A review on the effects of probiotics and antibiotics towards Clostridium difficile infections

Clostridium difficile can cause severe diseases with significant morbidity and mortality in infected patients. The rate of Clostridium difficile infection is high in North America and European countries. Metronidazole and vancomycin have been recommended as the treatments of choice since 1990s. Recurrent infection due to Clostridium difficile is common after several days of antibiotic administration. Probiotics have been used in these patients as an adjunct treatment with some successful findings. However, a detailed investigation on the use of probiotic for infected patients is still needed, particularly for its real efficacy

Prevalence of metabolic syndrome among staff in a Malaysian public university based on Harmonised, International Diabetes Federation and National Cholesterol Education Program Definitions

INTRODUCTION: Metabolic syndrome (MetSyn) as defined by the latest Harmonised definition and the agreement between the Harmonised definition and other definitions is poorly studied among Malaysians. This study was conducted to determine and compare the prevalence of MetSyn according to the Harmonised, International Diabetes Federation (IDF) and National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP ATPIII) definitions among Malay staff of Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). METHODS: Subjects aged between 20 to 65 years were recruited by convenient sampling. Waist circumference, blood pressure, lipid profiles and fasting plasma glucose levels were assessed. The agreement between the Harmonised and other definitions was determined by Kappa statistics. RESULTS: A total of 227 subjects with a mean +/- SD age of 37.9 +/- 9.6 years participated in the study. The overall prevalence of MetSyn was 38.3%, 38.8% and 33.5% according to Harmonised, IDF and NCEP ATP III definitions, respectively. Generally, men had higher prevalence of MetSyn than women. The prevalence increased with age in both genders with a more progressive trend in women. Men in the age group of 20-39 years had a high prevalence of metabolic syndrome. A strong agreement was found between the Harmonised and the IDF definitions (Kappa index = 0.991), and between the Harmonised and the NCEP ATP III definitions (Kappa index = 0.857). CONCLUSION: Regardless of definitions used, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in the study, especially in young men, was high and warrants further investigation. The Harmonised definition is suitable for diagnosing metabolic syndrome in any population with similar sociodemographic characteristics

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Dietary compliance, dietary supplementation and traditional remedy usage of type 2 diabetic patients with and without cardiovascular disease

This analytical cross-sectional study examined the nutrient intakes, dietary compliance, dietary supplementation and traditional remedy usage in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients from selected tertiary hospitals in multi-racial Malaysia. We compared the different characteristics of T2DM patients with and without cardiovascular disease (CVD). Socio-demographic status, dietary intakes, dietary supplementation, traditional remedy use, medical history, anthropometric measurements and clinical characteristics were obtained from face-to-face interviews. A total of 313 patients who were treated for T2DM participated in this study, in which 36.1% of them had CVD. The mean age of study subjects was 55.7 ± 9.2 years; mean diabetes duration was 10.1 ± 8.1 years; 52.1% were females; and 47.0% were Malays. The mean total energy intake of the subjects was 1674 ± 694 kcal/day, and patients with CVD consumed higher total calories (p = 0.001). Likewise, the mean carbohydrate, protein and total fat intake of CVD patients were significantly higher than non-CVD patients (p < 0.05), while mean intakes of cholesterol, fibre, minerals and all vitamins were comparable between CVD and non-CVD patients. Regardless of CVD status, a notably high proportion of the subjects did not meet the recommendations of the Medical Nutrition Therapy Guidelines for Type 2 Diabetes for total energy, carbohydrate, protein, total fat, and fibre intakes. Meanwhile, 52.4% used at least one dietary supplement and 12.1% took single traditional remedy or in various combinations. Traditional remedies and supplement intake did not differ between CVD and non-CVD subjects. It is suggested that T2DM patients should be educated based on their personalized dietary intake, dietary supplementation and traditional remedy usage. The recommendations for T2DM patients shall be met to achieve the optimal metabolic goals and minimize the potential diabetic complications

Thermal and mechanical properties of thermoplastic cassava starch/beeswax reinforced with cogon grass fiber

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of cogon grass fiber (CGF) on the thermal and mechanical properties of thermoplastic cassava starch (TPCS)/beeswax matrix. The alteration of TPCS/beeswax reinforced with cogon grass fiber was performed by incorporating various amount of CGF (0,10,20,30,40 wt.%) into the polymer matrix. The samples were then evaluated using thermogravimetric analysis and tensile test. The findings showed that the thermal properties of the composite were slightly improved as the CGF content increase. The mechanical test showed that the tensile strength and tensile modulus increased with the addition of the CGF. However, the elongation at break showed a decreased pattern following the increasing content of CGF compared to the 0% of fiber content. In general, the findings from this study have shown that the TPCS/beeswax reinforced with the CGF composite has improved the functional properties of the composites compared to the TPCS matrix