Asma Binti Ahmad Shariff

Socio-demographic predictors and average annual rates of caesarean section in Bangladesh between 2004 and 2014

Background Globally the rates of caesarean section (CS) have steadily increased in recent decades. This rise is not fully accounted for by increases in clinical factors which indicate the need for CS. We investigated the socio-demographic predictors of CS and the average annual rates of CS in Bangladesh between 2004 and 2014. Methods Data were derived from four waves of nationally representative Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) conducted between 2004 and 2014. Rate of change analysis was used to calculate the average annual rate of increase in CS from 2004 to 2014, by socio-demographic categories. Multi-level logistic regression was used to identify the socio-demographic predictors of CS in a cross-sectional analysis of the 2014 BDHS data. Result CS rates increased from 3.5% in 2004 to 23% in 2014. The average annual rate of increase in CS was higher among women of advanced maternal age (≥35 years), urban areas, and relatively high socio-economic status; with higher education, and who regularly accessed antenatal services. The multi-level logistic regression model indicated that lower (≤19) and advanced maternal age (≥35), urban location, relatively high socio-economic status, higher education, birth of few children (≤2), antenatal healthcare visits, overweight or obese were the key factors associated with increased utilization of CS. Underweight was a protective factor for CS. Conclusion The use of CS has increased considerably in Bangladesh over the survey years. This rising trend and the risk of having CS vary significantly across regions and socio-economic status. Very high use of CS among women of relatively high socio-economic status and substantial urban-rural difference call for public awareness and practice guideline enforcement aimed at optimizing the use of CS.

Growth curves for school children from Kuching, Sarawak: a methodological development

In this article, the authors propose reference curves for height and weight for school children in the Kuching area, Sarawak. The school children were from primary to secondary schools (aged 6.5 to 17 years old) and comprised both genders. Anthropometric measurements and demographic information for 3081 school-aged children were collected (1440 boys and 1641 girls). Fitted line plots and percentiles for height and weight (3rd, 10th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th, and 97th percentiles) were obtained. The height of school boys and school girls were almost similar at the start of their school-going age. For school girls, height and weight values stabilized when they reached 16 or 17 years old but kept increasing for school boys. School boys were taller than school girls as they entered adolescence. Height differences between school boys and school girls became significantly wider as they grew older. Chinese school children were taller and heavier than those of other ethnic groups.

Malaysian growth centiles for children under six years old

Abstract Background: Growth references are useful for the screening, assessment and monitoring of individual children as well as for evaluating various growth promoting interventions that could possibly affect a child in early life. Aim: To determine the growth centiles of Malaysian children and to establish contemporary cross-sectional growth reference charts for height and weight from birth to 6 years of age based on a representative sample of children from Malaysia. Methods: Gender- and age-specific centile curves for height and weight were derived using the Cole’s LMS method. Data for this study were retrieved from Malaysian government health clinics using a two-stage stratified random sampling technique. Assessment of nutritional status was done with the SD scores (Z-scores) of WHO 2006 standards. Results: Boys were found to be taller and heavier than girls in this study. The median length of Malaysian children was higher than the WHO 2006 standards and CDC 2000 reference. The overall prevalence of stunting and underweight were 8.3% and 9.3%, respectively. Conclusions: This study presents the first large-scale initiative for local reference charts. The growth reference would enable the growth assessment of a Malaysian child compared to the average growth of children in the country. It is suggested that the use of WHO 2006 Child Growth Standards should be complemented with local reference charts for a more wholesome growth assessment.

Investigation on Simulation of Train Loading on Prestressed Concrete Sleepers

Railway concrete sleepers have been developed and utilized in railway industry for over 50 years. Cyclic loading because of vibration on sleepers due to the train loading and the velocity of train itself and also a small percentage of bad wheels, can eventually lead to a crack network and failure of component. The objective of this study is to investigate the load carrying capacity of the selected prestressed concrete sleepers – prepared for Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad, KTMB, under static and dynamic loading conditions. In order to determine the behavior of the railway concrete sleepers under repeated low-velocity impact load and to study the fatigue performance of railway concrete sleepers, the research efforts are required to perform comprehensive studies on the behaviors and dynamic response of these prestressed concrete sleepers. The fatigue performance of railway sleepers was investigated under constant amplitude load and compared with the actual train loading on site. For the laboratory work, the concrete sleepers were subjected to repeated low-velocity sinusoidal loads typical to loading from commuter trains only and attaining the fatigue toughness, energy absorption, and crack formations of the concrete sleepers.

Three-Dimensional (3D) Anthropometry Study of the Malaysian Population

Three-dimensional (3D) anthropometry has become an emerging field with the advancement of 3D body scanning technology over the recent years. Conventional method of anthropometry data measurement is time consuming and error-prone. The 3D whole-body surface scanner, which was initially developed for the clothing industry, contributes to healthcare application by providing accurate anthropometric measurements and data visualization in body size, shape and skin surface area. The body scanner utilized 3D photogrammetry technology to generate high quality digital anthropometric information about shapes and sizes of an individual. The aim of the study is to investigate body size and shape of Malaysian females. A cross-sectional study was conducted using random sampling technique. Recruitment of subjects were randomized and based on age and ethnicity. A preliminary study of 160 female subjects was carried out. In addition to the scanning procedures using the body scanner, selected manual anthropometric measurements for height, weight and skinfold thickness were obtained using manual methods and demographic data such as age and ethnic groups were recorded. All manual measurement followed the requirements and procedures stated in the respective ISO documents, involving body posture, landmark and the instrument used. Descriptive statistical analysis for body dimensions and calculations were carried out. The 3D scanners undoubtedly produced highly accurate, consistent and repeatable measurements. However, the scan data can be slightly different from traditional anthropometric data especially for circumference measurements such as chest, waist and hip. Therefore, scanned anthropometric data and manual measurement data are more useful together. We envisage that this study would be beneficial for healthcare providers for growth monitoring and early diagnosis of health problems related to obesity especially for the Malaysian population. Although the study focuses on the healthcare sector, datasets can also be utilized by the industry in the design and production of consumer products related on the human body.

My_Healthy_Shape Guide: An interactive Educational-Health Tool for Malaysian Based on Body Shape

This study is concerned with developing an interactive educational-health tool, My_Healthy_Shape Guide for Malaysian based on gender, height, weight, body shape and age. In addition to manual anthropometric measurements of height and weight, a three dimensional (3-D) body scanner is used to collect digitized body shape and the data obtained are stored in a specialized human shape database. The scanner captures high quality digital information of the body shape of an individual in just a few minutes. The body shape data as well as the manual anthropometric measurements will be use to study the individual’s health status in relation to his/her dietary behaviors and physical activities. This paper presents the conceptual framework of our study, consisting of (1) establishing a web-based 3D human shape database for Malaysian using MySQL (2) formulating mathematical models to generate feasible solutions for predicting healthy diet for an individual based on his/her body shape and (3) developing an interactive educational-health tool, My_Healthy_Shape Guide for Malaysian that would provide healthy daily diet recommendations that promotes good health and lifestyle for an individual.

Development of a Foot Sizing System for Malaysian Women

In this study we used the INFOOT USB 3D scanning system (IWare Laboratory Co., Ltd, Japan) to collect foot size data measurement. Based on this study, we used five measurement definitions based on their anatomical landmarks: foot length, ball girth, instep length, foot breadth, and fibulare instep length. The reliability and accuracy of the observers were evaluated using intraand interobserver errors measurement. Accuracy of the measurement is based on Technical Error Measurement (TEM). A TEM value of less than 2 mm for the determined landmarks is considered accurate and consistent. Result from the experiment showed that the reliability is between 93.3% and 98.3%, respectively thus, foot-landmarking was consistent and reliable. We hope to develop a new shoe sizing system based on the Malaysian women’s foot sizes and shapes, and to replace the current sizing system used in the country. This research will eventually advocate the interest and needs of shoe manufacturers to produce women footwear based on the new sizing system and ensure customer satisfaction for shoe size and shoe fitting.

Modelling Significant Wave Height Data of North Sea: Rayleigh vs Weibull Distribution

Significant wave height is generally defined as the mean height of the highest one third of the waves in the sample and is widely regarded as an approximate equivalent to the visually observed height. Some studies assumed that wave heights can be described in terms of Log-normal, Generalized Gamma and Beta distribution, while others proposed Rayleigh distributions. In this paper, we wish to compare Rayleigh distribution with those obtained using two-parameter Weibull distributions. Both Rayleigh and Weibull distributions are used to fit the empirical data obtained from the worlds oceans Global Wave Statistics. The Rayleigh distribution parameter is estimated using Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) while, for the two-parameter Weibull distribution, parameter values are obtained using Maximum Likelihood Estimation and Quantile Estimation (QE). A Chi-square goodness of fit test is then used to see how the fitted distributions compare with the empirical distribution. It is found that Weibull distributions are better fits than the Rayleigh distribution, and that the MLE estimation is the best in this respect.

A Review on Fractals and Fracture, Part I: Calculating Fractal Dimensions by CAD Model

The objective of this paper is to consider the use of fractal geometry as a tool for the study of non-smooth and discontinuous objects for which Euclidean coordinate is not able to fully describe their shapes. We categorized the methods for computing fractal dimension with a discussion into that. We guide readers up to the point they can dig into the literature, but with more advanced methods that researchers are developing. Considerations show that is necessary to understand the numerous theoretical and experimental results concerning searching of the conformality before evaluating the fractal dimension to our own objects. We suggested examining a cloud of points of growth of fracture surface at laboratory using CATIA - Digitized Shape Editor software in order to reconstruct the surface (CAD model). Then, the author carried out measurement/calculation of more accurate fractal dimension which are introduced by [1] in the other paper as Part II.