOR 1.06), and increasing age (aOR 1.06) were significantly associated with CKD. CONCLUSION: Our study has shown that CKD has become one of the leading public health issues in Malaysia. Thus, there is an urgent need to screen for CKD and prevent its progression, associated morbidity, and mortality at the national level.