The inability to accurately predict the occurrence of postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) among open-heart surgery patients leads to concerning increases in POCD cases. Preoperative circulating biomarkers are important to identify as they are non-invasive and could provide an early prediction of POCD development, allowing for earlier and more strategized interventions. However, to date, no robust circulating biomarkers have proven effective for preoperative POCD prediction. This systematic review aims to synthesize current evidence on preoperative protein profiling among POCD patients following open-heart surgery. Thus, a thorough literature search employing PubMed, EBSCOhost, Scopus, and Science Direct was carried out. This combination of keywords was used as part of the search strategy: (“Postoperative cognitive decline” OR “Postoperative cognitive disorders” OR “Postoperative cognitive dysfunction” OR “Postoperative cognitive complications”) AND (“Thoracic Surgery” OR “Cardiac Surgery” OR “Heart Surgery”) AND (“Protein expression” OR proteomic OR “Protein profiling”). Eight hundred and twenty-nine studies were retrieved and only clinical studies reporting the circulating preoperative differentially expressed Proteins (DEPs) in the POCD patients were selected. Six studies were selected following the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Only one preoperative DEP and four immediate postoperative DEPs were extracted from the studies. All four proteins were selected for analysis using DAVID, STRING, and Cytoscape software. Due to the very low number of proteins, no clusters have been identified. This systematic review demonstrates the lack of POCD preoperative biomarkers for open-heart-surgery patients. Thus, it is suggested that more studies can be conducted to fill this gap.

Salat is the essential way of connecting Muslims with Allah, the Creator. Salat is also an important way of coping especially for those who are facing hardships and difficulties such as having chronic or acute illnesses. This study determines the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice among patients admitted to the Hospital Langkawi, Kedah. From January to December 2015, a cross sectional study on a sample of 166 respondents was conducted. The sample was selected using simple random sampling and the information was elicited through face-to-face interviews using a validated, self-constructed questionnaire. Data were then analyzed using IBM SPSS version 21.0. The results showed that 78.9% (n = 131) of the respondents did not perform Salat while in the ward due to their illnesses mainly because they do not know how to perform rukhsah salat (77.7%, n = 129). Overall, 48.2% (n = 80) of the respondents claimed that nobody guided them on how to perform Salat and how to take ablution (wudhu’) (47.6%, n = 79) while in the ward. The most important person who teaches the respondents on how to perform Salat in the ward is the religious officer (27.7%, n = 46) and nurses (13.3%, n = 22). Generally, more than half of the respondents still have a low knowledge (53.6%, n = 89) and a low attitude (61.4%, n = 102) on performing rukhsah salat while being admitted. As a conclusion, healthcare providers need to have knowledge regarding rukhsah salat and hold a responsibility to educate patients especially those admitted and more importantly debilitated due to their illnesses while in the ward.

Female circumcision in Malaysia involves drawing a drop of blood and causing brief pain by nicking the tip of the clitoris or prepuce with a pen-knife or sharp tools. The objective of this paper is to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice of female circumcision among patients who attended the outpatient Obstetrics and Gynaecology clinic in Hospital Ampang. A cross-sectional questionnaire study using sequential sampling of patients aged > 18-year-old attending the clinic. 80% (315) thought circumcision was performed mainly for religious reasons. The perceived benefits include control of sexual desire among women 78% (111). Responding to the question “would you circumcise your daughter”, 97% (380) said they would. There was no significance correlation between respondents being circumcised and their views on having their daughters circumcised (correlation coefficient, r=0.2693). 94.3% (379) believed that circumcision had no complications. 79% (318) of the respondents chose to have the circumcision between 0-6 months. 73% (293) chose a medical doctor as the preferred person to do the circumcision. 72% (289) of the respondents stated that they did not actually know how circumcision is performed. 63% (62) of the non-Muslims had never heard of female circumcision. Although there is no specific statement in the Al-Quran to validate such a practice, majority performed circumcision based on religious grounds. Cultural influence may play a role in why and how circumcision is performed as the practice varies between communities and countries. A medical doctor is the preferred person to perform circumcision although there is no formal training for such a practice and in some countries, it is illegal. Despite wanting to have their daughters circumcised, only few mothers knew how exactly it is done.

Goat’s milk can be considered as one type of natural functional food due to its variety of nutritional benefits. Nowadays, the dairy milk production in Malaysia is highly focusing on cow’s milk compared to goat’s milk. However, the demand for goat’s milk is increasing especially among Muslims as it is considered as one of the foods which consumed by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). A cross-sectional study was conducted involving 221 residents in Pulau Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia. This study showed that the practice of drinking goat’s milk among the local residents was still low; only 11.8% of the residents consumed goat’s milk daily and 40% chose goat’s milk in its powdered form. The main barriers to goat’s milk consumption included: not interested to consume goat’s milk (54%), unpleasant taste (51.3%) and non-staple food (50.8%). This study also found that knowledge (r ² = 0.200, p = 0.003) and attitude (r ² = 0.174, p No Reference information available - sign in for access. No Citation information available - sign in for access. No Supplementary Data. No Article Media No Metrics