Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal

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OBJECTIVES: Annual influenza vaccinations are recommended for asthma patients to prevent seasonal influenza and influenza-triggered asthma exacerbations. However, data on the beneficial effect of this vaccine on the frequency of asthma exacerbations are conflicting. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the influenza vaccine in terms of reducing the frequency of asthma-related exacerbations and upper respiratory tract infections among adult patients with asthma. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study was performed from January to December 2018 in Muscat Governorate, Oman...

This review aimed to assess the effectiveness of the eutectic mixture of local anaesthetics (EMLA) cream in the management of arteriovenous fistula (AVF) needle insertion pain in adult patients undergoing haemodialysis (HD) compared with other alternative interventions. The main search was conducted in November 2020 and updated in December 2021. In the search strategy, keywords and synonyms were used and multiple databases were searched with no date limitation to ensure a comprehensive search that would yield all studies relevant to the review and minimise location bias...

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the level of adherence to medication among patients with ischaemic heart disease (IHD) in Oman and assess the related factors. METHODS: This cross-sectional questionnaire-based study among patients with IHD attending the outpatient clinic at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman, was performed between January and December 2021. RESULTS: A total of 105 patients (mean age = 49.9 ± 11.1 years, 78...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to analyse the association of tumour budding (TB) and tumour-stroma ratio (TSR) with clinicopathological parameters that can be easily viewed on routine haematoxylin and eosin (H&E)-stained slides to provide an easy and cost-effective method for prognosticating oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). METHODS: This study was conducted at the ESIC Medical College and Hospital in Faridabad, India, from July 2022 to October 2022. In patients with histologically diagnosed OSCC, TB and TSR were evaluated via routine H&E-stained sections and correlated with clinicopathological parameters...

OBJECTIVES: Post-infarction ventricular septal defect (VSD) is one of the known complications after acute myocardial infarction. This study investigated the clinical results after surgical repair of VSD. METHODS: This retrospective study included all patients undergoing surgical repair of VSD from 1996 to 2020 in Oman. RESULTS: Out of a total of 75 patients, 62.5% were men, with a mean age of 59 years. The mean follow-up was 17.2 (7.5) years...

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This review provides an update on the morphology of the sinus venosus defect. It was earlier believed that a 'common wall' separated the right pulmonary veins from the superior caval vein. In the sinus venosus defects, this wall was absent. Current evidence shows that the superior rim of the oval fossa, rather than forming a second septum or representing a common wall, is an infolding between the walls of the caval veins and the right pulmonary veins. The sinus venosus defect is caused by the anomalous connection of one or more pulmonary veins to a systemic vein...

With the focus on an idiographic approach whereby the observations incorporated the various dimensions of individual functioning 'top-down' to 'bottom-up', this case report describes the successful management of a 14-year-old girl with Kearns-Sayre syndrome and Dyggve-Melchior-Clausen disease requiring a transvenous permanent pacemaker implantation for complete heart block. The patient presented to a tertiary care centre in Muscat, Oman, in 2023 seeking consultation. The current idiographic approach appears to have a heuristic value for 2 interrelated reasons...

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify the incidence of sudden cardiac death (SCD0 in adult patients under the age of 49 years, including adolescents with an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest that presented to the emergency department of a tertiary care hospital. METHODS: This retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at the Royal Hospital, Muscat, Oman, between January 2015 and December 2019. All patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest were enrolled...

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Sinus venosus atrial septal defects present a wide variety of anatomical features and are frequently associated with partial anomalous pulmonary venous drainage of one or more right pulmonary veins. Surgical correction used to be the standard treatment. In recent times, transcatheter correction of superior sinus venosus atrial septal defects has come into vogue. The transcatheter closure of these defects with covered stents at a tertiary care centre in Oman between 2018 and 2023 is reported.

Angiomyolipoma is a common benign solid tumour that accounts for up to 3% of all renal tumours; most of the cases are sporadic. However, it can be part of other diseases. Angiomyolipomas are usually found incidentally through unrelated clinically indicated images but also, they can be diagnosed after complications have occurred. We report the case of retroperitoneal haemorrhage following the rupture of renal angiomyolipoma post-fibrinolysis, we are highlighting such a rare condition, the management options and the follow-up plan...

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OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to identify angiographic features that would predict myocardial viability after coronary intervention for ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). METHODS: This retrospective study included patients who attended Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman, between January and December 2019 with a STEMI. RESULTS: A total of 72 patients (61 male; mean age = 54.9 ± 12.7 years) were included in the study; 11 patients had evidence of non-viability on echocardiography...

OBJECTIVES: The size of the pulmonary valve annulus often determines the feasibility of pulmonary valve preservation at the time of intracardiac repair of Tetralogy of Fallot. Currently, there is limited available data regarding the growth pattern and the determining factors that contribute towards pulmonary valve annulus growth. METHODS: This retrospective study included patients who underwent surgical repair of Tetralogy of Fallot with or without prior palliation...

Temporary epicardial cardiac pacing in patients with bradyarrhythmias may be used as a bridge to implantation of a permanent pacemaker. The temporary epicardial lead placement may sometimes necessitate a sternotomy that may pose a challenge in patients who have had multiple earlier sternotomies. The difficulty in accessing the epicardium for urgent implantation of temporary epicardial pacing leads depends on the extent of adhesions in such patients. We report an 8-year-8-month-old girl with a pacemaker with an extruded pulse generator and difficult myocardial access due to 5 prior transsternal procedures...

Appearance of unexpected masses in the chambers of the heart during cardiac surgery can be intriguing. We report the case of a mass in the left ventricle that appeared at the time of separation from cardiopulmonary bypass in a child after a complex intracardiac repair. The child presented for surgery to a tertiary care hospital in Muscat, Oman, in 2022. Prior to the surgical repair the mass was not appreciated by echocardiography. An intraventricular baffle was used to divert left ventricular blood flow towards the outflow tract, after which an intraventricular "mass" was observed...