Introduction: COVID-19 related knowledge, attitude and practice plays a major role in determining the readiness of the community to adopt the behavioural change towards recommended preventive measures outlined by public health officials. This study aims to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding COVID-19 among university students as well as its associated factors. Design and methods: This is a cross sectional study that was conducted among students in a public university during the early phase of COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. An online validated self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal Wallis test was used to determine the association between independent variables with knowledge, attitude, and practice score. Results: Overall response rate of this study was 92.9 (n=524). Median score of knowledge domain was 78.0 (IQR= ±12.0), median attitude score of 49.0 (IQR= ±5.0), and median practice score of 80.0 (IQR= ±11.0). The mean knowledge, attitude and practice score were significantly higher among diploma holder (vs degree holder, p<0.05), residing in main Kota Kinabalu campus ( vs non-KK campus, p<0.001), studying in medical faculty ( vs non-medical faculty, p<0.001), and attended COVID-19 education ( vs non-attendance; p<0.05). Conclusion: COVID-19 related knowledge and attitude were below satisfactory level during earlier phase of the pandemic. However, majority of respondents have positive behaviour towards COVID-19 prevention. This highlights the importance of accurate and tailored health education to improve the level of knowledge, attitude and practice of recommended measures to prevent COVID-19 spread.

BACKGROUND: Prevention and control of soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections in Malaysia remain a challenge, especially among aborigine and rural population. Despite several community-based reports, there are lacking national data on the overall prevalence for STH infection. AIM: The study aimed to determine the prevalence, endemic species, and distribution and risk zones (RZs) for STH infections in Malaysia through a systematic review and meta-analysis of the data published between 1999 and 2019. METHODS: This study employed the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. The databases used in this review include SCOPUS, WEB OF SCIENCE, OVID MEDLINE, and PUBMED. The random-effects model determined the pooled prevalence estimate (PPE) while Cochran’s Q-test evaluated the heterogeneity. RESULTS: A total of 13240 samples were examined during the period under review with 6235 were infected with one or more species of STHs. The overall PPE for STH infections was 51% (95% Confidence interval [CI]: 34, 67). PPEs for sub-groups ranged between 13% (95% CI: 5, 22) and 69% (95% CI: 50, 87). Highest PPEs for STH infections were observed among aborigine children (69% 95% CI: 50, 87). Trichuris trichiura was the most prevalent species (46%, 95% CI: 27, 65). Over 46% (17/37) of the studies, especially among aborigine community and their area showed high-HRZ for STH infections. CONCLUSION: STH infections involving T. trichiura, Ascaris lumbricoides, hookworms and Strongyloides stercoralis are highly prevalent among aborigine community. Primary and secondary prevention such as the use of anthelmintic, health education, and adequate sanitation was essential in the control of these infections in Malaysia to improve individual and community health.

Background Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a group of preventable and treatable diseases, in which soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections are among the most common infections worldwide. Most affected are the children and this review aims to identify the prevalence, risk factors and impact of STH in an urban area. Methodology This review was guiding using PRISMA review protocol incorporating the research question of “What is the prevalence, risk factors and impact of helminth infection among urban children in tropical countries?". The databases used in this review include SCOPUS, WEB OF SCIENCE, OVID MEDLINE and PUBMED. The articles used include observational and interventional studies conducted among children aged 18 years and less from 2010 to 2020. The main outcome measure was risk factors of STH infection seen in urban children includes social backgrounds, sanitation and policy. Results From the initial 973 articles found in the database searching, only 13 articles selected for qualitative synthesis after exclusion and screening for eligibility done. The overall prevalence of helminth infection among urban children ranges from 4.8-48.9%. The associated factor that influences helminth infection among children living in an urban area are age, male more common than female, low socioeconomic status, low parents’ education level, living in an urban slum or crowded area, low water quality and sanitation practice and poor hygiene practice. The deworming tablets consumption acts as protective factors for helminth infections. The medium haemoglobin value was significantly lower in helminth-infected children compared to uninfected children and the stunting, underweight as well as moderate acute malnutrition were attributable to helminth infections. Conclusion The prevalence and intensity of helminthiasis were heterogeneous among urban areas of developing countries, however, the endemicity is still high. Further efforts including healthy policies, continuous national deworming programmes and multi-sectoral partnership are required to reduce the prevalence of helminthiasis in the urban area.

Introduction: Stress in nursing students has been documented in many studies and this will lead to various health problems. However, there is scanty research assessing the level of stress among nursing students during Covid-19 in Malaysia. Hence, this study aimed to assess the level of stress and its association with social and environmental factors amongst nursing students in Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Malaysia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted by random sampling among nursing students in Universiti Malaysia Sabah between March and May 2021. The primary outcome was stress symptoms, derived from the validated Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS) questionnaire. Socio-demographic, social, and environmental factors were also assessed. T-test was used to assess the associations between level of stress and social and environmental factors. Results: A total of 115 responses were received with the mean (SD) age of the students being 20.5 (1.3) years old. Of all the students, 84.9% were female, 54.6% received financial support from National Higher Education Fund Corporation and 46.2% were in nursing Year 2 followed by the nursing year 1 (28.6%) and nursing year 3 (25.2%). The students in this study reported a higher level of stress. The students who reported most or all the time being trapped in a hostel (p<0.01), challenges of online classes (p=0.03), and catching up with class projects (p=0.03) had a higher level of stress compared to those who reported none or little or some of the factors. Conclusion: This study showed that social and environmental factors may play a role in determining the stress level among nursing students. Hence, authorities should foster supporting strategies to lower student stress and tackles the unwanted consequences.

Background: The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) emerged in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. Since then, it has spread to 215 countries, and 42 million people around the globe are affected. The knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) toward COVID-19 play a role in determining the acceptance of behavioral change measures from health authorities to suppress this pandemic status. The KAP on COVID-19 is also important among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic to mitigate the outbreak of COVID-19. Hence, this study aimed to determine the level of knowledge, attitudes and practices towards COVID-19 and its association with sociodemographic factors among nursing students of Universiti Malaysia Sabah. Methods: A cross-sectional, questionnaire-based study was conducted among the Year 1, Year 2 and Year 3 nursing students. The questionnaire consists of four parts: 1) demographics, which surveys participants' sociodemographic information; 2) knowledge about COVID-19; 3) attitude towards COVID-19; and 4) practices relevant to COVID-19. Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26.0 was used for data entry and analysis Result: A total of 113 Nursing Students participated in the study. More than half of the respondents have good general knowledge and practices of COVID-19. However, only one in three respondents have positive attitudes towards COVID-19. Older age was associated with good knowledge about COVID-19 (p=0.02). Female (P=0.02) and high household income (P=0.02) has a better attitude towards COVID-19. However, no significant association between sociodemographic and practices towards COVID-19. Conclusion: Most of the respondents demonstrate a good level of knowledge and practices towards COVID-19 but not for attitudes. Sociodemographic characteristics such as younger, male respondents and those with lower-income families have inadequate knowledge and practices towards COVID-19. Hence, health education programs such as campaigns need to be conducted to increase the knowledge and encourage adequate preventive practice towards COVID-19 should be targeted towards this group.

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major public health threat. Therefore, CRC screening uptake has been a focus with the established precancerous lesion and the strong association of early detection with staging and survival of the disease. However, CRC screening is relatively low in many countries. This article briefly discussed the current situation of CRC, recommendations, and current uptake of CRC screening in various countries. Besides that, this article also highlights the potential factors that help to predict the CRC screening uptake worldwide. Identification of those factors could guide policymakers to develop an effective strategy to improve the CRC screening uptake and ultimately improve the health outcome of the population.