Medicine

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This repository contains the published and unpublished research of the Faculty of Medicine by the staff members of the faculty

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Author: search.filters.author.Perera, J.Has files: Yes

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    Herbal treatments for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
    (Elsevier Ltd, 2024) Rathnayake, D.W.; Sooriyaarachchi, P.; Niriella, M.A.; Ediriweera, D.; Perera, J.
    BACKGROUND With the rising prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), there is a growing need to explore alternative therapeutic interventions. This study aimed to comprehensively evaluate the available evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for the use of herbal medications in NAFLD.METHODS A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus databases using appropriate keywords for studies published before the 6th of July 2023. RCTs involving humans, with confirmed NAFLD, the intervention group (IG) receiving herbal treatment, the control group (CG) given a placebo, participants aged ≥18 years, published in English, and a Jadad score ≥6 were included. Coffee and green tea as interventions were excluded. A meta-analysis of studies examining the effects of herbal supplementation on clinical and biochemical parameters in patients with NAFLD was performed. Analysis was done with the “meta” package in R programming language version 4.3.RESULTS In this analysis encompassing 48 articles, study durations varied from 6 weeks to 12 months, with sample sizes ranging between 36 and 226 patients. The study included a total of 3741 patients, (IG=2013, CG=1728). Predominant single herbal medicines identified were Phyllanthus niruri, Beta vulgaris, Allium sativum L., Silymarin (Silybum marianum), Portulaca oleracea L., Nigella sativa, and Cynara cardunculus L. Meanwhile, Cynara cardunculus and curcumin were the most common ingredients in polyherbal compounds. Meta-analysis outcomes revealed a higher reduction in alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), liver stiffness, waist circumference (WC), weight, body mass index (BMI), triglycerides (TG), and fasting blood glucose (FBG) in the IG compared to the CG. Notably, the reductions in ALT and weight were more pronounced in single herb compounds compared to polyherbal compounds. No differences were observed between the two groups regarding HbA1c levels.CONCLUSION These findings highlight the potential benefits of herbal interventions with regard to improvements in anthropometry, metabolic profiles, and liver enzymes in study participants.
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    Reliability of cold agglutinin test (CAT) for the detection of patients with Mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia in hospitalized patients.
    (Sri Lankan Society for Microbiology, 2016) Wijesooriya, W.R.P.L.I.; Suni-Chandra, N.P.; Perera, J.
    INTRODUCTION: M. pneumoniae is one of the causative agents of primary atypical pneumonia. This infection causes 20-40% of community acquired pneumonia and is associated with an array of extra-pulmonary manifestations. There is a need for a rapid diagnostic test in order to prescribe prompt and appropriate antibiotic therapy. Even though isotype specific antibody testing provides definitive diagnosis, paired sera testing does not help in real time diagnosis. Cold agglutinins detectable by the Cold Agglutination Test (CAT) appear and disappear early in infection compared to long lasting specific antibodies that are detectable by specific immunoassays. Although there are some reports suggesting CAT is unreliable, it is being often used to diagnose M. pneumoniae pneumonia in Sri Lankan clinical settings. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the use of CAT as a bed-side screening test for early diagnosis of M. pneumoniae pneumonia compared to ELISA for detection of specific antibodies in the Sri Lankan context. METHODS: Ninety seven clinically and radiologically confirmed patients with pneumonia were enrolled in the study. CAT was performed on acute stage sera. A CAT titer ≥1/32 was considered as positive. Isotype specific M. pneumoniae ELISA with paired sera was compared with CAT results. RESULTS: Mycoplasma pneumonia was confirmed in 15 of the 97 patients in the study using Mycoplasma specific IgM and 4 fold rise in titre. Of these, 3 were positive by the CAT. The sensitivity and specificity of the CAT compared to IgM/4fold rise in IgG detection were 20% (3/15) and 81.7% (67/82) respectively. Negative and positive predictive values of the CAT compared to ELISA were 84.8% (67/79) and 16.7% (3/18) respectively. CONCLUSION: CAT is not a reliable screening test compared to specific antibody detection by isotype ELISA for the detection of M. pneumoniae pneumonia due to its low sensitivity and positive predictive values.
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    Analysis of urine culture isolates from seven laboratories of Sri Lanka: National Laboratory Based Surveillance of Sri Lanka College of Microbiologists in 2014
    (Sri Lankan Society for Microbiology, 2016) Jayatilleke, S.K.; Patabendige, G.; Dassanayake, M.; Karunaratne, G.K.D.; Perera, J.; Perera, R.R.D.P; Wijesooriya, W.R.P.L.I.; Sunil-Chandra, N.P.; Kottahachchi, J.; Athukorala, D.; Dissanayake, T.
    INTRODUCTION: National Laboratory Based Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance in urinary isolates conducted by the Sri Lanka College of Microbiologists was started in 2011 in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Sri Lanka. METHODS: Pooled susceptibility data of urine culture isolates with a colony count of ≥105 CFU/ml from samples of non-catheterised patients received in 2014 were analysed using WHONET 5.6 software. RESULTS: The majority of the isolates (3975/4979:79.8%) were Gram negative enteric organisms, commonly known as coliforms. The other bacterial isolates identified were Enterococcus spp. (254), Pseudomonas spp. (194), coagulase negative staphylococci (59), Staphylococcus aureus (36), Acinetobacter spp. (35) and Group B β-haemolytic streptococci (18). The coliforms isolated from adults attending outpatient clinics (n=277) had 55.2% susceptibility to cephalexin and cephradine, 54% to amoxycillin/clavulanic acid, 65.1% to nitrofurantoin, 48.3% to norfloxacin, 63.4 % to cefotaxime, 86.4% to gentamicin, 97.4% to imipenem and 100% to meropenem. The isolates from adult hospitalized patients (n=1297) had 39.5% susceptibility to cefotaxime, 87.9% to meropenem, 62.6% to gentamicin and 31.9% to ciprofloxacin. Coliforms isolated from paediatric outpatients (n=182) had 58.5% susceptibility to cephalexin and cephradine, 58.5% to amoxycillin/clavulanic acid, 80% to nitrofurantoin, 85% to cefotaxime, 86.5% to gentamicin and 89.7% to meropenem. Those from paediatric hospitalized patients (n= 663) had 64.6% susceptibility to cefotaxime, 90.5% to meropenem and 80.2% to gentamicin. CONCLUSION: Coliforms, the commonest category of organisms isolated had high resistance rate in hospitalized patients whereas the resistance was less in outpatients, especially in the paediatric age group.
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    Role models and teachers: medical students perception of teaching-learning methods in clinical settings, a qualitative study from Sri Lanka
    (Biomed Central, 2016) Jayasuriya-Illesinghe, V.; Nazeer, I.; Athauda, L.; Perera, J.
    BACKGROUND: Medical education research in general, and those focusing on clinical settings in particular, have been a low priority in South Asia. This explorative study from 3 medical schools in Sri Lanka, a South Asian country, describes undergraduate medical students’ experiences during their final year clinical training with the aim of understanding the teaching-learning experiences. METHODS: Using qualitative methods we conducted an exploratory study. Twenty eight graduates from 3 medical schools participated in individual interviews. Interview recordings were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using qualitative content analysis method. RESULTS: Emergent themes revealed 2 types of teaching-learning experiences, role modeling, and purposive teaching. In role modelling, students were expected to observe teachers while they conduct their clinical work, however, this method failed to create positive learning experiences. The clinical teachers who predominantly used this method appeared to be ‘figurative’ role models and were not perceived as modelling professional behaviors. In contrast, purposeful teaching allowed dedicated time for teacher-student interactions and teachers who created these learning experiences were more likely to be seen as ‘true’ role models. Students’ responses and reciprocations to these interactions were influenced by their perception of teachers’ behaviors, attitudes, and the type of teaching-learning situations created for them. CONCLUSIONS: Making a distinction between role modeling and purposeful teaching is important for students in clinical training settings. Clinical teachers’ awareness of their own manifest professional characterizes, attitudes, and behaviors, could help create better teaching-learning experiences. Moreover, broader systemic reforms are needed to address the prevailing culture of teaching by humiliation and subordination.
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