IntroductionThis study was initiated to determine the psychometric properties of the Smart Phone Addiction Scale (SAS) by translating and validating this scale into the Malay language (SAS-M), which is the main language spoken in Malaysia. This study can distinguish smart phone and internet addiction among multi-ethnic Malaysian medical students. In addition, the reliability and validity of the SAS was also demonstrated.Materials and MethodsA total of 228 participants were selected between August 2014 and September 2014 to complete a set of questionnaires, including the SAS and the modified Kimberly Young Internet addiction test (IAT) in the Malay language.ResultsThere were 99 males and 129 females with ages ranging from 19 to 22 years old (21.7±1.1) included in this study. Descriptive and factor analyses, intra-class coefficients, t-tests and correlation analyses were conducted to verify the reliability and validity of the SAS. Bartlett’s test of sphericity was significant (p <0.01), and the Kaiser-Mayer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy for the SAS-M was 0.92, indicating meritoriously that the factor analysis was appropriate. The internal consistency and concurrent validity of the SAS-M were verified (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.94). All of the subscales of the SAS-M, except for positive anticipation, were significantly related to the Malay version of the IAT.ConclusionsThis study developed the first smart phone addiction scale among medical students. This scale was shown to be reliable and valid in the Malay language.

No abstract

BackgroundIn Malaysia, the number of reported cases of dengue fever demonstrates an increasing trend. Since dengue fever has no vaccine or antiviral treatment available, it has become a burden. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has become one of the good alternatives to treat the patients with dengue fever. There is limited study on the use of CAM among patients with dengue fever, particularly in hospital settings. This study aims to determine the prevalence, types, reasons, expenditure, and resource of information on CAM use among patients with dengue fever.MethodsThis is a descriptive, cross-sectional study of 306 patients with dengue fever, which was carried out at the dengue clinic of three hospitals. Data were analysed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 21.0 and logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with CAM use.ResultsThe prevalence of CAM use was 85.3 % among patients with dengue fever. The most popular CAMs were isotonic drinks (85.8 %), crab soup (46.7 %) and papaya leaf extract (22.2 %). The most common reason for CAM use was a good impression of CAM from other CAM users (33.3 %). The main resource of information on CAM use among patients with dengue fever was family (54.8 %). In multiple logistic regression analysis, dengue fever patients with a tertiary level are more likely to use CAM 5.8 (95 % confidence interval (CI 1.62–20.45) and 3.8 (95 % CI 1.12–12.93) times than secondary level and primary and below respectively.ConclusionCAM was commonly used by patients with dengue fever. The predictor of CAM use was a higher level of education.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12906-016-1017-0) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

No abstract