ABSTRACT
There is an increasing awareness amongst Muslim consumers to avoid all items containing non-Halal ingredients including medications. General practitioners and hospital doctors, in their practice encounter with the patients of different severity of illness, and accordingly their exposure to different categories of medicines will also be different. It therefore, needed for a study to compare knowledge, attitude and perception (KAP) of general practitioners and hospital doctors regarding Halal pharmaceuticals. This was a cross-sectional study using a structured, self-administered questionnaire to compare the knowledge, attitude and perception regarding Halal pharmaceuticals, among general practitioners and doctors working in various government hospitals in Malaysia. Results revealed that significant difference in the perception of general practitioners and hospital doctors was found. Significant difference was also found in some of statements of knowledge and attitude. This is concluded that general practitioners and hospital doctors differ in knowledge, attitude and perception regarding Halal pharmaceuticals. P≥ 0.05 was taken as statistically significant.
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Analgesic nephropathy is a preventable cause of chronic renal failure that occurs due to excessive use of over the counter (OTC) analgesics. Misuse or long term use of OTCs’ without prior consultation from any healthcare professional leads to serious health problems. Case presentation: Current is the case of a 48 years old woman who was presented to hospital complaining of high blood pressure and breathlessness. Patient was neither diabetic nor hypertensive. Upon examination, it was revealed that she is suffering from analgesic nephropathy due to long term use of Ibuprofen for her knee pain. Patient was diagnosed with chronic renal failure with associated hypertension. Conclusion: Long term use of OTCs’ without prior consultation of healthcare providers may lead to serious unwanted side effects and complications. Misuse of such medications should be strictly discouraged and such patients should be encouraged to undergo renal screening tests as early as possible.
ABSTRACT
This study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude and perception (KAP) relating to Halal pharmaceuticals among pharmacists working in various hospitals of Malaysia. This was a cross-sectional study, carried out in the period of January 2013 to March 2013, using a structured, self-administered questionnaire. Data was collected by distributing questionnaires through respective chief pharmacists in various government hospitals in Malaysia. Study was conducted on a total of 135 pharmacists. Descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency, percentage, median, inter quartile range) was applied to summarize the data. Chi-square Test and Fisher’s Exact Test was applied to assess the association between demographic characteristics and knowledge, attitude and perception scores. Results revealed that the hospital pharmacist had a good knowledge and positive attitude and perception about Halal pharmaceuticals. Mean knowledge, attitude and perception score was 8.01 ±1.48, 33.21± 5.66 and 51.19 ±6.49 out of maximum possible 9, 45 and 60 respectively. Mean overall KAP score out of maximum possible 114 was 92.40 ± 11.20. There was a significant, positive, and weak correlation (0.1-0.3) between knowledge and perception (r=.271, p=.001), knowledge and attitude (r=.252, p=.003) & moderate correlation (0.3-0.7) between attitude and perception (r=.542, p<.001). P value of 0.05 or less was taken as statistically significant. It is concluded from the results that better knowledge the respondents have on Halal pharmaceuticals, better their perception and attitude is towards Halal pharmaceuticals.
ABSTRACT
Background: The concentrated potassium chloride injection is a high-alert medication and replacing it with a pre-mixed formulation can reduce the risks associated with its use. The aim of this study was to determine the clinical characteristics of patients receiving different potassium chloride formulations available at a private institution. The study also assessed the effectiveness and safety of pre-mixed formulations in the correction of hypokalaemia. Methods: This was a retrospective observational study consisting of 296 cases using concentrated and pre-mixed potassium chloride injections in 2011 in a private hospital in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia. Results: There were 135 (45.6%) cases that received concentrated potassium chloride, and 161 (54.4%) cases that received pre-mixed formulations. The patients’ clinical characteristics that were significantly related to the utilization of the different formulations were diagnosis (P < 0.001), potassium serum blood concentration (P < 0.05), and fluid overload risk (P < 0.05). The difference observed for the cases that achieved or maintained normokalaemia was statistically insignificant (P = 0.172). Infusion-related adverse effects were seen more in pre-mixes compared to concentrated formulations (6.8% versus 2.2%, P < 0.05). Conclusion: This study provides insight into the utilization of potassium chloride injections at this specific institution. The results support current recommendations to use pre-mixed formulations whenever possible.
Subject(s)
Potassium Chloride , Electrolytes , Drug Utilization ReviewABSTRACT
Kawasaki syndrome (KS), also known as Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute systemic vasculitis that predominantly affects pre-school aged children. It is characterized by fever, bilateral nonexudative conjunctivitis, erythema of the lips and oral mucosa, changes in the extremities, rash, and cervical lymphadenopathy, and irritation and inflamma-tion of the mouth, lips, and throat. Serious complications of KS include coronary artery dilatations and aneurysms, and KS is a leading cause of acquired heart disease. It has a predilection to coronary arteries, and its precise etiology is still unknown. Many infectious agents, including viruses and bacteria, have been suggested as potential causes of the disease. We presented the therapeutic management and clinical outcome of a 3 years old male patient, with a height of 96cm and weight of 14.8 kilogram (underweight), who was referred to our hospital. Patient’s symptoms and laboratory data confirmed Kawasaki disease accompanied with bronchopneumonia and treated along with antibio-tics, aspirin and IV Immunoglobulin G (IgG), to maintain adequate antibodies levels, prevent infections and confer a passive immunity. The patient was successfully treated by administering IgG and antibiotics without any complica-tions. Eventually, accurate diagnosis, more targeted treatment, and preventative strategies depend on the unraveling of the immunopathogenesis of this disease.
ABSTRACT
Kawasaki syndrome (KS), also known as Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute systemic vasculitis that predominantly affects pre-school aged children. It is characterized by fever, bilateral nonexudative conjunctivitis, erythema of the lips and oral mucosa, changes in the extremities, rash, and cervical lymphadenopathy, and irritation and inflamma-tion of the mouth, lips, and throat. Serious complications of KS include coronary artery dilatations and aneurysms, and KS is a leading cause of acquired heart disease. It has a predilection to coronary arteries, and its precise etiology is still unknown. Many infectious agents, including viruses and bacteria, have been suggested as potential causes of the disease. We presented the therapeutic management and clinical outcome of a 3 years old male patient, with a height of 96cm and weight of 14.8 kilogram (underweight), who was referred to our hospital. Patient’s symptoms and laboratory data confirmed Kawasaki disease accompanied with bronchopneumonia and treated along with antibio-tics, aspirin and IV Immunoglobulin G (IgG), to maintain adequate antibodies levels, prevent infections and confer a passive immunity. The patient was successfully treated by administering IgG and antibiotics without any complica-tions. Eventually, accurate diagnosis, more targeted treatment, and preventative strategies depend on the unraveling of the immunopathogenesis of this disease.
ABSTRACT
Aims: The purpose of this study was to provide factorial analytic findings, construct validation and normative data for the Malaysian diabetic patients. Gender difference was also examined with racial response to PSS-10. Study design: Population base cross sectional survey. Place and Duration of Study: Penang between Nov 2009 and March 2010. Methodology: Cluster random sampling technique was employed for the selection participants in the community. A total of 1924 diabetic patients with age ≥ 18 (mean age = 39.51) were approached; 992 of them were female and 932 of them were male. People rated how often they had experienced these feelings in the last week on a five-point Likert scale from 0 = never to 4 = very often. The scale was translated into Malay language independently by two psychological counselors who had at least a master’s degree and bilingual efficiency. The LISREL 8.30 program was used to assenting factor analysis. Chisquare (χ 2)/df (degree of freedom) ratio, GFI (goodness of fit index), AGFI (adjusted goodness of fit index) and root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) were used to evaluate the fit of the model (two-factor). Results: Barlett’s test of sphericity was 1603.417 (p<0.001) and Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of the sampling adequacy was 0.83. Varimax rotation was conducted with these two identified factors. Factor A integrated items 1, 2, 3, 6, 9 and 10, labeled as ‘Perceived Avoidance’ while Factor B containing items 4, 5, 7, 8 and labeled as ‘Perceived Controllable’. Item variance showed 45.73 per cent of accountability with Factor A and 13.43 per cent with Factor B. Mandatory factor analysis for the two-factor of Malaysian version of PSS yielded: GFIs: χ 2 (39) = 127.846, p<0.001, χ 2/df= 4.1; GFI = 0.97; AGFI = 0.96; RMSEA = 0.06 and CFI = 0.99. Conclusion: PSS-10 is a reliable tool for assessing the stress measures among diabetic living of the society. High stress level is identified among the females as compared to male diabetic patients. Overall the whole cohort has high perceived stress level.