Dr Yia Hua Jern

25/03/2026

can kill.
And if you survive a heart attack, your heart is often permanently damaged and weakened.

Control your blood pressure, diabetes and cholesterol level. Stop smoking.
Follow your doctor’s advice (take your meds, control your diet, exercise) and go for regular scheduled checkups.
Prevention is the best, early treatment is good. Denial may be fatal.

01/12/2025

Many medical conditions do not have symptoms until complications occur. For example, and are often silent until heart attacks or strokes occur.
Some conditions are discovered only when the patient is critically ill. It may be too late then.
Therefore it is important to undergo regular medical checkups even when we feel well. And for those with chronic medical conditions, do not skip regular follow ups. What were suitable a couple of years ago may no longer be suitable for your current situation.

23/10/2025

The number of patients with has been rising for several weeks. A few schools have even been closed due to outbreaks.

Though most influenza patients recover on their own, some can become very sick. In this current epidemic a few have unfortunately succumbed.
The groups most vulnerable are those with weak immune systems (the elderly, children, patients on dialysis, those on immunosuppressants etc) and those with lung or heart disease. These are the patients who are more likely to suffer complications.

The virus spreads through the air and also via contaminated hands and surfaces.
To protect ourselves and others
1) Stay at home when unwell
2) Avoid crowds and places with poor ventilation
3) Wear a mask if avoiding crowds is not possible
4) Practise good hand hygiene.
5) Get vaccinated.

If any of these warning signs appear, seek medical attention immediately -
Breathlessness
Chest pain
Severe weakness / Dizziness
Unable to drink adequately / lack of urine
Drowsiness / Confusion

https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2025/10/1298548/virologist-urges-public-mask-influenza-cases-risew

KUALA LUMPUR: A virologist has urged the public to take preventive measures as influenza cases rise nationwide.

13/06/2025

fever is a viral infection which is endemic to Malaysia.
Those of us who grew up in Malaysia must have heard of this disease, and are aware the Dengue virus is spread by the Aedes mosquito.
Dengue is not a mild disease. It causes high fever, severe body aches & headaches, tiredness and loss of appetite.
In more severe cases, there is vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and generalised weakness.
In the most severe cases, blood pressure drops (shock), there is bleeding, and liver / kidney / heart can fail.
16 persons have died in Malaysia this year from Dengue.
is by eliminating the breeding grounds of Aedes mosquitoes and avoid getting bitten by the mosquitoes. Stay alert & aware of our surroundings.
Now there is a dengue which greatly reduces the chance of getting dengue and reduces the severity of we do get it. Ask your family doctor about it.

08/06/2025

A 50 year old man who actively and regularly exercises suddenly has a major heart attack. He practices a healthy diet and has lost excess weight over the last 2 years.
How could this have happen?

Exercise & diet is great - they reduce risk of heart attacks and strokes - but they don’t always get risk factors (blood sugar, blood pressure, serum cholesterol) to target levels. And they can’t compensate for bad habits like smoking.

85% of happen in patients with classical cardiovascular risk factors.

Not a

01/06/2024

When doctors provide professional advice, we do so based on our knowledge and experience.
Medical science is not perfect yet, and may never be. Neither are doctors.
So we can’t guarantee health and recovery.
advice is aimed for the maximum chance of success and minimum risk of major complications.
Not following doctors’ advice doesn’t mean you will definitely develop complications, but your chances are increased.
For example, refusing to stop smoking doesn’t mean you will get a heart attack, but your chances are increased. Not controlling blood pressure raises your risk of a stroke, but we don’t know if & when it will happen.

Take the advice or not, the decision is yours. The risks are yours too.

03/05/2024

When I see this and understand there are STILL unanswered issues regarding treatment of ONE medical condition, I get even more frustrated when scammers (TCM & otherwise) proclaim their snake oil cures all patients and all conditions.

30/03/2024

It you have a chronic medical condition, (like diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, among others) please monitor regularly to ensure they are under control. They can cause serious & often irreversible complications, which may even be fatal. For example heart attack, stroke, kidney failure.

Following doctors’ advice is no guarantee complications won’t happen but it gives you a better chance. Ignoring these medical conditions or taking ineffective alternatives like homeopathy, often results in pain & suffering. Regretting when complications occur is often too late.

With early intervention some complications are treatable & can be stabilised. But some patients don’t recover, while others can get worse.
Don’t take the risk. Manage your medical conditions early on when they are mild.

Or even better: prevent them by exercising, eating healthily, taking care of yourself, avoiding snake oil.
But sometimes illnesses happen despite our best efforts. In those situations manage them by following professional medical advice. Ignore quacks, even those recommended by well-meaning friends & relatives.

29/04/2023

infections have been increasing for the past 1 month.
Everyone is at risk: Children at daycare centres, students in school, the elderly in nursing homes, workers in aircon offices, healthcare staff, patrons of shops and restaurants, travellers.
Everyone should be careful and take precautions:
1) if unwell (fever, bodyaches, cough, sore throat, running nose, loose stools, poor appetite etc): test and stay home.
One single negative test doesn’t mean you are not infected. Test again the next day if you still feel unwell.
2) avoid crowds and places with poor ventilation
3) wear masks
4) maintain personal hygiene: wash your hands and face, bathe and change your clothes regularly
5) See a doctor if you aren’t feeling well. There are treatments to reduce the severity if we diagnosed COVID early.
6) Get vaccinated & boostered, if you haven’t.

Don’t take risks. COVID-19 is not the common cold, it is more dangerous than influenza. It can kill, it can leave you permanently disabled, it can make you sick for months. If you are lucky, you feel unwell for a few days. But what if you or your loved ones are unlucky?

In the first graph, confirmed cases don’t seem to be increasing much, but that’s because we (the public and KKM) are not testing much anymore; many are not reporting self tests either.
The second graph shows the positive rate of tests have gone up a lot! Anything more than 10% means we are not testing enough and are missing many infections.

16/11/2022

Dr Yia’s clinic will be closed on Friday 18.11.22 due to public holiday declared by the caretaker government.
We are also closed on 19.11.22 as Saturday is our usual rest day.
However our clinic is open on 20.11.22 Sunday for our patients with prior appointments.

01/05/2022

Tomorrow 02.05.22 is Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Therefore KPJ Maharani clinics, including Dr Yia’s clinic, will be closed.
Those who have appointments on 02.05.22 (Monday) will be contacted with new appointment dates.
We are sorry for the inconvenience. Our Emergency Department remains open as usual 24/7. We are ready to assist any urgent issues.
To all Muslims, Selamat Hari Raya & Maaf Zahir Batin.
*Update: Clinics closed from 02.05.22 to 04.05.22.