Aims Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a preventable cause of ischaemic stroke but it is often undiagnosed and undertreated. The utility of smartphone electrocardiogram (ECG) for the detection of AF after ischaemic stroke is unknown. The aim of this study is to determine the diagnostic yield of 30-day smartphone ECG recording compared with 24-h Holter monitoring for detecting AF ≥30 s. Methods and results In this multicentre, open-label study, we randomly assigned 203 participants to undergo one additional 24-h Holter monitoring (control group, n = 98) vs. 30-day smartphone ECG monitoring (intervention group, n = 105) using KardiaMobile (AliveCor®, Mountain View, CA, USA). Major inclusion criteria included age ≥55 years old, without known AF, and ischaemic stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) within the preceding 12 months. Baseline characteristics were similar between the two groups. The index event was ischaemic stroke in 88.5% in the intervention group and 88.8% in the control group (P = 0.852). AF lasting ≥30 s was detected in 10 of 105 patients in the intervention group and 2 of 98 patients in the control group (9.5% vs. 2.0%; absolute difference 7.5%; P = 0.024). The number needed to screen to detect one AF was 13. After the 30-day smartphone monitoring, there was a significantly higher proportion of patients on oral anticoagulation therapy at 3 months compared with baseline in the intervention group (9.5% vs. 0%, P = 0.002). Conclusions Among patients ≥55 years of age with a recent cryptogenic stroke or TIA, 30-day smartphone ECG recording significantly improved the detection of AF when compared with the standard repeat 24-h Holter monitoring.

Background: Data on nationwide trends for stroke metrics are crucial to understand the extent of the disease burden to a country's health system. Yet, this information remains scarce in lowand middle-income countries. Objectives: This study investigated trends of stroke incidence and 28-day all-cause mortality after a stroke from 2008 to 2016 in Malaysia, through linkage across national data sources. Methods: Hospital admissions with a principal diagnosis of stroke or transient ischemic attack were included. Cases with first stroke were identified through linkage of hospital admission registers where age and sex-standardized trends of stroke incidence and its subtypes were calculated. By linking hospital registers to the National Death Register, the 28-day all-cause mortality rates after a stroke were estimated. Mann-Kendall's test was used for trend evaluation. Results: From 243,765 records, the trend of stroke incidence showed an increase of 4.9% in men and a drop of 3.8% among women. Incidences were higher in men, at 99.1 per 100,000 population in 2008 and 103.9 per 100,000 in 2016 than women (80.3 per 100,000 in 2008 and 77.2 per 100,000 in 2016). There was a substantial increase in stroke incidence among those below 65 years old, with the largest increase of 53.3% in men aged between 35-39 years and 50.4% in women of similar age group. The trend for 28-day all-cause mortality showed a decline for men at -13.1% and women, -10.6%. Women had higher mortality from stroke (22.0% in 2008 and 19.7% in 2016) than men (19.4% in 2008 to 17.2% in 2016). Conclusion:This first empirical study on stroke trends in Malaysia revealed a worrying increase in stroke incidence among the younger population. Despite a declining trend, mortality rates remained moderately high especially in women. Comprehensive strategies to strengthen the prevention and management of stroke care are warranted.

Background Sex differences in cardiovascular diseases generally disadvantage women, particularly within developing regions. Aims This study aims to examine sex-related differences in stroke metrics across Southeast Asia in 2015. Furthermore, relative changes between sexes are compared from 1990 to 2015. Methods Data were sourced from the Global Burden of Disease Study. Incidence and mortality from ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes were explored with the following statistics derived: (1) women-to-men incidence/mortality ratio and (2) relative percentage change in rate. Results Women had lower incidence and mortality from stroke compared to men. Notable findings include higher ischemic stroke incidence for women at 30–34 years in high-income countries (women-to-men ratio: 1.3, 95% CI: 0.1, 16.2 in Brunei and 1.3, 95% CI: 0.5, 3.2 in Singapore) and the largest difference between sexes for ischemic stroke mortality in Vietnam and Myanmar across most ages. Within the last 25 years, greater reductions for ischemic stroke metrics were observed among women compared to men. Nevertheless, women below 40 years in some countries showed an increase in ischemic stroke incidence between 0.5% and 11.4%, whereas in men, a decline from −4.2% to −44.2%. Indonesia reported the largest difference between sexes for ischemic stroke mortality; a reduction for women whereas an increase in men. For hemorrhagic stroke, findings were similar: higher incidence among young women in high-income countries and greater reductions for stroke metrics in women than men over the last 25 years. Conclusions Distinct sex-specific differences observed across Southeast Asia should be accounted in future stroke preventive guidelines.

Odd ratio for CBZ induced SJS/TEN and HLA-B*15:02 was 609.0 (95% CI: 23-15873; p=0.0002). Molecular modeling studies showed that acetazolamide, ethosuxiamide, lamotrigine, oxcarbazepine, phenobarbital, phenytoin, primidone and sodium-valproate may induce ADR in HLA-B*15:02 carriers alike CBZ. Conclusion. We confirmed HLA-B*15:02 as a predictor of SJS/TEN and recommend pre-screening. Computational prediction of DIHR is useful in personalized medicine.

Cancer-associated thromboembolism is not an uncommon complication in patients with malignancies. No study has reported the occurrence of thromboembolism prior to the diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Most reports are anectodal and data are scarce on this subject. In this report, we present a case of extensive cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT) that was detected a few weeks before the diagnosis of AML, in which case the patient responded well to chemotherapy and anticoagulation.

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We describe the clinical features of a Sarawakian man of Ibanese ethnicity with young-onset Parkinson’s disease (PD), who carried a very rare homozygous PRKN exon 7 duplication. Truncal dystonia was a prominent feature on presentation, in addition to classical parkinsonian motor features. This report adds to the very limited literature on monogenic causes of PD in Southeast Asia and specifically the indigenous group in the Borneo region.