The Western Pacific and South East Asia regions are the largest and most populous of the six World Health Organisation regions and include more than 40 countries. More than 75% of the world's estimated 350 million carriers are located here. The region has therefore provided many insights into the epidemiology, natural history, and control of hepatitis B infection and has been home to the first ...

The proliferation of preferential trading agreements (PTAs) in different regions of the world has been a significant development over the last two decades or so. South Asian countries are slowly moving towards a South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) in recent years. The desirability of SAFTA has been questioned by some observers recently. Do necessary conditions exist for a successful PTA in South...

Although the prognosis of ambulatory heart failure (HF) has improved dramatically there have been few advances in the management of acute HF (AHF). Despite regional differences in patient characteristics, background therapy, and event rates, AHF clinical trial enrollment has transitioned from North America and Western Europe to Eastern Europe, South America, and Asia-Pacific where regulatory bu...

[1] Fifteen chemistry-transport models are used to quantify, for the first time, the export of oxidised nitrogen (NOy) to and from four regions (Europe, North America, South Asia, and East Asia), and to estimate the uncertainty in the results. Between 12 and 24% of the NOx emitted is exported from each region annually. The strongest impact of each source region on a foreign region is: Europe on...

Seborrhoeic dermatitis (SD) is common in Asia. Its prevalence is estimated to be 1-5% in adults. However, larger population-based studies into the epidemiology of SD in Asia are lacking, and the aetiology of SD may differ widely from Western countries and in different parts of Asia. In addition, clinically significant differences between Asian and Caucasian skin have been reported. There is a n...

Suicide bombing is a very complex phenomenon. It has been a focus of research in recent times. However inherent biases of researchers muddle the picture: researchers from western countries focus the issue around political liberty and notion of democracy, while those from Islamic countries tend to take the afterlife-reward notion as an incentive for suicide bombing. However in order to understan...

CIUCs are known as a risk factor for bladder cancer especially when used in Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) patients. None the less, there has been an established association to bladder cancer in non-SCI patients having CIUCs compared to the general population [1]. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the bladder usually occur secondary to bilharzia in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and South America, w...

We explored possible links between vector activity and genetic diversity in introduced populations of Limnoperna fortunei by characterizing the genetic structure in native and introduced ranges in Asia and South America. We surveyed 24 populations: ten in Asia and 14 in South America using the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene, as well as eight polymorphic microsatellite m...

Global anthropogenic sulfur emissions increased until the late 1980s. Existing estimates for 1995 and 2000 show a moderate decline from 1990 to 1995 or relative stability throughout the decade. This paper combines previously published data and new econometric estimates to show a 22% decline over the decade to a level not seen since the mid-1960s. The decline is evident in North America, Western...

Scrub typhus is an infectious disease caused by Orienta tsutsugamoshi, widespread in South East Asia and Western Pacific region. The trombiculid mites, Leptotromidium diliense are known vectors of the disease. More often scrub typhus is characterized by focal or disseminated vasculitis and perivasculitis which may involve lungs, liver, heart, spleen and the central nervous system1. The severity...