Publications by authors named "Samuel B Ho"

Introduction: Wilson's disease (WD) is a rare genetic condition characterized by impaired copper metabolism and can rarely present as acute liver failure with an associated high mortality rate. Treatment often requires liver transplantation, and few rescue treatments have been shown to be effective by randomized trials. This is a case report and scoping literature review on plasmapheresis in acute liver failure due to WD.

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Introduction: Although curricula teaching skills related to resilience are widely adopted, little is known about needs and attitudes regarding resilience training of undergraduate-medical-trainees in Middle-East-and-North-Africa-region. The purpose of this study is to investigate the value of an innovative curriculum developed through design-based-research to build resilience-skills among undergraduate-medical-trainees in the United-Arab-Emirates.

Methods: Convergent-mixed-methods-study-design was utilized.

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Background: Teaching medical students in the clinical setting is frequently perceived as a demanding commitment by attending physicians. There is a paucity of data measuring the duration and efficacy of teaching during clinical rounds.

Aim: The aim of this study was to assess both the quantity and quality of clinical teaching time dedicated to medical students on hospital ward rounds.

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Background: Despite the established need to prioritize professionalism-training in developing future physicians, very few medical programs in the Gulf Region embed in their curricula discrete contextualized courses aimed at developing the corresponding competencies, while fostering self-directed learning. This study aims at exploring the perception of undergraduate medical students in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic setting regarding their understanding of, and personal experience with professionalism through their engagement with the content of an innovative curriculum-based professionalism course, offered at a Medical School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Methods: The study used a qualitative phenomenological research design.

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Background An outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection occurred in a medical ward involving patients and hospital staff from May to June 2020. Aim The aim of this study is to determine risk factors related to the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 in six healthcare workers (HCWs) in a medical ward with initially unrecognized coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) positive patients. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted using a comprehensive questionnaire and personal interviews to determine the risk factors for COVID-19 infection in HCWs.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic presented significant challenges to both clinical practice and the delivery of medical education. Educators and learners implemented novel techniques, including distance learning and web-based rounds, while trying to stay updated with the surge of information regarding COVID-19 epidemiology, pathogenesis, and treatment. Hence, we designed and implemented a technologically enhanced course called "COVID-19 Rounds" to educate students about the rapidly evolving pandemic.

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Background: Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MISC) is a phenomenon that appeared in children infected with or exposed to severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2). The typical onset of MISC is 4-6 weeks following SARS-CoV-2 infection and is formulated to be due to an immune response.

Methods: Our study retrospectively analyzed data from a tertiary center in United Arab Emirates of MISC patients who were admitted to either general pediatric wards or pediatric intensive care (PICU) or who came exclusively for follow-up (post-PICU admission) from May 2020 to August 2021.

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Article Synopsis
  • The CONFIRM trial aimed to compare the effectiveness of annual fecal immunochemical tests (FIT) versus colonoscopies in reducing colorectal cancer mortality, enrolling over 50,000 veterans between May 2012 and December 2017.
  • The study analyzed participant demographics and examined reasons for those who chose not to participate, highlighting a mix of preferences for either colonoscopy or stool tests based on geographic and temporal factors.
  • Among the 50,126 participants recruited, there was a diverse representation, and the study also noted that 11,109 eligible individuals opted out of participation for various reasons, with insights gathered via case report forms.
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Background: The clinical placements of our medical students are almost equally distributed across private and public sectors. This study aims to assess medical students' perceptions of their Clinical learning Environment (CLE) across these two different healthcare settings, using the Undergraduate Clinical Education Environment Measure (UCEEM).

Methods: 76 undergraduate medical students (Year 5 and 6), were invited to participate.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly impacted health and care workers (HCW) globally, whom are considered at greater risk of infection and death. This study aims to document emerging evidence on disease prevalence, clinical outcomes, and vaccination rates of HCWs. Three databases were surveyed resulting on 108 final articles between July-December 2020 (period 1) and January-June 2021 (period 2).

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Background: Medicine is one of the most demanding academic fields with an extensive curriculum that entails plenty of potential stressors. There is sufficient evidence that medical students are more prone to psychological distress when compared to their peer group of other disciplines. Despite the established need to prioritize resilience skills building within the medical curriculum, very few medical programmes in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA) proactively empower the students to help themselves in sustaining their mental health.

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Introduction: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), consisting of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, is a debilitating condition with a rising incidence globally over recent years. Frondanol, a widely available nutraceutical extract of the edible sea cucumber has been reported to possess potent anti-inflammatory effects, likely mediated by the inhibition of 5-lipoxygenase and 12-lipoxygenase pathways, whilst showing no signs of toxicity. The potent anti-inflammatory effects of Frondanol in a mouse model of IBD provide encouragement for investigating its effects in human IBD patients.

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Live bacterial therapeutics (LBTs) could reverse diseases by engrafting in the gut and providing persistent beneficial functions in the host. However, attempts to functionally manipulate the gut microbiome of conventionally raised (CR) hosts have been unsuccessful because engineered microbial organisms (i.e.

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Background: Unregulated use of a variety of drugs and supplements by bodybuilders and athletes is common and can lead to severe adverse complications. Only a small proportion of acute pancreatitis cases are drug induced, and case reports are essential for identifying potential drug-related risks for pancreatitis. Here we present the first case report published of acute pancreatitis linked to recreational use of anabolic-androgenic steroids, subcutaneous growth hormone, and clenbuterol in a previously healthy male after excluding all other causes of pancreatitis.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study developed and validated a tool to assess patient perceptions of telehealth services during COVID-19, specifically in Dubai, UAE, where no contextualized instruments existed.
  • The research involved 100 randomly selected patients, with 94 participating, utilizing both qualitative and quantitative methods to gather data on patient satisfaction.
  • Key findings revealed an 80.67% average satisfaction rate, with themes emerging around patient experiences highlighting both positive factors and areas for improvement in telehealth consultations.
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The recent increases in cancer incidences have been linked to lifestyle changes that result in obesity and metabolic syndrome. It is now evident that these trends are associated with the profound changes that occur in the intestinal microbiome, producing altered microbial population signatures that interact, directly or indirectly, with potentially pro-carcinogenic molecular pathways of transcription, proliferation, and inflammation. The effects of the entire gut microbial population on overall health are complex, but individual bacteria are known to play important and definable roles.

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Background: COVID-19 has infected over 123 million people globally. The first confirmed case in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was reported on January 29, 2020. According to studies conducted in the early epicenters of the pandemic, COVID-19 has fared mildly in the pediatric population.

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Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to cause global havoc posing uncertainty to educational institutions worldwide. Understanding the clinical characteristics of COVID-19 in children is important because of the potential impact on clinical management and public health decisions.

Methods: A meta-analysis was conducted for pediatric COVID-19 studies using PubMed and Scopus.

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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has focused attention on the challenges and risks faced by frontline healthcare workers (HCW). This study aimed to describe the clinical outcomes and risk factors for SARS-CoV-2 infection in HCW.

Methods: Three databases were surveyed and 328 articles were identified.

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Background: Mucus protects the epithelium against invaders and toxic materials. Sticky and thick mucus is characteristic of CF.

Objective: The aim of this systematic review is to characterize the specific mucins secreted in the lung and intestinal tract of CF patients.

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Background And Aims: Alcoholic hepatitis (AH) is a severe manifestation of alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) with high mortality. Although gut bacteria and fungi modulate disease severity, little is known about the effects of the viral microbiome (virome) in patients with ALD.

Approach And Results: We extracted virus-like particles from 89 patients with AH who were enrolled in a multicenter observational study, 36 with alcohol use disorder (AUD), and 17 persons without AUD (controls).

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Chronic liver disease due to alcohol-use disorder contributes markedly to the global burden of disease and mortality. Alcoholic hepatitis is a severe and life-threatening form of alcohol-associated liver disease. The gut microbiota promotes ethanol-induced liver disease in mice, but little is known about the microbial factors that are responsible for this process.

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