NST Online: Topnews
NST Online: Topnews |
| Posted: 22 Oct 2011 04:48 PM PDT 2011/10/22 Prof Dr Wan Azman Wan Ahmad says younger people now suffer from heart diseases Statistics gathered by the National Cardiovascular Disease Database(NCVD) Registry also showed that Malaysians suffer from heart attacks at a younger age (mean age of 58) when compared with people in Thailand (65 years), mainland China (63 years) and Western countries (66 years). Professor Dr Wan Azman Wan Ahmad, professor of medicine and cardiology at University Malaya Medical Centre, said a change in lifestyle routines and unhealthy dietary habits were contributing to the rise.
"High blood cholesterol levels, or dyslipidaemia, is prevalent among 28 per cent of Malaysians above the age of 40. Having high cholesterol puts them at a higher risk for cardiovascular diseases. The higher the blood cholesterol, the greater the risk of developing heart disease," he said in an interview. The prevalence of high blood cholesterol levels, Dr Wan Azman said, ranged from 35 per cent when patients had acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and up to 73 per cent when they had to go for treatment (percutaneous coronary intervention).
The NCVD Registry, he added, showed that more than 90 per cent of patients had at least one established cardiovascular risk factor, which included high cholesterol, diabetes and hypertension. He also said heart diseases had been the leading cause of death in both men and women in Malaysia for the past three decades.
"It is best to quit smoking, exercise regularly, eat healthily and maintain a healthy weight. And it's important to bring low density lipoprotein cholesterol, or LDL cholesterol, to target levels via proper treatment." Many patients, Dr Khoo said, had failed to reach their LDL cholesterol goals due to failure to take their medicine or non-aggressive treatment by their physicians. He said generally patients remained ignorant about the role of drugs in their cholesterol management. The findings of the first Centralised Pan-Asian survey on the Under-treatment of Hypercholesterolemia Study (Cepheus), said Dr Khoo, showed that a substantial proportion of patients failed to take their medication diligently. "About 54 per cent of the patients thought that missing a tablet once every two weeks or more would not have any effect on their cholesterol levels. "Physicians play a role in explaining how these cholesterol-lowering drugs actually work. This will help patients understand better the necessity of taking their medication regularly and on time," said Dr Khoo. The Cepheus study was the largest survey conducted on the current treatment status of high blood cholesterol levels (hypercholesterolemia)in Asia Pacific. It involved more than 7,000 patients from Malaysia, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, Indonesia, Philippines, Hong Kong and Vietnam. Only about 49 per cent of the patients participating in the Pan-Asian survey achieved their LDL-C goals. He said despite more effective treatment available, both physicians and patients disliked changing their current method of treatment. "A disturbing fact is that about 64 per cent of patients are still on the same lipid-lowering drug they were prescribed the first time" said Dr Khoo. He also said anyone who had been tested and diagnosed with high LDL-C levels should seek early medical treatment. "It is important for patients to understand their condition well and ensure that any treatment prescribed is always adhered to, regardless of whether their cholesterol levels are under control, unless otherwise advised by their doctor." Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
| PM: 1,600 Indians got citizenship Posted: 22 Oct 2011 04:33 PM PDT 2011/10/23 KUALA LUMPUR: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday urged Indians to put their nambikei trust) in the government to create change for Malaysians. The efforts include the collaboration between the Special Indian Task Force and the Home Ministry to address documentation issues with the issuance of 1,642 identification cards to Indians. In addition, 1,600 Indians have become citizens with the cooperation between MIC, the ministry, the National Registration Department and the police.
"Indians celebrate Deepavali, which is seen as a victory of good over bad, or light overcoming darkness. It is the same with the national transformation agenda, where we replace the dark with light," he said at a Deepavali concert organised by the Lebuh Ampang Business Association in Lebuh Ampang yesterday. Najib said the government had done much to offer assistance to Malaysians in need, including Indians, in the spirit of inclusiveness.
In the 2012 Budget, Najib announced that Tamil schools would receive RM100 million for maintenance. "The government has also allocated RM100 million to small Indian entrepreneurs through a micro-credit scheme under Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia to allow them to participate and do well in business.
Indian entrepreneurs were also given the opportunity to expand on their business through the Small Medium Entrepreneur scheme worth RM2 billion, he said. In acknowledging the historical value of Lebuh Ampang, a business area set up by Chettiars from India during the pre-war era, Najib said he would leave the Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Ministry to decide how to improve the area without omitting the traditional elements that signified its history. Present were Najib's wife, Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk Raja Nong Chik Raja Zainal Abidin, his deputy, Datuk M. Saravanan, and Lebuh Ampang Business Association president Abdul Rasull Abdul Razak. Najib, in his latest entry ("Sunday Breakfast Conversation") on his blog, www.1malaysia.com.my, said the budget was not merely a give-away budget, as some had suggested, but was aimed at cutting government borrowing. He said it was a budget that targeted help to those who needed it most, including families with low incomes, schoolchildren and sixth formers and university students, besides rural areas that should share the nation's economic strength. "Fundamentally, though, the budget is about Malaysia's future. I announced new opportunities for foreign investment, a big reform in our civil service and new partnerships with the private sector to develop our infrastructure." On Oct 9, Najib went out for breakfast with Rosmah and their daughter at Village Park, Uptown Damansara Utama. He said he did not do it to garner huge publicity, but because he wanted to eat at a popular breakfast eatery in the Klang Valley, and hear the views of people. "The people I spoke with during that Sunday breakfast said that they were pleased about my budget plans. But they also wanted to see me follow through on them." Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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