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Biomedical subjects

M M Thein

Publications and source records attributed to M M Thein.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Childhood injuries in Singapore: a community nationwide study.

INTRODUCTION: Childhood injuries are the leading cause of death for children between 5 to 14 years of age in Singapore. However, there is no information or data on childhood injuries in the community in Singapore. There was a need to conduct a nationwide study on childhood injuries in Singapore in order to estimate the prevalence rate, types of injuries, and to identify the hazards in the homes of the children. METHODS: A cross-sectional nationwide study with a two-stage stratified random sampling was conducted to obtain a representative sample of the Singapore population. Families that had children younger than 15 years of age were selected for the study. Parents and caregivers were interviewed at their homes. RESULTS: There were 2322 children in the study, of which 452 had one or more injuries in the past one year, giving an overall prevalence rate of 19.5 percent. Of the children who had injuries, the home was the commonest place where injuries occurred (45 percent) and falls were the leading cause of injuries (77 percent). There were many hazards identified in the homes studied and it was found that the more hazards present in the homes, the more likely it is for the child to get injuries. CONCLUSION: There is a need for educational and interventional programmes to help Singaporeans understand the need to make the home environment safe for children and to prevent home injuries.

Accidents↗
PubMed2005

Knowledge, attitude and practices of childhood injuries and their prevention by primary caregivers in Singapore.

INTRODUCTION: Childhood injuries are the leading cause of death for children between 5 to 14 years of age in Singapore. There have been no studies done on primary caregivers' knowledge, attitude and practices on childhood injuries and its prevention in Singapore. Thus there is a need to conduct this type of study in order to develop appropriate educational programmes. METHODS: A cross-sectional nationwide study with a two-stage stratified random sampling was conducted to obtain a representative sample of the Singapore population. Families that had children younger than 15 years of age were selected for the study. Parents and caregivers were interviewed at their homes. RESULTS: The primary caregivers had good knowledge of road safety but poor knowledge on home safety and first aid. The higher the education of the mother, the more likely it is that she would possess the correct knowledge and practice on childhood injuries and its prevention. The media plays an important role on information on child safety of the caregivers. Only 38 percent said they obtained information from doctors and other health personnel. CONCLUSION: There is a need to educate parents and caregivers on home safety and first aid. Doctors and nurses should take a more active role in giving advice on child safety.

Accident Prevention↗
PubMed1997

Infant walker use, injuries, and motor development.

OBJECTIVES: To study the impact of infant walker use on motor development and injuries. POPULATION: One hundred and eighty five parents or primary care givers who attended a Singapore government polyclinic from September 1993 to February 1994, with their infants between 7 to 10 months, for a developmental assessment session. SETTING: A government polyclinic in Singapore. METHODS: The parent or primary care giver answered questions pertaining to infant walker use and injuries attributed to its use. Each infant was then given the Singapore modified version of the Denver Developmental Screening Test (DDST-S), along with a full clinical examination; both testers were blinded to walker use. RESULTS: One hundred and sixty seven (90%) of 185 infants used walkers regularly, and 21 (12.5%) of the users had one or more injuries. Most injuries were minor, such as bruises and swellings on the head, forehead, face, and cheeks. None of the children who did not use walkers showed any abnormal DDST-S results whereas 18 (10.8%) of the 167 walker users had either abnormal or questionable DDST-S results. CONCLUSIONS: 12.5% of walker users had one or more injuries and walker use may also delay the child's motor development. These findings will help the physician or nurse in primary care settings to advise parents about the potential hazards of walker use.

Accidents, Home↗
PubMed1995

Risk factors for birth defects in Singapore: a case control study.

To explore possible risk factors for birth defects, a matched case-control study was carried out at Kandang Kerbau Hospital in Singapore from January 1986 to December 1988. Cases and controls were selected from livebirths born in that hospital during that period. Cases were babies who were clinically detected as having defects at birth and the diagnosis reconfirmed at 6 weeks post partum. Each case was matched to a control by maternal age, ethnic background of mother, the same class of maternity ward and time of delivery. Five hundred and seventy-two matched pairs were accrued for the study. The parents of both cases and controls were interviewed at 6 weeks post partum. Information on the medical and birth history of both mother and baby was obtained from medical records. Using conditional logistic regression analysis to adjust for potential confounders, the strongest risk factors for birth defects were family history of birth defects (OR 3.3; 95% CI 1.8-6.4) and parents having a previous abnormal baby (OR 2.4; 95% CI 1.1-5.3). Other notable risk factors included drug history during pregnancy (OR 1.2; 95% CI 0.8-2.0), the ingestion of traditional medicine during pregnancy (OR 1.4; 95% CI 1.0-2.0), injuries or accidents during pregnancy (OR 2.2; 95% CI 1.5-3.2) and maternal diabetes mellitus (OR 1.3, 95% CI 0.3-7.1). Mothers in professional occupations (OR 1.4, 95% CI 0.7-2.6) and those in production occupation (OR 1.2, 95% CI 0.9-1.7) had an increased risk for birth defects compared to housewives.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed1995

Child health surveillance: enlarging the role of the family doctor.

The family doctor looks after the family as a unit of care. This includes not only curative care but also disease prevention and health promotion. One of the areas is child health. He is in an ideal position to participate in child health surveillance as a member of the primary health care team. The tasks involved in child health surveillance include growth monitoring, monitoring of developmental progress, prevention of disease by immunisation, health education, nutrition education, developmental guidance and injury prevention. To meet the expanding role of the family doctor in child health surveillance, he needs adequate training and continuing education.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Descriptive profile of birth defects among livebirths in Singapore.

A case-control study of birth defects was carried out in Kandang Kerbau Hospital in Singapore for a three-year period from January 1986 until December 1988. This paper presents the descriptive profile of birth defects among livebirths seen in that hospital. Out of 44,842 livebirths, 678 babies were found to have birth defects, giving a prevalence of 15.13 per 1000 livebirths (95% CI 14.0-16.2). The musculoskeletal system was the most frequently affected system accounting for 161 cases with a prevalence of 3.59 per 1,000 livebirths (95% CI 3.06-4.19), followed by 111 cases with defects of the gastrointestinal system (2.47 per 1,000 livebirths 95% CI 2.04-2.98), 88 cases of chromosomal disorders (prevalence of 1.96 per 1,000 livebirths 95% CI 1.57-2.42), 78 cases with defects of the cardiovascular system (1.74 per 1,000 livebirths 95% CI 1.38-2.17), 73 cases with defects of the urogenital system (1.63 per 1,000 livebirths 95% CI 1.28-2.05), and 52 cases with defects of the central nervous system (1.16 per 1,000 livebirths 95% CI 0.87-1.52). The prevalence of cleft lip, cleft palate in isolation, and cleft lip and palate combined was 1.72 per 1,000 livebirths and the occurrence of Down's syndrome was 1 in 700 livebirths. When reviewed 6 weeks postpartum, the rate of false positives at birth was 4%. In a control group of 709 "normal" cases at birth, the rate of cases not detected at birth but detected at 6 week follow-up, false negatives was 0.84%.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed1992

Knowledge about developmental screening in mothers attending a maternal and child health clinic in Singapore.

A study of knowledge about Developmental Screening in mothers was done among 200 Singapore mothers attending a Maternal and Child Health Clinic from February to March 1990. They were requested to answer a set of questions pertaining to their knowledge on the Developmental Screening session and their reason for attending the session. They were also asked whether they had attended any health education talks given by the nurses in the clinic. Seventy-three out of 200 (36.9%) knew what the appointment given was for. Mothers with secondary education were almost three times and mothers with tertiary education were five-and-a-half times more likely to possess the correct knowledge than a mother with primary education. Wives of husbands from Social Classes I and II were more knowledgeable (83% and 54%) than those in lower social classes (32% and 25%). Mothers with older children were more knowledgeable than those with children age six weeks. Mothers of one child four-and-a-half years old were more knowledgeable than those with one child age six weeks. Twelve out of 27 (44%) of mothers of one child age six weeks did not know what Developmental Screening was about whereas all mothers with four-and-a-half year old children knew what Developmental Screening was about. Only 88 (44%) mothers had attended health education talks. There was no discernible difference in knowledge of Developmental Screening between those mothers who attended talks and those who did not (35% vs 40%).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The value of the girl child in Singapore.

Son preference exists in many countries in Asia. In countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, such preference has been shown to result in excess female mortality. In Singapore, there is also son preference but excess female mortality is not seen because of several factors: Government's policy of equal educational opportunities for boys and girls since World War II, the protection of women's rights through the Women's Charter, the family planning message that "Boy or Girl, two is enough", urbanisation and industrialisation. Singapore is seeing increasing participation of women in the workforce, not only as clerks and factory operators but also as decision makers in middle and senior management positions. In this modern age, the girl child should be given as much value as the boy child. Only when such an egalitarian attitude towards the girl child exists would she be able to develop into her full potential to be an asset to her country. Government policies to promote the well-being, protect the rights, and to improve the lot of the girl child appear necessary in countries where son preference leads to excess mortality of girls from sex discrimination in nutrition and/or health care.

Child↗
PubMed1990

A review of adverse effects on reproduction amongst female computer terminal workers.

It has been suggested that pregnant women working with computer terminals and visual display unit (VDUs) could be at an increased risk of having a spontaneous abortion or giving birth to children with congenital defects. This has led to apprehensions and worry among computer operators. This review attempts to evaluate some of the recent studies and provide some current knowledge on the possible reproductive hazard of VDUs. According to current scientific knowledge, the use of computer terminals during pregnancy does not by itself, lead to increased risks of adverse reproductive effects.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗