SPOOC (Sensor for Periodic Observation of Choline): An Integrated Lab-on-a-Spoon Platform for At-Home Quantification of Choline in Infant Formula.

Choline is an essential micronutrient for infants' brain development and health. To ensure that infants receive the needed daily dose of choline, the U.S.

LiFT (a Lithium Fiber-Based Test): An At-Home Companion Diagnostics for a Safer Lithium Therapy in Bipolar Disorder.

This work presents LiFT (a lithium fiber-based test), a low-cost electrochemical sensor that can measure lithium in human saliva and urine with FDA-required accuracy. Lithium is used for the treatment of bipolar disorder, and has a narrow therapeutic window. Close monitoring of lithium concentration in biofluids and adjustment of drug dosage can minimize the devastating side effects.

Toward Personalized Treatment of Depression: An Affordable Citalopram Test based on a Solid-Contact Potentiometric Electrode for at-Home Monitoring of the Antidepressant Dosage.

Citalopram (CTLP) is one of the most common antidepressants prescribed worldwide. It has a narrow therapeutic window and can cause severe toxicity and mortality if the dosage exceeds the safe level. Reports indicated that at-home monitoring of citalopram dosage considerably benefits the patients, yet there are no devices capable of such measurement of citalopram in biofluids.

Development and validation of a pharmaceutical assessment screening tool to prioritise patient care in a tertiary care hospital.

Background: Clinical pharmacy plays an integral role in optimizing inpatient care. Nevertheless, prioritising patient care remains a critical challenge for pharmacists in a hectic medical ward. In Malaysia, clinical pharmacy practice has a paucity of standardized tools to prioritise patient care.

Impedimetric Sensing: An Emerging Tool for Combating the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed a pressing need for the development of sensitive and low-cost point-of-care sensors for disease diagnosis. The current standard of care for COVID-19 is quantitative reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). This method is sensitive, but takes time, effort, and requires specialized equipment and reagents to be performed correctly.

Comparing Comorbidity Polypharmacy Score and Charlson Comorbidity Index in predicting outcomes in older trauma patients.

Background: The Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) and Comorbidity Polypharmacy Score (CPS) may potentially risk-stratify older trauma patients more accurately than traditional trauma severity scores. We aim to evaluate if CCI or CPS are better predictors of mortality and discharge venue in such patients.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study using registry data from two tertiary trauma centres.

Epidemiology and outcomes of older trauma patients in Singapore: A multicentre study.

Background: An ageing population has caused rising trauma cases amongst older patients. Multiple comorbidities, polypharmacy and limited reserves predispose them to poorer outcomes following a traumatic event. The Comorbidity Polypharmacy Score (CPS) has been found to predict outcomes and mortality in older trauma patients, but has not been studied in Asians.

Genomic surveillance uncovers ongoing transmission of carbapenem-resistant (CRAB) and identifies actionable routes of transmissions in an endemic setting.

Objective: In our center, previous infection prevention and control (IPC) resources were concentrated on multidrug-resistant organisms other than CRAB because the rate of CRAB was stable with no evidence of outbreaks. Triggered by an increase in the baseline rate of CRAB isolated in clinical cultures, we investigated horizontal transmission of CRAB to guide targeted IPC actions.

Methods: We prospectively collected clinical data of patients with positive CRAB cultures.

Adapting a Human Physiology Teaching Laboratory to the At-Home Education Setting.

Teaching labs at the undergraduate level poses unique challenges to a school system forced online by COVID-19. We adapted physiology laboratories typically taught in-person to an online-only format, allowing students to measure personal health data alone. Students used available technology and low-cost devices for measuring respiratory and cardiovascular parameters and analyzed the data for differences in testing conditions such as posture and exertion.

Sequential ultrasonication and deep eutectic solvent pretreatment to remove lignin and recover xylose from oil palm fronds.

This study demonstrated the effect of two-pot sequential pretreatment, comprising of ultrasound assisted deep eutectic solvent (DES) with the aim to investigate the effects of ultrasound amplitude and duration in enhancing delignification. Oil palm fronds (OPF) were ultrasonicated in a water medium, followed by a pretreatment using DES (choline chloride:urea). Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscope, Brunauer-Emmet-Teller and solubilised lignin concentration were conducted to confirm the effectiveness of ultrasound assisted DES on the pretreatment of OPF.

Nanomedicine for Cystic Fibrosis.

Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disease affecting more than 70,000 people worldwide. Caused by a mutation in the CFTR gene, cystic fibrosis can result in difficulty breathing, widespread bacterial infections, edema, malnutrition, pancreatitis, and death. Current drug-based treatments struggle to reach the site of action due to the thick mucus, and only manage symptoms such as blocked airways, lung infections, and limited ability to digest food.

Road Crashes in Older Persons and the Use of Comorbidity Polypharmacy Score in an Asian Population.

Introduction: Age-related physiological changes predispose older road users to higher mortality from traffic crashes. We aimed to describe the injury epidemiology of these patients, and explore the association between the comorbidity polypharmacy score (CPS) and outcomes.

Materials And Methods: This retrospective study utilised data from the Trauma Registry in the National University Hospital, Singapore, between January 2011 and December 2014.

Use of Activated Recombinant Factor VII in Severe Bleeding - Evidence for Efficacy and Safety in Trauma, Postpartum Hemorrhage, Cardiac Surgery, and Gastrointestinal Bleeding.

BACKGROUND: Uncontrolled bleeding continues to be a major cause of mortality in trauma, cardiac surgery, postpartum hemorrhage and liver failure. The aim of this paper is to assess the evidence supporting the efficacy of activated recombinant factor VII (rFVIIa) administration in these settings. METHODS: Electronic literature search.

A randomised, double-blind, multi-centre trial comparing vasopressin and adrenaline in patients with cardiac arrest presenting to or in the Emergency Department.

Objective: To compare vasopressin and adrenaline in the treatment of patients with cardiac arrest presenting to or in the Emergency Department (ED).

Design: A randomised, double-blind, multi-centre, parallel-design clinical trial in four adult hospitals.

Method: Eligible cardiac arrest patients (confirmed by the absence of pulse, unresponsiveness and apnea) aged >16 (aged>21 for one hospital) were randomly assigned to intravenous adrenaline (1mg) or vasopressin (40 IU) at ED.

Smaller platelet volumes associated with vascular malformations.

Various parameters in 91 adult participants with vascular malformations and 91 controls were studied. The mean of the participants' platelet volumes was 8.5 fL and that of their controls was 9.

Reducing ambulance response times using geospatial-time analysis of ambulance deployment.

Objectives: This study aimed to determine if a deployment strategy based on geospatial-time analysis is able to reduce ambulance response times for out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OOHCA) in an urban emergency medical services (EMS) system.

Methods: An observational prospective study examining geographic locations of all OOHCA in Singapore was conducted. Locations of cardiac arrests were spot-mapped using a geographic information system (GIS).

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation interruptions with use of a load-distributing band device during emergency department cardiac arrest.

Study Objective: Our primary aim is to measure no-flow time and no-flow ratio before and after an emergency department (ED) switched from manual to a load-distributing band mechanical cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) device.

Methods: This was a phased, before-after cohort evaluation at an urban tertiary hospital ED. We collected continuous video and chest compression data with the Physiocontrol CodeStat Suite 7.

Patient perceptions of 595 nm pulsed dye laser through glass compression in the treatment of thick port wine stains and superficial venous malformations.

In treating thickened port wine stains and superficial venous malformations with the 595 nm pulse dye laser, we have sometimes compressed the lesion with a glass slide to enable the laser beam to penetrate more deeply. In order to evaluate the patients' perception of this modality, 54 subjects were treated with glass compression using ice applications to cool the skin surface and without glass compression using a cryospray to cool the surface. The subjects were asked to rate the difference in 2 questionnaires after the first and second treatments as to effectiveness, pain of procedure, and overall preference.

Comparison of chest compression only and standard cardiopulmonary resuscitation for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Singapore.

Objective: Chest compression only cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CC-CPR) without ventilation has been proposed as an alternative to standard cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for bystanders. However, there has been controversy regarding the relative effectiveness of both of these techniques. We aim to compare the outcomes of cardiac arrest patients in the cardiac arrest and resuscitation epidemiology study who either received CC-CPR, standard CPR or no bystander CPR.

An observational study describing the geographic-time distribution of cardiac arrests in Singapore: what is the utility of geographic information systems for planning public access defibrillation? (PADS Phase I).

Introduction: Public access defibrillation (PAD) has shown potential to increase cardiac arrest survival rates.

Objectives: To describe the geographic epidemiology of prehospital cardiac arrest in Singapore using geographic information systems (GIS) technology and assess the potential for deployment of a PAD program.

Methods: We conducted an observational prospective study looking at the geographic location of pre-hospital cardiac arrests in Singapore.

Comparison of termination-of-resuscitation guidelines for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Singapore EMS.

Context: Termination of resuscitation (TOR) in the field for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) can reduce unnecessary transport to hospital and increase availability of resources for other patients.

Objectives: To compare the performance of three TOR guidelines for Basic Life Support-Defibrillator (BLS-D) providers when applied to cardiac arrest patients in the Cardiac Arrest and Resuscitation Epidemiology (CARE) study.

Design: This prospective cohort study involved all OHCA patients attended by BLS-D providers in a large urban center.

Survival outcomes with the introduction of intravenous epinephrine in the management of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Study Objective: The benefit of epinephrine in cardiac arrest is controversial and has not been conclusively shown in any human clinical study. We seek to assess the effect of introducing intravenous epinephrine on the survival outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients in an emergency medical services (EMS) system that previously did not use intravenous medications.

Methods: This observational, prospective, before-after clinical study constitutes phase II of the Cardiac Arrest and Resuscitation Epidemiology project.