Browsing by Author "Duminda, K.D."

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    Hydroxychloroquine for post-exposure prophylaxis of COVID-19 among naval personnel in Sri Lanka: study protocol for a randomized, controlled trial
    (BioMed Central, 2020) Niriella, M.A.; Ediriweera, D.S.; de Silva, A.P.; Premaratna, R.; Balasooriya, P.; Duminda, K.D.; Malavige, N.G.; Wanigasuriya, K.; Lekamwasam, S.; Kularathne, S.A.; Siribaddana, S.; de Silva, H.J.; Jayasinghe, S.
    BACKGROUND: The first case of a coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) infection in a Sri Lankan was reported on March 11, 2020. The situation in Sri Lanka changed with the rapid increase of personnel contracting COVID-19 in a naval base camp that housed more than 4000 people. This provided a unique opportunity to study the effectiveness of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) for post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), while taking stringent, non-pharmacologic, public health measures to prevent spread. Our aim is to study the effectiveness and safety of HCQ for PEP among naval personnel with exposure to COVID-19-positive patients. METHODS/DESIGN: This is a placebo-controlled, randomized, clinical trial carried out in the naval base camp and quarantine centers of the Sri Lanka Navy, Ministry of Defense, Sri Lanka. Navy personnel who are exposed to a patient with confirmed COVID-19 infection but test negative for the virus on reverse real-time polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) at recruitment will be randomized, 200 to each arm, to receive HCQ or placebo and monitored for the development of symptoms or rRT-PCR positivity for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) virus for 14 days. DISCUSSION: This trial will provide high-quality evidence of the effectiveness and safety of HCQ as PEP for COVID-19. The study design is unique due to the circumstances of the outbreak in a confined area among otherwise healthy adults, at a relatively early stage of its spread. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Sri Lanka Clinical Trials Registry (SLCTR) SLCTR/2020/011. Registered on 04 May 2020. KEYWORDS: COVID-19; HCQ; Hydroxychloroquine; Post-exposure; Prophylaxis; Randomized controlled trial; SARS-CoV-2; Sri Lanka.
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    Spectrum of liver disease in a cohort of adult Sri Lankans admitted to a medical unit in a tertiary referral center- a ten month survey based on histology
    (Sri Lanka Medical Association, 2007) Satarasinghe, R.L.; de Silva, G.V.T.S.K.; Abeyrathne, V.; de Silva, A.P.; Duminda, K.D.; Riyaaz, A.A.A.
    OBJECTIVE: To study the pattern of chronic liver cell disease in adult Sri Lankans seeking medical advise in a tertiary referral centre. Data of such diseases remain largely unevaluated in Sri Lanka with scanty data from South East Asia for comparison. DESIGN, SETTING AND METHODS: Case notes of sixty consecutive patients having clinical and investigative abnormalities suggestive of liver disease over a six month period, subjected to consented liver biopsy (selection-biased sample) from 01.12.2004 to 01.10.2005 were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: The study group had an age range of 20 to 80 years with a male: female sex ratio of 53:7 (8:1). 41.7% were in the 51-60 years age group, males constituting 92%. Histology revealed cirrhosis, fatty liver, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and hepatocellular carcinoma in 35(59%), 12 (20%), 11(18%) and 2(3%) respectively. At presentation, 71% had evidence of hepatomegaly clinically or ultrasonic ally. Non-alcoholic group constituted 66.6% with male:female ratio of 35:5(7:1), while in alcoholics it was 24:1. NASH group had an age range of 25-55 years with a mean age of 3S+/-2 SD years. Male: female ratio is 10:8. BM1, AST, ALT, ALP showed mean values of 25.2 kg/nr, 86.7+7-15.2 IU/L, 93.21+/-16.3 IU/L and 251.0+/-18.1 IU/L respectively. Hepatitis B and C serology were negative in all. CONCLUSIONS: Amongst current chronic liver cell diseases, non-alcoholic group constitutes the greatest challenge for the future, which merit multi center in-depth studies. Hepatitis B and hepatitis C infections seem to be unimportant aetiological factors.