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‘Chat Hour’ is an initiative organised by the English Language Department, Institute of Teacher Training, International Languages Campus (IPGKBA) Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It was conducted online via YouTube by TESL teacher trainees. The main purpose of this programme is to provide TESL students the opportunity to improve their fluency when speaking in public as well as to provide them the opportunity to practice English confidently. This program tried to bring up the aspirations stated in the Ministry of Education (MOE) Malaysia English Language Roadmap (20152025), which presents the importance of higher education institutions to provide an English-rich environment in order for tertiary students to have greater engagement with the language, outside the bounds of the formal settings in the classroom. The findings of this study show that the ‘Chat Hour with IPGKBA’ provided a positive experience, which contributed to improving their fluency and confidence when using the language. This study provides insight into the teacher trainees’ perception towards the ‘Chat Hour’ programme in terms of developing their fluency and confidence.

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder characterized by immune dysregulation and aberrant keratinocyte proliferation. Despite tremendous advances in understanding its etiology, effective therapies that target its fundamental mechanisms remain necessary. Recent research highlights the role of reactive oxygen species dysregulation and mitochondrial dysfunction in psoriasis pathogenesis. Mitochondrial reactive oxygen species mediate cellular signaling pathways involved in psoriasis, such as proliferation, apoptosis, and inflammation, leading to oxidative stress, exacerbating inflammation and tissue damage if dysregulated. This review explores oxidative stress biomarkers and parameters in psoriasis, including myeloperoxidase, paraoxonase, sirtuins, superoxide dismutase, catalase, malondialdehyde, oxidative stress index, total oxidant status, and total antioxidant status. These markers provide insights into disease mechanisms and potential diagnostic and therapeutic targets. Modulating mitochondrial reactive oxygen species levels and enhancing antioxidant defenses can alleviate inflammation and oxidative damage, improving patient outcomes. Natural antioxidants like quercetin, curcumin, gingerol, resveratrol, and other antioxidants show promise as complementary treatments targeting oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction. This review aims to guide the development of personalized therapeutic methods and diagnostic techniques, emphasizing the importance of comprehensive clinical studies to validate the efficacy and safety of these interventions, paving the way for more effective and holistic psoriasis care.

Objective: This present study investigated the prevalence, characteristics, and management of ear, nose, and throat (ENT) foreign body (FB) in the pediatric population of Tamale., Study Design: Retrospective observational study for otorhinolaryngology surgeries from 2019 to 2022 for children aged 17 years and below at Tamale Teaching Hospital., Methods: A checklist created was used to collect data from the Otorhinolaryngology Surgeries records from 2019 to 2022. Chi-square and binary logistics regression analysis were done for associations. The level of statistical significance was set at 0.05., Results: Two hundred and sixty-three cases were included in this study, and the mean age of the study participants was (4.3 ± 3.8) years with a minimum age of 1 month and a maximum age of 17 years. Most (65.4%) of the study participants were under-5 years. The prevalence of FB in this study was 47.9%. The majority (54.8%) of the ENT FB incidence was through ingestion. Almost half (50.8%) of the ENT FB was removed through esophagoscopy. Among the foreign bodies, the coin was the most common (44.5%). Those less than 1 year were more likely to encounter FB than those 12 years and above (adust odds ratio [AOR] = 27.7, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 4.7-164.6). Again, those of 5 to less than 12 years were more likely to encounter ENT FB than those 12 years and above (AOR = 5.7, 95% CI = 1.2-26.3)., Conclusions: Foreign bodies are a common occurrence in pediatric otorhinolaryngology surgeries in Tamale Teaching Hospital. Younger children are more likely to report for otorhinolaryngology surgeries for FB in Tamale Teaching Hospital., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2023 The Authors. World Journal of Otorhinolaryngology ‐ Head and Neck Surgery published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Chinese Medical Association.)

Introduction: SABINA III assessed short-acting β 2 -agonist (SABA) prescription patterns and their association with asthma-related outcomes globally. Herein, we examined SABA prescription and clinical outcomes in the Malaysian cohort of SABINA III., Method: In this observational, cross-sectional study, patients (≥12 years) were recruited between July and December 2019 from 15 primary and specialty care centres in Malaysia. Prescribed asthma treatments and severe exacerbation history within 12 months prior and asthma symptom control during the study visit were evaluated. Associations of SABA prescription with asthma control and severe exacerbation were analysed using multivariable regression models., Results: Seven hundred thirty-one patients (primary care, n=265 [36.3%]; specialty care, n=466 [63.7%]) were evaluated. The prevalence of SABA over-prescription (≥3 SABA prescriptions/year) was 47.4% (primary care, 47.1%; specialty care, 47.6%), 51.8% and 44.5% among all patients and patients with mild and moderate-to-severe asthma, respectively. Altogether 9.0% (n=66) purchased SABA without a prescription; among them, 43.9% (n=29) purchased ≥3 inhalers. The mean (standard deviation) number of severe asthma exacerbations was 1.38 (2.76), and 19.7% (n=144) and 25.7% (n=188) had uncontrolled and partly controlled symptoms, respectively. Prescriptions of ≥3 SABA inhalers (vs 1-2) were associated with lower odds of at least partly controlled asthma (odds ratio=0.42; 95% confidence interval [CI]=0.27-0.67) and higher odds of having severe exacerbation(s) (odds ratio=2.04; 95% CI=1.44-2.89)., Conclusion: The prevalence of SABA over-prescription in Malaysia is high, regardless of the prescriber type, emphasising the need for healthcare providers and policymakers to adopt latest evidence-based recommendations to address this public health concern., Competing Interests: Andrea Yu-Lin Ban received honoraria from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis and Bayer Co. as well as travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as an advisory board member of the ‘Use of ICS/LABA in Covid-19’ for AstraZeneca and a committee member of the Malaysian Thoracic Society. Paranthaman Vengdasalam received honoraria from AstraZeneca and Mundipharma Pharmaceuticals as well as travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical and served as a member of the MFP Editorial Board, Perak Medical Journal Editorial Board, Academy of Family Physician Malaysia and GCFM Post graduate board. Sri Wahyu Taher received honoraria from AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical and Novo Nordisk Pharma as well as travel support from AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk Pharma and Sanofi-Aventis and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as an advisory board member of Novo Nordisk Pharma and president of the Family Medicine Specialist Association Malaysia. Mohd Arif Mohd Zim received honoraria from AstraZeneca, Orient EuroPharma, Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical as well as travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served on the Severe Asthma Advisory Board for AstraZeneca and as a member of PRECISION (Severe Asthma Working Group) for AstraZeneca and the Malaysian Association of Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology. Syazatul Syakirin Sirol Aflah received honoraria from AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical, Orient EuroPharma and Mundipharma Pharmaceuticals as well as travel support from AstraZeneca and Mundipharma Pharmaceuticals and served as a committee member of the Malaysian Thoracic Society. Ummi Nadira Daut received honoraria from AstraZeneca, Orient EuroPharma, Novartis Corporation and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical and travel support from AstraZeneca. Irfhan Ali Hyder Ali received honoraria from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Orient EuroPharma, Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical and Pfizer as well as travel support from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Orient EuroPharma, Novartis and Pfizer and sample drugs from AstraZeneca, Novartis and Boehringer Ingelheim and served as a committee member of the Malaysian Thoracic Society, head of the Respiratory Services, Malaysia and head of the Respiratory Department, Penang Hospital. Lalitha Pereirasamy received honoraria from AstraZeneca, Novartis and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical as well as travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as a committee member of the Malaysian Thoracic Society. Azza Omar received honoraria from AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, Orient EuroPharma, Sanofi-Aventis and Mundipharma Pharmaceuticals as well as travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as a committee member and ‘Severe Asthma Diagnostic Consensus’ lead of the Malaysian Thoracic Society and a member of PRECISION (Severe Asthma Working Group) for AstraZeneca. Aishah Ibrahim received honoraria from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Novartis, Orient EuroPharma and GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical as well as travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as a committee member of the Malaysian Thoracic Society. Noor Aliza Mohd Tarekh received honoraria, travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca. Norsiah Ali received honoraria, travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as a past-president of the Family Medicine Specialist Association, Malaysia. Nor Azila Mohd Isa received honoraria, travel support and sample drugs from AstraZeneca and served as a member of the Family Medicine Specialist Association, Malaysian Thoracic Society and Islamic Medical Association, Malaysia. Husni Hussain received honoraria and travel support from AstraZeneca and served as a committee member of the Family Medicine Specialist Selangor Association. Vieshal Raja Gopal and Sue Yin Chiam are employees of AstraZeneca. Maarten J.H.I. Beekman was an employee of AstraZeneca at the time the study was conducted and holds stocks of AstraZeneca. Swee Kim Chan and Noraziah Abdul Karim have nothing to disclose., (© Academy of Family Physicians of Malaysia.)

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) have excellent clinical potential and numerous properties that ease its clinical translation. Mitochondria play a crucial role in energy metabolism, essential for cellular activities, such as proliferation, differentiation, and migration. However, mitochondrial dysfunction can occur due to diseases and pathological conditions. Research on mitochondrial transfer from MSCs to recipient cells has gained prominence. Numerous studies have demonstrated that mitochondrial transfer led to increased adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production, recovered mitochondrial bioenergetics, and rescued injured cells from apoptosis. However, the complex mechanisms that lead to mitochondrial transfer from healthy MSCs to damaged cells remain under investigation, and the factors contributing to mitochondrial bioenergetics recovery in recipient cells remain largely ambiguous. Therefore, this review demonstrates an overview of recent findings in preclinical studies reporting MSC mitochondrial transfer, comprised of information on cell sources, recipient cells, dosage, route of administration, mechanism of transfer, pathological conditions, and therapeutic effects. Further to the above, this research discusses the potential challenges of this therapy in its clinical settings and suggestions to overcome its challenges., (© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press.)

Dengue mortality remains high despite monitoring against warning signs (WS). The associations of WS at febrile phase (FP) and hemorrhage at defervescence with the levels and kinetics of ROTEM, platelet count, cortisol, and ferritin were analyzed. Patients with confirmed dengue serology and WS in two centers were screened ( n = 275) and 62 eligible patients were recruited prospectively over 9 months. "Vomiting" was the commonest WS (62.9%), with shortened clotting time (CT) INTEM ( p = 0.01). "Hematocrit increase" showed significant prolonged CT INTEM, EXTEM, and FIBTEM ( p < 0.05). "Platelet decrease" showed reduced platelet function and reduced clot amplitude at 10 min (A10) and maximum clot firmness (MCF) in INTEM and EXTEM ( p < 0.001). The kinetics were reduced in platelet count, CT EXTEM, and cortisol ( p < 0.05) but increased in CT INTEM ( p = 0.03). At FP, "vomiting", "hematocrit increase", and "platelet decrease" demonstrated impaired CT, clot strengths A10/MCF and platelet functions. Majority (60/62, 96.7%) had non-severe outcomes, consistent with increase in cortisol kinetics. In conclusion, "vomiting", "hematocrit increase" and "platelet decrease" at FP correlated with ROTEM. No conclusion could be made further regarding ferritin and cortisol. Larger study is required to study "hematocrit increase" with ROTEM as a potential marker for hemorrhage.