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Biomedical subjects

L Y Ho

Publications and source records attributed to L Y Ho.

32 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1997

Usefulness of C-reactive protein in the diagnosis of neonatal sepsis.

AIM: Early diagnosis of sepsis in the neonate is often difficult because symptoms and signs are usually non-specific. A study was conducted to evaluate C-reactive protein (CRP) as a screening tool for neonatal sepsis among very low birth weight (VLBW) infants. METHODS: The study population consisted of 70 VLBW infants suspected of sepsis. Sepsis was diagnosed from positive cultures of blood, cerebro-spinal fluid or bone/joint aspirate in the presence of signs. Positive cultures were the "gold standard" against which the performance of CRP > or = 1.0 mg/dL, abnormal white cell counts (WCC), absolute neutrophil (ANC) and platelet counts were compared. RESULTS: Of 152 septic screens, 30 (20%) had positive cultures. From analysis of the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve, CRP > or = 0.7 mg/dL rather than CRP > or = 1.0 mg/dL appeared a better cut-off for screening. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of CRP > or = 0.7 mg/dL were 56%, 72%, 71% and 57% respectively. Only abnormal platelet counts had similar efficiency as CRP. Abnormal WCC had the lowest sensitivity and positive predictive value while abnormal ANC had the lowest specificity and negative predictive value among them. CONCLUSION: CRP assay using laser nephelometry is a valuable adjunct in screening for neonatal sepsis, complementing clinical decision-making.

Biomarkers↗
PubMed1996

Role of oxidative DNA damage in hydroxychavicol-induced genotoxicity.

Chewing betel quid has been linked to the development of oral cancer. In Taiwan, fresh Piper betle inflorescence is uniquely added to betel quid, and hydroxychavicol is the major phenolic components of P.betle inflorescence. In this study, we tested the mutagenic potential of hydroxychavicol in Salmonella typhimurium TA97, TA98, TA100 and TA102 with and without Aroclor-1254 induced S9 fraction. The results showed that hydroxychavicol was positive in S.typhimurium TA102 without metabolic activation. This increase in revertants was partially inhibited by catalase and superoxide dismutase. In Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-K1) cells, hydroxychavicol induced chromosome aberrations in a dose-dependent manner (10-50 microM) and the majority were chromosome-type aberrations. Hydroxychavicol also significantly increased the frequency of micronuclei in CHO-K1 cells up to 3-fold at a concentration of 40 microM. In addition, hydroxychavicol dose-dependently (0.1-20 microM) induced copper-dependent strand breaks in plasmid DNA. We further tested the oxidative DNA damage potential of hydroxychavicol by measuring 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OH-dG) formation in CHO-K1 cells following an 18-h incubation and found that hydroxychavicol (6.25-100 microM) induced 8-OH-dG levels dose-dependently. The increase of 8-OH-dG formation was positively correlated (r = 0.79) with the hydroxychavicol-induced cytotoxicity. In conclusion, hydroxychavicol may exert its genotoxic potential through oxidative DNA damage.

8-Hydroxy-2'-Deoxyguanosine↗
PubMed1996

The field testing of Denver Developmental Screening Test Singapore: a Singapore version of Denver II Developmental Screening Test.

The Denver Developmental Screening Test, Singapore (DDST, Singapore), a Singapore version of the Denver II Developmental Screening Test, was field-tested, using trained staff nurses as testers, on 2459 children (known cases excluded), in 5 key ages of 3 months, 9 months, 17 months, 37 months and 60 months. Only 2.6% (65) of the parents suspected developmental problems in their children before screening. Taking children with "questionable" (7.2%), "abnormal" (3.7%) and "untestable" (1.7%) scores as the screened-out cases, the DDST, Singapore had a screened-out rate of 12.6%. A total of 171 screened-out cases and 168 "normal" children were also evaluated by the Development Assessment Clinic (DAC) of the Singapore General Hospital and the results were compared in these 2 groups of children. Among the screened-out cases, 16.6% were confirmed or suspected to have neuro-developmental disorders (NDDs) by the DAC. The computed NDD rate in the study sample was 5.3%. Based on a single DDST, Singapore test result, there was a high false positive rate of 83.5% and lower false negative rate of 3.7% compared to the DAC assessment. However, the high false positive rate would be significantly reduced by doing a repeat screening test on the "questionable" cases and having the screened-out cases assessed by trained primary health care doctors. In conclusion, no major revision is needed in the scoring criteria suggested in the current version of DDST, Singapore. It is a useful tool in identifying children who will otherwise be missed without formal screening.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed1985

Growth and early developmental outcome of the very low birth weight infants at Alexandra Hospital, Singapore 1978-1982.

210 infants weighting 501-1500 gm at birth were cared for in Alexandra Hospital from 1978 to 1982. Their overall survival rate was 54%. Only 8 out of 56 (14%) of those weighing 501 to 1000 gm survived as our facilities were inadequate for their care. 106 out of 154 (69%) of those weighing 1001-1500 gm survived. 96 out of 114 VLBW survivors (84%) had follow-up from 1 to 5 years. Birth weight was regained by 25 +/- 10 days. The average measurements at term were all below the 3rd percentile. Thereafter, both sexes showed accelerated rates of weight gain and generally achieved 10th to 25th percentile in weight by 2 years. Head growth seemed to be faster, by 2 years, the majority had achieved the 25th to 50th percentile in head circumference. Developmental assessment was carried out using Gesell's method, with age corrected for prematurity. The 8 survivors in the 501-1000 gm group were small-for-dates for obstetric reasons. Their perinatal course was uneventful and they were healthy on follow up (14%). For the 106 survivors in the 1001-1500 gm, 6 had significant handicap (6%), 18 lost to follow up (17%), and 82 were healthy (77%), the majority showing satisfactory catch-up development by 2 years. The chance of survival for VLBW infants has continued to increase over the years with a relatively low handicap rate.

Apgar Score↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Metabolic fate of Qinghaosu in rats; a new TLC densitometric method for its determination in biological material.

Since the sixties, the emergence of malarial parasites resistant to the most potent anti-malarials has posed a serious problem to the therapy of malaria. Qinghaosu, a new sesquiterpene isolated from a Chinese medicinal herb Qing-hao (Artemisia annua Linn) is being used for the treatment of malaria in China with good results even in cases resistant to common anti-malarial agents. In this paper, a sensitive method of high specificity using TLC for the determination of Qinghaosu in biological specimens and in the study of the metabolism of the drug in rats is described. Qinghaosu was shown to be completely and rapidly absorbed after oral administration. However, a very low plasma level was obtained even after a dose of 300 mg/kg. Liver was found to be the chief site of its inactivation. When Qinghaisu was given intramuscularly, significant and more persistent plasma levels were detected. Qinghaosu was shown to pass the blood-brain and blood-placenta barriers after i.v. injection. Very little unchanged Qinghaosu was found in the urine and feces in 48 hours regardless of administration route (i.v., i.m. or p.o.).

Absorption↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Tissue-limited mosaicism in Pallister-Killian syndrome -- a case in point.

We report a case of Pallister-Killian syndrome in a term female infant. Antenatal ultrasound showed left diaphragmatic hernia and polyhydramnios. She was ventilated from birth and the diaphragm defect repaired on day 5. She had dysmorphic features, including median cleft palate, patchy frontotemporal alopecia, hypopigmented skin whorls, and bilateral profound sensorineural hearing loss. Fetal and postnatal karyotypes of peripheral lymphocytes were both normal, 46, XX. Subsequently, a skin fibroblast culture showed mosaic tetrasomy of isochromosome 12p both on G-banding and fluorescence in situ hybridization, consistent with Pallister-Killian syndrome. This case illustrates the importance of using the appropriate sample type for karyotype analysis with implications for prenatal and postnatal diagnosis.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗