Misdiagnosis of community-acquired pneumonia in patients admitted to respiratory wards, Penang General Hospital

@#Introduction: Pneumonia continues to be as one of the top causes of hospitalisations and deaths in Malaysia despite the advancement in prevention and treatment of pneumonia. One of the possible explanations is the frequent misdiagnosis of pneumonia which had been reported elsewhere but such data is not available locally. Objectives: This is an audit project aiming to evaluate the proportion of misdiagnosis among hospitalised communityacquired pneumonia (CAP) patients in the Respiratory wards of Penang General Hospital based on their initial presentation data, and their associated outcomes. Methods: We reviewed the medical notes and initial chest radiographs of 188 CAP patients who were admitted to respiratory wards. Misdiagnosis was defined as cases which lack suggestive clinical features and/or chest radiograph changes. In-hospital mortality and length of stay (LOS) were the outcomes of interest. Results: The study found that 38.8% (n=73) of the hospitalised CAP patients were misdiagnosed. The most common alternative diagnosis was upper respiratory tract infection (32.8%, n=24). There was no statistical difference between misdiagnosis and CAP patients in the demographic and clinical variables collected. In terms of outcomes, misdiagnosed patients were discharged earlier (mean LOS= 3.5±3.28 days vs. 7.7±15.29 days, p=0.03) but the in-hospital mortality difference was not statistically significant (p=0.07). Conclusions: One third of our CAP admissions were misdiagnosed. Although initial misdiagnosis of CAP in our study did not show any increase in mortality or morbidity, a proper diagnosis of CAP will be helpful in preventing inappropriate prescription of antibiotics and unnecessary admission.

Efficacy of Oral Mixed Tocotrienols in Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Management of painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy remains challenging. Most therapies provide symptomatic relief with varying degrees of efficacy. Tocotrienols have modulatory effects on the neuropathy pathway and may reduce neuropathic symptoms with their antioxidative and anti-inflammatory activities. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of oral mixed tocotrienols for patients with diabetic peripheral neuropathy. Design, Setting, and Participants: The Vitamin E in Neuroprotection Study (VENUS) was a parallel, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial that recruited participants from January 30, 2011, to December 7, 2014, with 12 months of follow-up. This trial screened 14 289 patients with diabetes from 6 health clinics and ambulatory care units from 5 public hospitals in Malaysia. A total of 391 patients who reported neuropathic symptoms were further assessed with Total Symptom Score (TSS) and Neuropathy Impairment Score (NIS). Patients 20 years or older with a TSS of 3 or higher and an NIS of 2 or higher were recruited. Interventions: Patients were randomized to receive 200 mg of mixed tocotrienols twice daily or matching placebo for 12 months. Patients with hyperhomocysteinemia (homocysteine level ≥2.03 mg/L) received oral folic acid, 5 mg once daily, and methylcobalamin, 500 µg thrice daily, in both groups. Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome was patient-reported neuropathy TSS (lancinating pain, burning pain, paresthesia, and asleep numbness) changes at 12 months. The secondary outcomes were NIS and sensory nerve conduction test result. Results: Of 391 eligible patients, 300 were recruited (130 [43.3%] male; mean [SD] age, 57.6 [8.9] years; mean [SD] duration of diabetes, 11.4 [7.8] years) and 229 (76.3%) completed the trial. The TSS changes between the tocotrienols and placebo groups at 12 months (-0.30; 95% CI, -1.16 to 0.56; P = .49) were similar. No significant differences in NIS (0.60; 95% CI, -1.37 to 2.65; P = .53) and sensory nerve conduction test assessments were found between both groups. In post hoc subgroup analyses, tocotrienols reduced lancinating pain among patients with hemoglobin A1C levels greater than 8% (P = .03) and normohomocysteinemia (homocysteine level <2.03 mg/L; P = .008) at 1 year. Serious adverse events in both groups were similar, except more infections were observed in the tocotrienols group (6.7% vs 0.7%, P = .04). Results reported were of modified intention-to-treat analyses. Conclusions and Relevance: Supplementation of oral mixed tocotrienols, 400 mg/d for 1 year, did not improve overall neuropathic symptoms. The preliminary observations on lancinating pain among subsets of patients require further exploration. Trial Registration: National Medical Research Registry Identifier: NMRR-10-948-7327 and clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01973400.

Management of asthma in adults in primary care

@#Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airway which is often misdiagnosed and undertreated. Early diagnosis and vigilant asthma control are crucial to preventing permanent airway damage, improving quality of life and reducing healthcare burdens. The key approaches to asthma management should include patient empowerment through health education and selfmanagement and, an effective patient-healthcare provider partnership.