This study investigated the sociodemographic profiles of patients attending public and private dental clinics and the types of treatment received. Patients (n=454) were interviewed using a structured questionnaire at two public and four private clinics in Sibu District, Sarawak. Generally, Chinese (74.7%), females (60.0%) and urban dwellers (83.7%) were more likely to visit the dentist. Both clinics had more females and more Chinese but private clinics had a lower percentage of female attendees (53.1% versus 67.0%) but a higher percentage of Chinese (85.0% versus 64.5%). Private attendees were younger (mean age of 31.0 years compared to 41.0 years) and from higher income households (median value of MR 2,000 versus MR 900) than public attendees. Treatments were mostly curative and a third of the visits were associated with painful conditions. Age (p=0.006), gender (p=0.003), ethnicity (p<0.001) and household income (p<0.001) were associated with the type of clinic visited. Choice of clinic was not related to having painful conditions (p=0.970). To ensure a more affordable and equitable distribution of oral healthcare, health planners need to identify disparities in the utilization of services and differences between public and private attendees.
A reported practice of live beetle ingestion in Southeast Asia was investigated among urban Chinese in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Results of four casefindings are: (1) this practice may not be confined to West Malaysia, (2) it occurs among Chinese and Malays, (3) the original use of the beetles as an aphrodisiac has been modified to include treatment of a wide variety of ailments and diseases and (4) the practice is relatively uncommon among urban Chinese. It was also found through experimental studies that ingestion of the live beetles (Palembus dermestoides) represented a potential public health hazard in that the beetles were able to serve as a host for the human-infecting tapeworm Hymenolepis diminuta (Sullivan et al., 1977).
A 44-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital with dengue fever. She developed a haematoma in the right arm at the site of a previous arterial line insertion. Due to coexisting thrombocytopenia, the bleeding was severe enough to cause compartment syndrome. An emergency fasciotomy was performed and her limb salvaged. The case illustrates one important potential complication of this common infectious disease.