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@#Introduction: Clinical training may expose medical and nursing students to workplace hazards comparable to those encountered by healthcare workers (HCWs). This study was designed to investigate the prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) and associated risk factors among medical and nursing students. Methods: Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria, a systematic review was conducted utilising four electronic databases to appraise and synthesise the literature on LTBI which used the tuberculin skin test (TST) and the blood interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA). Results: Original articles published in the English language between 2010 and 2020 were included, yielding 14 relevant articles. The average prevalence of LTBI in high-burden countries was 38.2% for TST and 20.6% for the IGRA test. According to TST and IGRA findings, the average prevalence of LTBI in nations with an intermediate burden was 16.7% and 4.7 %, respectively. The average prevalence was 2.8% and 1.1% from the TST and IGRA tests for low-burden countries, respectively. A greater risk of LTBI was shown to be related with an increase in age among postgraduate medical school students, a history of Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccination, origin from high-risk tuberculosis (TB) countries, increased hours of hospital exposure, a history of contact with TB cases, a high body mass index, older age group students, and a lower TB knowledge score. Conclusion: The available evidence from this review emphasised the importance of developing and implementing efficient and cost-effective TB infection-control programmes, particularly in high-burden countries and amongst students at risk.
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BackgroundGargling had been reported to have significant roles in the prevention and treatment of respiratory tract infections. The purpose of this study was to assess the ability of regular gargling to eliminate SARS-CoV-2 in the oropharynx and nasopharynx. MethodologyThis pilot, open labeled, randomized, parallel study compared the effect of 30 seconds, 3 times/day gargling using 1% povidone-iodine (PVP-I), essential oils and tap water on SARS-CoV-2 viral clearance among COVID-19 patients in a tertiary hospital in Kuala Lumpur. Progress was monitored by day 4,6 and 12 PCR (Ct value), gargling and symptoms diary as well as clinical observations. ResultsFive confirmed Stage 1 COVID-19 patients were recruited for each arm. The age range was from 22 to 56 years old. The majority were males. Two respondents had co-morbidities, which were asthma and obesity. Viral clearance was achieved at day 6 in 100%, 80%, 20% and 0% for 1% PVP-I, essential oils, tap water and control group respectively. Analysis of 1% PVP-I group versus control group showed significant p-value for comparison of PCR results on Day 4, Day 6 and Day 12. ConclusionsThis preliminary study showed that gargling with 1% PVP-I and essential oils show great potential to be part of the treatment and management of Stage 1 COVID-19. Larger studies are required to ascertain the benefit of gargling for different stages of COVID-19 patients. This study was registered in clinicaltrial.gov (NCT04410159).
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In the cold winter month of January 2012, two post graduate students from the Department of Community Health, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), went on a two weeks field attachment with the Division of International Health (Public Health), Niigata University Graduate School of Medical & Dental Sciences (NU). This report is an account of our first hand learning experience about the public health system and culture in Niigata, Japan. Famously known as the ‘Snow Country’, Niigata prefecture is approximately 350 kilometers north of Tokyo, in the middle of the west coast of Honshu island, facing the Sea of Japan. It borders on the east with Fukushima prefecture, which was badly affected by the great tsunami disaster in March 2011. Niigata has a population of two and a half million, of which 21.3% is above the age of 65. Niigata University is located in Niigata City, the capital of Niigata prefecture. This attachment was under the UKM-Global Student Mobility Programme (Outbound) and it was taken as an opportunity to improve the memorandum of understanding between UKM and NU. The objectives were to gain knowledge and experience in various public health issues in a developed nation like Japan. Specifically, we were interested to learn about the local public health programmes, the influenza surveillance system, public health programmes for the elderly population, the Geographical Information System (GIS) and the Japanese culture in general.
