abdullah mahdy - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by abdullah mahdy

PLOS ONE

The disruptive potentials of drones are rapidly growing including for the delivery of blood sampl... more The disruptive potentials of drones are rapidly growing including for the delivery of blood samples in healthcare. Maintenance of the quality of blood samples is important to ascertain that the drone is a safe mode of transportation, particularly during emergencies and in critical cases. The influence of the drone carriage material on blood samples transportation was investigated in this study. Two phases of drone simulation flights were conducted in Cyberjaya, Malaysia. In Phase 1, the effect of drone carriage material on the internal storage temperature during blood samples transportation was determined. Three types of carriage materials were compared: aluminium, expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam, and polypropylene (PP) plastic. In Phase 2, the quality of drone-transported blood samples was assessed, using the best material from Phase 1 as the drone carriage material. Biochemical and hematological analyses of 60 blood samples were conducted using five parameters. In Phase 1, EPS foa...

Belitung Nursing Journal

Background: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a common form of poor carbohydrate intolerance... more Background: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a common form of poor carbohydrate intolerance, prevalent among pregnant women and associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviors. Given the dearth of information on self-empowerment among mothers with GDM, a self-care health education package needs to be developed to prevent related complications. Objective: This review aimed to identify self-care approaches, domains, and their effectiveness for a proper self-care educational guide package for women with GDM. Design: A systematic review using electronic literature databases published between January 2016 and December 2022 was conducted. Data Sources: Web of Science, Scopus, and Ovid databases were used. Review Methods: This review utilized the PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcomes) framework to screen the retrieved articles for eligibility in which mothers with GDM, educational materials, standard practice or intervention, and effectiveness were considered the PI...

Nature Food

In the version of this article originally published, the Global Dietary Database consortium was m... more In the version of this article originally published, the Global Dietary Database consortium was missing from the author list. The consortium is now listed as an author, with a list of members and their affiliations appearing online. The error has been corrected in the HTML and PDF versions of the article.

Frontiers in Public Health

BackgroundPreeclampsia is associated with an increased risk of adverse maternal and perinatal out... more BackgroundPreeclampsia is associated with an increased risk of adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes. This study aimed to assess preeclampsia prevalence in a Malaysian referral maternity hospital and the association between preeclampsia and maternal characteristics and outcomes.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted between January 2010 and December 2020 using secondary data from a single tertiary healthcare center in Greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A total of 40,212 deliveries were included for analysis to investigate the association between conditions (maternal characteristics and adverse birth outcomes) and preeclampsia. Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to assess the association between multiple independent variables and the outcome variable (preeclampsia).ResultsThe reported prevalence of preeclampsia was 1.6%. Pregnant women with preeclampsia had a higher risk of preterm delivery (67.7%), instrumental and cesarean delivery (74.7%), neonatal low birth weig...

Journal of Electronic Imaging

Frontiers in Psychiatry

Background: COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in nationwide lockdown as a disease control measure. P... more Background: COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in nationwide lockdown as a disease control measure. Potential harm to self and baby due to COVID-19 infection as well as uncertainties about delivery are among contributors to maternal anxiety. We aimed to assess the prevalence of psychological distress among pregnant women during the Malaysian Movement Control Order (MCO).Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between May and June 2020 in a teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A self-administered electronic questionnaire was distributed which included the following; (1) Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS 21), (2) Short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS), (3) MCO effect questionnaire, and (4) newly designed COVID-19 pregnancy-related anxiety. Chi-square test and logistic regression were performed to determine significant associations whilst mean scores comparison were conducted through Mann-Whitney-U-test.Results: Four hundred and fifteen women we...

PLOS ONE, 2022

Background Preeclampsia significantly contributes to maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortali... more Background Preeclampsia significantly contributes to maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. It is imperative to identify women at risk of developing preeclampsia in the effort to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes through early intervention. Soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) and placental growth factor (PlGF) level changes are noticeable several weeks before the onset of preeclampsia and its related complications. This study evaluated the feasibility of the sFlt-1/PlGF biomarker ratio in predicting preeclampsia and adverse pregnancy outcomes using a single cut-off point of >38. Methods This is a prospective cohort study conducted at a single tertiary centre, in an urban setting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, between December 2019 and April 2021. A total of 140 medium to high risk mothers with singleton pregnancies were recruited at ≥20 weeks’ gestation. sFlt-1/PlGF ratio was measured and the participant monitored according to a research algorithm until delivery. Th...

Frontiers in Public Health, 2022

BackgroundThe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread at an accelerated rate. WHO reported that... more BackgroundThe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread at an accelerated rate. WHO reported that in the general population, the majority are either asymptomatic or mildly infected. In view of the high risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission from a pregnant woman to her newborn, healthcare workers and other patients, it is a raised concern whether universal testing should be implemented in this targeted population. The current guidelines have not recommended a universal testing policy. In certain European countries, however, the policy was implemented by some hospitals in regions with high prevalence of COVID-19 infection.Aim(s)To assess the justification for universal screening of pregnant women for COVID-19 prior to admission in labor through systematic review of antenatal prevalence of asymptomatic infection, hence risk of inadvertent spread of infection.Materials and MethodsThree databases confined to PubMed, Ovid and Science Direct were used to search for articles from November 2019 on...

Copyright © 2014 Azizah Ugusman et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creat... more Copyright © 2014 Azizah Ugusman et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Nitric oxide (NO), produced by endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), is a major antiatherogenic factor in the blood vessel. Oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of various cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis. Decreased availability of endothelial NO promotes the progression of endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. Rutin is a flavonoid with multiple cardiovascular protective effects. This study aimed to investigate the effects of rutin on eNOS and NO production in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). HUVEC were divided into four groups: control; oxidative stress induction with 180

which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the origin... more which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Purpose. To determine the maternal and fetal outcomes of successful external cephalic version (ECV) as well as factors predicting vaginal birth. Methods. The ECV data over a period of three years at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) between 1 September 2008 and 30 September 2010 was reviewed. Sixty-seven patients who had successful ECV were studied and reviewed formaternal, fetal, and labour outcomes.The control group comprised patients with cephalic singletons ofmatching parity who delivered following the index cases. Results. The mean gestational age at ECV was 263 ± 6.52 days (37.5 weeks ± 6.52 days). Spontaneous labour and transient cardiotocographic (CTG) changes were the commonest early adverse effects following ECV.The reversion rate was 7.46%.Themean gestational age at delivery of the two groups was significantly different (

Frontiers in Medicine, 2021

Background: The in utero environment has many factors that can support cell differentiation. Cyto... more Background: The in utero environment has many factors that can support cell differentiation. Cytokines, chemokines and growth factors play big roles in haematopoietic mechanisms. Some diseases like gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) might affect the environment and haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) quality. The aim of this study is to investigate the adverse effects of GDM on umbilical cord blood (UCB) HSC in terms of differentiation potency including the UCB parameters used for banking and transplantation purposes.Methods: UCB-HSC was collected from 42 GDM and 38 normal pregnancies. UCB-HSC was isolated and further enriched using immuno-magnetic separation beads (MACS). The UCB-HSC were cultured in methylcellulose media to investigate the differentiation potency. The level of erythropoietin (EPO) and insulin in the UCB plasma was measured using enzyme linked immunoassay (ELISA) technique.Result: The UCB parameters; volume, total nucleated count (TNC) and total CD34+ cells were signif...

Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2013

EXCLI Journal, 2012

Abnormalities in endothelial cell structure and function may lead to diseases such as thrombosis ... more Abnormalities in endothelial cell structure and function may lead to diseases such as thrombosis and atherosclerosis. Oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of various cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis. Previous studies have shown a relationship between a diet rich in flavonoid and a reduced incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Piper sarmentosum (PS) is a plant with high flavonoid content and it possesses antioxidant and anti-atherosclerotic activities. Therefore this study aimed to investigate the flavonoids present in aqueous extract of PS (AEPS) and its cytoprotective effects in oxidative stress-induced human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). AEPS contained high total phenolic content (91.02 ± 0.02 mg QE/g DM) and total flavonoid content (48.57 ± 0.03 mg GAE/g DM). Screening using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) technique showed the presence of rutin and vitexin as the main flavonoids in AEPS. HUVEC were exposed to 180 ...

Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Depa... more Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Department of Biotechnology, International Islamic University Malaysia, 53100 Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Department of Biomedicine, International Islamic University Malaysia, 53100 Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Department of Obstetric and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 56000 Cheras, Kuala Lumpur.

Sains Malaysiana, 2020

The advent of Education 4.0, in parallel with Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0, has translated into... more The advent of Education 4.0, in parallel with Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0, has translated into an evolution in healthcare education. Simultaneously, as a result of concerns in doctors' competency and patient safety, simulation shot into center-stage in the field of healthcare education. Generally, there are five modalities in healthcare education, namely role-play (verbal), standardized patient, part-task trainer, computer or screen-based simulation, and electronic patients including virtual reality. Dissecting the nine principles of Education 4.0, this article reviews the relevance and role of the five different modalities of simulation in easing healthcare education into the mold of Education 4.0.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2021

Pregnant women are susceptible to COVID-19 complications due to gestation-related physiological c... more Pregnant women are susceptible to COVID-19 complications due to gestation-related physiological changes. We aimed to evaluate the level of maternal knowledge, perception, and practice during the pandemic. A cross-sectional study was conducted during the Malaysian Movement Control Order (MCO) between April and June 2020. A self-administered electronic questionnaire that included the knowledge and practice domains was distributed. A newly designed set of questions was used to evaluate (1) women’s perception of MCO and (2) maternal experience, which was subdivided into clinical care provision and maternal anxiety. The survey response rate was 93% with the final number for analysis of 415. The majority of women (95%) demonstrated an adequate level of knowledge on COVID-19, whilst 99% had a good practice. We found that tertiary education (p < 0.001), employment status (p = 0.03), higher household income (p < 0.001), and multiple sources of information (p < 0.001) were independen...

Yearbook of Paediatric Endocrinology, 2021

Background: This study investigates the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of female patients... more Background: This study investigates the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of female patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) in Malaysia. The objectives were to attain socio-demographic and medical data on these Malaysian females with CAH and establish their health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in comparison to age matched diabetic controls. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted over 6 months in the two main tertiary centres for CAH patients in Malaysia. Participants including 59 female-raised CAH patients (mean age ± SD = 16.3 ± 4.2 years, range 10-28 years) compared to 57 age-matched female diabetic patients (mean age ± SD = 16.5 ± 3.4 years, range 10-26 years). Socio-demographic and medical profiles was obtained through semi-structured interviews. HRQOL of participants were evaluated utilising validated, Malay translated questionnaires which were age appropriate: Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL v4.0) scales for Child (8-12) and Adolescent (13-18) and Medical Outcome Survey 36-item Short Form version. These were then compared to the diabetic controls. Results: The CAH participants consisted of children (ages 10-12 years, n = 12), adolescents (ages 13-17 years, n = 29) and adults (≥ 18 years, n = 18). The majority were Malays (64.4%) and had salt-wasting CAH (67.8%). There were no significant differences between the total mean score of the HRQOL of the combined children and adolescents CAH group (total mean score ± SD = 81.6 ± 17.9, 95% CI = 75.6-87.6) when compared to age-matched diabetic patients (total mean score ± SD = 80.8 ± 11.0, 95% CI = 77.0-84.5, P = 0.81, effect size = 0.05); no significant difference between the adult CAH and diabetic controls in the physical [median score (IQR) CAH vs diabetics; 49.3 (11.4) vs. 50.2 (6.1), P = 0.60, effect size = 0.09] and the mental composite scores [median score (IQR) CAH vs. diabetics; 47.8 (14.1) vs. 50.0 (10.8), P = 0.93, effect size = 0.01]. Conclusions: The HRQOL of the Malaysian CAH cohort were comparable to the diabetic controls.

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 2021

BackgroundSpontaneous preterm birth is a global issue that contributed to perinatal morbidities a... more BackgroundSpontaneous preterm birth is a global issue that contributed to perinatal morbidities and mortalities worldwide. The study aimed to describe the experience at UKM Medical Center in managing women at high risk for spontaneous preterm birth using the Arabin pessary.MethodsThis is a retrospective observational study involving 58 pregnancies from 1st January 2013 to 31st December 2019. Inclusion criteria were previous mid-trimester miscarriage and/or preterm birth, previous cervical surgery or short cervical length on routine sonogram. The demographic data, characteristics of each pregnancy and details of outcomes and management were described.ResultsThe majority of women were Malay with mean age and body mass index of 32.9 ± 4.2 years and 27.1 ± 6.3 kg/m2respectively. The most frequent indications for Arabin pessary insertion were previous mid-trimester miscarriage (46.4%) and early preterm birth (17.2%). A total of 73.4% of these women had the pessary inserted electively at ...

Frontiers in Medicine, 2021

Adverse perinatal outcomes such as stillbirth, low birth weight and small for gestational age are... more Adverse perinatal outcomes such as stillbirth, low birth weight and small for gestational age are still reported to be of high prevalence despite advanced healthcare technology and good quality hospital services in Malaysia. The purpose of this study is to create a model to evaluate individualized birth weight customized for maternal characteristics in a Malaysian population. Three phases are involved in designing the customized fetal growth chart (GROW-My). Baseline data is collected from previous pregnancies in the UKM Medical Centre from year 2010 to 2017. Specific maternal attributes were screened for its completeness and validity, namely maternal height and weight at booking, maternal ethnicity and parity, and the baby's birth weight, for all singleton pregnancies. The design and construction of a Malaysian customized fetal growth chart, Growth Related Optimal Weight (GROW-MY) was based on baseline birth data. The customized chart is used in the implementation phase for tes...

PLOS ONE

The disruptive potentials of drones are rapidly growing including for the delivery of blood sampl... more The disruptive potentials of drones are rapidly growing including for the delivery of blood samples in healthcare. Maintenance of the quality of blood samples is important to ascertain that the drone is a safe mode of transportation, particularly during emergencies and in critical cases. The influence of the drone carriage material on blood samples transportation was investigated in this study. Two phases of drone simulation flights were conducted in Cyberjaya, Malaysia. In Phase 1, the effect of drone carriage material on the internal storage temperature during blood samples transportation was determined. Three types of carriage materials were compared: aluminium, expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam, and polypropylene (PP) plastic. In Phase 2, the quality of drone-transported blood samples was assessed, using the best material from Phase 1 as the drone carriage material. Biochemical and hematological analyses of 60 blood samples were conducted using five parameters. In Phase 1, EPS foa...

Belitung Nursing Journal

Background: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a common form of poor carbohydrate intolerance... more Background: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM) is a common form of poor carbohydrate intolerance, prevalent among pregnant women and associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviors. Given the dearth of information on self-empowerment among mothers with GDM, a self-care health education package needs to be developed to prevent related complications. Objective: This review aimed to identify self-care approaches, domains, and their effectiveness for a proper self-care educational guide package for women with GDM. Design: A systematic review using electronic literature databases published between January 2016 and December 2022 was conducted. Data Sources: Web of Science, Scopus, and Ovid databases were used. Review Methods: This review utilized the PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, and Outcomes) framework to screen the retrieved articles for eligibility in which mothers with GDM, educational materials, standard practice or intervention, and effectiveness were considered the PI...

Nature Food

In the version of this article originally published, the Global Dietary Database consortium was m... more In the version of this article originally published, the Global Dietary Database consortium was missing from the author list. The consortium is now listed as an author, with a list of members and their affiliations appearing online. The error has been corrected in the HTML and PDF versions of the article.

Frontiers in Public Health

BackgroundPreeclampsia is associated with an increased risk of adverse maternal and perinatal out... more BackgroundPreeclampsia is associated with an increased risk of adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes. This study aimed to assess preeclampsia prevalence in a Malaysian referral maternity hospital and the association between preeclampsia and maternal characteristics and outcomes.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted between January 2010 and December 2020 using secondary data from a single tertiary healthcare center in Greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A total of 40,212 deliveries were included for analysis to investigate the association between conditions (maternal characteristics and adverse birth outcomes) and preeclampsia. Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to assess the association between multiple independent variables and the outcome variable (preeclampsia).ResultsThe reported prevalence of preeclampsia was 1.6%. Pregnant women with preeclampsia had a higher risk of preterm delivery (67.7%), instrumental and cesarean delivery (74.7%), neonatal low birth weig...

Journal of Electronic Imaging

Frontiers in Psychiatry

Background: COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in nationwide lockdown as a disease control measure. P... more Background: COVID-19 pandemic had resulted in nationwide lockdown as a disease control measure. Potential harm to self and baby due to COVID-19 infection as well as uncertainties about delivery are among contributors to maternal anxiety. We aimed to assess the prevalence of psychological distress among pregnant women during the Malaysian Movement Control Order (MCO).Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between May and June 2020 in a teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A self-administered electronic questionnaire was distributed which included the following; (1) Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS 21), (2) Short Warwick Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS), (3) MCO effect questionnaire, and (4) newly designed COVID-19 pregnancy-related anxiety. Chi-square test and logistic regression were performed to determine significant associations whilst mean scores comparison were conducted through Mann-Whitney-U-test.Results: Four hundred and fifteen women we...

PLOS ONE, 2022

Background Preeclampsia significantly contributes to maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortali... more Background Preeclampsia significantly contributes to maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. It is imperative to identify women at risk of developing preeclampsia in the effort to prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes through early intervention. Soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) and placental growth factor (PlGF) level changes are noticeable several weeks before the onset of preeclampsia and its related complications. This study evaluated the feasibility of the sFlt-1/PlGF biomarker ratio in predicting preeclampsia and adverse pregnancy outcomes using a single cut-off point of >38. Methods This is a prospective cohort study conducted at a single tertiary centre, in an urban setting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, between December 2019 and April 2021. A total of 140 medium to high risk mothers with singleton pregnancies were recruited at ≥20 weeks’ gestation. sFlt-1/PlGF ratio was measured and the participant monitored according to a research algorithm until delivery. Th...

Frontiers in Public Health, 2022

BackgroundThe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread at an accelerated rate. WHO reported that... more BackgroundThe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has spread at an accelerated rate. WHO reported that in the general population, the majority are either asymptomatic or mildly infected. In view of the high risk of SARS-CoV-2 transmission from a pregnant woman to her newborn, healthcare workers and other patients, it is a raised concern whether universal testing should be implemented in this targeted population. The current guidelines have not recommended a universal testing policy. In certain European countries, however, the policy was implemented by some hospitals in regions with high prevalence of COVID-19 infection.Aim(s)To assess the justification for universal screening of pregnant women for COVID-19 prior to admission in labor through systematic review of antenatal prevalence of asymptomatic infection, hence risk of inadvertent spread of infection.Materials and MethodsThree databases confined to PubMed, Ovid and Science Direct were used to search for articles from November 2019 on...

Copyright © 2014 Azizah Ugusman et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creat... more Copyright © 2014 Azizah Ugusman et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Nitric oxide (NO), produced by endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), is a major antiatherogenic factor in the blood vessel. Oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of various cardiovascular diseases, including atherosclerosis. Decreased availability of endothelial NO promotes the progression of endothelial dysfunction and atherosclerosis. Rutin is a flavonoid with multiple cardiovascular protective effects. This study aimed to investigate the effects of rutin on eNOS and NO production in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). HUVEC were divided into four groups: control; oxidative stress induction with 180

which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the origin... more which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Purpose. To determine the maternal and fetal outcomes of successful external cephalic version (ECV) as well as factors predicting vaginal birth. Methods. The ECV data over a period of three years at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Medical Centre (UKMMC) between 1 September 2008 and 30 September 2010 was reviewed. Sixty-seven patients who had successful ECV were studied and reviewed formaternal, fetal, and labour outcomes.The control group comprised patients with cephalic singletons ofmatching parity who delivered following the index cases. Results. The mean gestational age at ECV was 263 ± 6.52 days (37.5 weeks ± 6.52 days). Spontaneous labour and transient cardiotocographic (CTG) changes were the commonest early adverse effects following ECV.The reversion rate was 7.46%.Themean gestational age at delivery of the two groups was significantly different (

Frontiers in Medicine, 2021

Background: The in utero environment has many factors that can support cell differentiation. Cyto... more Background: The in utero environment has many factors that can support cell differentiation. Cytokines, chemokines and growth factors play big roles in haematopoietic mechanisms. Some diseases like gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) might affect the environment and haematopoietic stem cell (HSC) quality. The aim of this study is to investigate the adverse effects of GDM on umbilical cord blood (UCB) HSC in terms of differentiation potency including the UCB parameters used for banking and transplantation purposes.Methods: UCB-HSC was collected from 42 GDM and 38 normal pregnancies. UCB-HSC was isolated and further enriched using immuno-magnetic separation beads (MACS). The UCB-HSC were cultured in methylcellulose media to investigate the differentiation potency. The level of erythropoietin (EPO) and insulin in the UCB plasma was measured using enzyme linked immunoassay (ELISA) technique.Result: The UCB parameters; volume, total nucleated count (TNC) and total CD34+ cells were signif...

Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine, 2013

EXCLI Journal, 2012

Abnormalities in endothelial cell structure and function may lead to diseases such as thrombosis ... more Abnormalities in endothelial cell structure and function may lead to diseases such as thrombosis and atherosclerosis. Oxidative stress plays an important role in the pathogenesis of various cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis. Previous studies have shown a relationship between a diet rich in flavonoid and a reduced incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Piper sarmentosum (PS) is a plant with high flavonoid content and it possesses antioxidant and anti-atherosclerotic activities. Therefore this study aimed to investigate the flavonoids present in aqueous extract of PS (AEPS) and its cytoprotective effects in oxidative stress-induced human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). AEPS contained high total phenolic content (91.02 ± 0.02 mg QE/g DM) and total flavonoid content (48.57 ± 0.03 mg GAE/g DM). Screening using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) technique showed the presence of rutin and vitexin as the main flavonoids in AEPS. HUVEC were exposed to 180 ...

Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Depa... more Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Department of Biotechnology, International Islamic University Malaysia, 53100 Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Department of Biomedicine, International Islamic University Malaysia, 53100 Gombak, Kuala Lumpur, Department of Obstetric and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 56000 Cheras, Kuala Lumpur.

Sains Malaysiana, 2020

The advent of Education 4.0, in parallel with Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0, has translated into... more The advent of Education 4.0, in parallel with Industrial Revolution (IR) 4.0, has translated into an evolution in healthcare education. Simultaneously, as a result of concerns in doctors' competency and patient safety, simulation shot into center-stage in the field of healthcare education. Generally, there are five modalities in healthcare education, namely role-play (verbal), standardized patient, part-task trainer, computer or screen-based simulation, and electronic patients including virtual reality. Dissecting the nine principles of Education 4.0, this article reviews the relevance and role of the five different modalities of simulation in easing healthcare education into the mold of Education 4.0.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2021

Pregnant women are susceptible to COVID-19 complications due to gestation-related physiological c... more Pregnant women are susceptible to COVID-19 complications due to gestation-related physiological changes. We aimed to evaluate the level of maternal knowledge, perception, and practice during the pandemic. A cross-sectional study was conducted during the Malaysian Movement Control Order (MCO) between April and June 2020. A self-administered electronic questionnaire that included the knowledge and practice domains was distributed. A newly designed set of questions was used to evaluate (1) women’s perception of MCO and (2) maternal experience, which was subdivided into clinical care provision and maternal anxiety. The survey response rate was 93% with the final number for analysis of 415. The majority of women (95%) demonstrated an adequate level of knowledge on COVID-19, whilst 99% had a good practice. We found that tertiary education (p < 0.001), employment status (p = 0.03), higher household income (p < 0.001), and multiple sources of information (p < 0.001) were independen...

Yearbook of Paediatric Endocrinology, 2021

Background: This study investigates the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of female patients... more Background: This study investigates the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of female patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) in Malaysia. The objectives were to attain socio-demographic and medical data on these Malaysian females with CAH and establish their health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in comparison to age matched diabetic controls. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted over 6 months in the two main tertiary centres for CAH patients in Malaysia. Participants including 59 female-raised CAH patients (mean age ± SD = 16.3 ± 4.2 years, range 10-28 years) compared to 57 age-matched female diabetic patients (mean age ± SD = 16.5 ± 3.4 years, range 10-26 years). Socio-demographic and medical profiles was obtained through semi-structured interviews. HRQOL of participants were evaluated utilising validated, Malay translated questionnaires which were age appropriate: Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL v4.0) scales for Child (8-12) and Adolescent (13-18) and Medical Outcome Survey 36-item Short Form version. These were then compared to the diabetic controls. Results: The CAH participants consisted of children (ages 10-12 years, n = 12), adolescents (ages 13-17 years, n = 29) and adults (≥ 18 years, n = 18). The majority were Malays (64.4%) and had salt-wasting CAH (67.8%). There were no significant differences between the total mean score of the HRQOL of the combined children and adolescents CAH group (total mean score ± SD = 81.6 ± 17.9, 95% CI = 75.6-87.6) when compared to age-matched diabetic patients (total mean score ± SD = 80.8 ± 11.0, 95% CI = 77.0-84.5, P = 0.81, effect size = 0.05); no significant difference between the adult CAH and diabetic controls in the physical [median score (IQR) CAH vs diabetics; 49.3 (11.4) vs. 50.2 (6.1), P = 0.60, effect size = 0.09] and the mental composite scores [median score (IQR) CAH vs. diabetics; 47.8 (14.1) vs. 50.0 (10.8), P = 0.93, effect size = 0.01]. Conclusions: The HRQOL of the Malaysian CAH cohort were comparable to the diabetic controls.

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 2021

BackgroundSpontaneous preterm birth is a global issue that contributed to perinatal morbidities a... more BackgroundSpontaneous preterm birth is a global issue that contributed to perinatal morbidities and mortalities worldwide. The study aimed to describe the experience at UKM Medical Center in managing women at high risk for spontaneous preterm birth using the Arabin pessary.MethodsThis is a retrospective observational study involving 58 pregnancies from 1st January 2013 to 31st December 2019. Inclusion criteria were previous mid-trimester miscarriage and/or preterm birth, previous cervical surgery or short cervical length on routine sonogram. The demographic data, characteristics of each pregnancy and details of outcomes and management were described.ResultsThe majority of women were Malay with mean age and body mass index of 32.9 ± 4.2 years and 27.1 ± 6.3 kg/m2respectively. The most frequent indications for Arabin pessary insertion were previous mid-trimester miscarriage (46.4%) and early preterm birth (17.2%). A total of 73.4% of these women had the pessary inserted electively at ...

Frontiers in Medicine, 2021

Adverse perinatal outcomes such as stillbirth, low birth weight and small for gestational age are... more Adverse perinatal outcomes such as stillbirth, low birth weight and small for gestational age are still reported to be of high prevalence despite advanced healthcare technology and good quality hospital services in Malaysia. The purpose of this study is to create a model to evaluate individualized birth weight customized for maternal characteristics in a Malaysian population. Three phases are involved in designing the customized fetal growth chart (GROW-My). Baseline data is collected from previous pregnancies in the UKM Medical Centre from year 2010 to 2017. Specific maternal attributes were screened for its completeness and validity, namely maternal height and weight at booking, maternal ethnicity and parity, and the baby's birth weight, for all singleton pregnancies. The design and construction of a Malaysian customized fetal growth chart, Growth Related Optimal Weight (GROW-MY) was based on baseline birth data. The customized chart is used in the implementation phase for tes...