Viral aetiology of lower respiratory tract infection in young Malaysian children

OBJECTIVE: To study the viral aetiology of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in young Malaysian children. METHODOLOGY: A retrospective review was performed of LRTI patients aged less than 24 months who were admitted to the University Malaya Medical Centre between 1982 and 1997. Respiratory viruses in their nasopharyngeal secretion were identified by indirect immunofluorescence, viral culture, or both. RESULTS: A total of 5691 children were included in the study. The mean age was 8.6 +/- 6.6 months and the M:F ratio was 1.6:1. The most common diagnosis was pneumonia (52%) followed by bronchiolitis (45%) and croup (2%). Positive viral isolation rate was 22.0%. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was the commonest virus isolated (84%), followed by parainfluenza virus (8%), influenza virus (6%) and adenovirus (2%). Patients with positive virus isolation were younger (7.8 +/- 6.2 vs 8.7 +/- 6.7 months, P = 0.0001) and were more likely to have bronchiolitis. CONCLUSION: Young Malaysian children admitted with LRTI had a 22% viral isolation rate and RSV was the commonest virus isolated.     

SUBGLOTTIC STENOSIS SECONDARY TO TUBERCULOSIS

Although the incidence of laryngeal tuberculosis has been declining over the past 30 years, it should still be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients with laryngeal pathology. In contrast to the pre-chemotherapy era, few, if any, signs of pulmonary tuberculosis are seen in such cases, and presentation is similar to either chronic non-specific laryngitis or carcinoma. The subglottis is a site rarely involved in laryngeal tuberculosis. Tissue biopsy and culture are diagnostic and a full course of antituberculous chemotherapy usually resolves the condition. Airway insufficiency due to fibrosis, however, often necessitates surgical Intervention. We present a case where the only laryngeal manifestation of tuberculosis was subglottic stenosis.     

The effect of employment on the relationship between gender-role preference and self-esteem in married women

The purpose of this study was to examine relationships among gender-role preference, self-esteem and employment category (full-time, part-time, homemaker) while controlling for the effects of income and religion. Data were collected from 79 White married women using the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and a gender-role preference scale developed by the author. Findings indicated that: (a) there are significant differences in gender-role preference among categories of employment, with full-time workers having more modern views; (b) category of employment did not influence self-esteem; and (c) women with mixed gender-role preference had lower self-esteem than those with modern gender-role preference. The strength of the relationship between self-esteem and gender-role preference varied by category of employment. Gender-role preference made a significant contribution as a predictor of self-esteem (above and beyond the effects of income and religion) for full-time workers only.     

Normal instability of the hip in the neonate: US standards

In recent years, the use of real-time ultrasonography (US) has enabled dynamic evaluation of the infant hip through a range of motion and stress. Preliminary experience has suggested that a certain amount of instability in the hips of newborns is normal, but no standards have been established. In this study, a group of term neonates whose physical examinations were normal were examined with US on the 1st and 2d days of life. Each hip was imaged in the transverse plane in nonstressed and stressed positions, and movement of the femoral head under stress was quantitated. This displacement under stress was used to establish a normal range of hip instability in neonates. Patterns of hip laxity in boys and girls are identical, and in most infants hip instability diminishes between the 1st and 2d days of life. Our method of quantitating hip instability produces consistent results, with intraobserver 95% confidence intervals of +/- 1.2 mm for each measurement.     

Antimicrobials as a contributory factor in oral candidosis – a brief overview

The advent of the human immunodeficiency virus infection and the increasing prevalence of compromised individuals in the community due to modern therapeutic advances have resulted in a resurgence of opportunistic infections, including oral candidosis, which is by far the most common oral fungal infection in man. Broad-spectrum antibiotics used in the treatment of a wide range of disease conditions have also been attributed as a predisposing factor of oral candidosis. In this mini review we discuss the research findings on the relationship between antibiotics and oral candidosis and possible mechanisms of pathogenicity following such therapy.