Publications by authors named "Laila Al-Dabal"

Article Synopsis
  • Coinfections of tuberculosis and leprosy are common in areas where both diseases are endemic, with lymphadenopathy being a key symptom of tuberculosis; however, leprosy rarely presents with this symptom and is usually found in skin or peripheral nerves.
  • A case study described a 45-year-old man with generalized lymphadenopathy who was diagnosed with concurrent tuberculosis and leprosy affecting his lymph nodes, a rare occurrence particularly in nonendemic regions.
  • Accurate diagnosis is challenging due to overlapping symptoms and histopathological findings, necessitating awareness among healthcare professionals, especially in patients with travel history to endemic areas; specific staining techniques are essential to differentiate between the diseases.
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  • Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a major global public health issue worsened by COVID-19, but data linking pandemic effects to AMR evolution is limited.
  • Researchers analyzed health records from over 60,000 patients in Dubai, utilizing various methods to assess antimicrobial use and resistance trends from 2017 to mid-2022.
  • The study found that COVID-19 led to increased over-prescription of antimicrobials, a rise in resistance rates, and higher mortality risks associated with resistant infections, especially after the pandemic began.
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  • * Whole exome sequencing identified rare, harmful variants in 16 immune-related genes in 31% of patients, with a significant number of these variants linked to interferon and toll-like receptor genes.
  • * Findings indicate that genetic variations may contribute to severe COVID-19 outcomes, emphasizing the need for genetic research in diverse populations to enhance our understanding of disease genetics.
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Rapid pathogen identification is key to the proper management of patients with bloodstream infections (BSIs), especially in the intensive care setting. This multicentre study compared the time to pathogen identification results in 185 patients admitted to intensive care with a confirmed BSI, using conventional methods ( = 99 patients) and upon implementation of the BIOFIRE Blood Culture Identification 2 (BCID2) Panel, a rapid molecular test allowing for the simultaneous identification of 43 BSI-related nucleic acids targets ( = 86 patients). The median time to result informing optimal antibiotic therapy was significantly shorter following the implementation of the BCID2 Panel (92 vs.

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Background And Aims: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), emerged in late 2019. While the infection is commonly perceived as a respiratory disease, gastrointestinal complaints have been described in a significant number of patients since the beginning of the pandemic. This study investigated the prevalence of hepatic and gastrointestinal manifestations among patients with COVID-19 in terms of symptoms and biochemical findings, and the relationship with disease severity and outcomes.

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Article Synopsis
  • A study was conducted to analyze the clinical and genetic features of Middle Eastern patients with Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), focusing on those of Arab and Asian descent.
  • Involving 45 MIS-C patients and 25 healthy controls, researchers used whole exome sequencing to identify genetic variants and correlate them to the symptoms and severity of the illness.
  • Findings revealed significant dysregulation of inflammatory markers in MIS-C patients, with common symptoms including mucocutaneous and gastrointestinal issues, cardiac complications, and rare genetic variants found in immune-related genes.
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Objectives: The World Health Organization (WHO) published a global strategic response plan in February 2020 aiming to mitigate the impact of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. It identified immediate activities required for global preparedness and response to the outbreak and set eight priority areas (pillars) essential for scaling up countries' operational readiness and response. Despite a semi-annual progress report on implementing the Global Strategic Plan in June 2020, there is limited granular information available on the extent of the national plan's content and implementation, particularly in the Member States of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).

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Background: Antimicrobial resistance is a significant global issue that presents an increasing threat to patients' wellbeing. Although a global concern, the emergence of multi-drug resistant organisms is of particular significance in the Middle East. In recent years, this region has seen an alarming increase in antimicrobial resistance presenting a major challenge to physicians managing various infectious diseases.

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Background: The objective of this study is to determine the initial drug resistance pattern among new tuberculosis (TB) cases and assess the extent of association with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and diabetes mellitus (DM).

Method: This is a retrospective analysis of 1116 clinical isolates were collected from patients who were newly diagnosed with TB at TB Laboratory between January 2016 and November 2019 and used for determining drug-resistance profiles against five first-line and five second-line anti-TB drugs; and the results were assessed the association between TB risk factors and primary drug resistance TB.

Results: Of the 1116 newly diagnosed TB patients, 193 (17.

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International travel played a significant role in the early global spread of SARS-CoV-2. Understanding transmission patterns from different regions of the world will further inform global dynamics of the pandemic. Using data from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a major international travel hub in the Middle East, we establish SARS-CoV-2 full genome sequences from the index and early COVID-19 patients in the UAE.

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Objectives: Community-acquired (CAIs) and healthcare-associated (HAIs) infections are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Data related to the epidemiology of these infections in the Middle East is scarce. The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of infections and antimicrobial use in the acute hospital setting in this region.

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Antimicrobial resistance is an important global issue that impacts the efficacy of established antimicrobial therapy. This is true globally and within the Arab countries of the Middle East, where a range of key Gram-negative pathogens pose challenges to effective therapy. There is a need to establish effective treatment recommendations for this region given specific challenges to antimicrobial therapy, including variations in the availability of antimicrobials, infrastructure and specialist expertise.

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Objective: To determine the distribution of HCV genotypes among the patients attending a tertiary care hospital in Dubai, UAE.

Methods: This was a descriptive study conducted from January 2009 to June 2009 in the Medical and Infectious Diseases clinics at Rashid Hospital Dubai. The study was designed to include patient's demographics, clinical information including the various risk factors for the transmission of HCV and laboratory data.

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Cheyne-Stokes respiration (CSR) is a form of central sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in which there are cyclical fluctuations in breathing that lead to periods of central apneas/hypopnea, which alternate with periods of hyperpnea. The crescendo-decrescendo pattern of respiration in CSR is a compensation for the changing levels of blood oxygen and carbon dioxide. Severe congestive heart failure seems to be the most important risk factor for the development of CSR.

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Obesity is becoming a major medical concern in several parts of the world, with huge economic impacts on health- care systems, resulting mainly from increased cardiovascular risks. At the same time, obesity leads to a number of sleep-disordered breathing patterns like obstructive sleep apnea and obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS), leading to increased morbidity and mortality with reduced quality of life. OHS is distinct from other sleep- related breathing disorders although overlap may exist.

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In patients with malignant hematological disorders receiving immunosuppressive therapy, invasive pulmonary infections are serious complications that are associated with high morbidity and mortality. In immunocompromised hosts with impaired cellular immunity, two or more organisms may coexist leading to a wide range of clinical and radiological manifestations. Reported here is an old man who was diagnosed to have angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Riyadh in December 2004.

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