Gastric malignancies and associated pre-malignant lesions in a teaching hospital in South West Nigeria

The histologic types of gastric malignancies and other associated histopathological indices in gastric biopsies received at the Department of Morbid Anatomy and Forensic Medicine, Obafemi AwolowoUniversity Teaching Hospitals Complex, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria were determined. The study was retrospective and it involved collecting all slides on all available cases of gastric biopsies over a periodof ten years and reviewing them to screen for gastric malignancies and associated pathologies of the stomach. Out of 107 cases of gastric malignancies reviewed, 102 (95.3%) were carcinomas, 3 (2.8%)were sarcomas and 2 (1.9%) cases were lymphomas. Of 102 cases of carcinomas, 36 (35.3%) were tubular adenocarcinomas, 14 (13.7%) cases were papillary adenocarcinomas, 22 (21.6%) cases weremucinous adenocarcinomas, 9 (8.8%) cases were signet carcinomas, and 21 (20.6%) were poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas. One hundred and two (95.33%) cases of gastric malignancies were inthe pyloric antrum, 3 (2.80%) were in the gastric cardia, and 1 case each (0.93%) in the corpus and fundus. Sixty-four (60%) of cases showed moderate to numerous Helicobacter pylori. Mild chronicgastritis was seen in 11 (10%) cases, moderate chronic gastritis was seen in 75 (70%) of cases, and severe chronic gastritis was seen in 16 (15%) cases. Five (5%) cases were indeterminate. Mild glandularatrophy was seen in 5 (5%) cases, 32 cases (30%) showed moderate glandular atrophy, 1 (1%) case of severe glandular atrophy was seen. Intestinal metaplasia was seen in 17 cases (16%). Peptic ulcerdisease was not seen in any of the cases

Effect of feeding graded levels of biscuit waste based diet on non-carcass components of Yankasa rams

Five experimental diets B0 (0%, control), B1 (25%), B2 (50%), B3 (75%) and B4 (100%) were formulated with combined biscuit waste and Leucaena leucocephala meals and fed to 20 Yankasa rams for 91 days to evaluate their effects on non-carcass components of the rams. The rams were slaughtered at the expiration of the experiment and non-carcass components were measured which included external and internal offals, blood, bones and diaphragm. The results revealed that there were significant (P < 0.05) differences in the non-carcass components of all the rams fed different diets. It was further observed that diets B1 (25%) and B2 (50%) biscuit waste inclusion had the best (P < 0.05) effects on non-carcass components of the rams followed by diets B3 (75%) and B4 (100%) biscuit waste inclusion in that order compared with control diet B0 (0%) biscuit waste inclusion. It was therefore recommended that diets B1 and B2 be utilized for optimum results if non-carcass variables are desired in  Yankasa rams

Effect of different rates and methods of benomyl and mancozeb application on delay in senescence and grain yield of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L) Walp) under different cropping season

Field assessment of different rates and methods of three fungicide applications on delay in senescence (DS) and grain yield of cowpea during the early and late cropping season of 1999 respectively was conducted. The benomyl treatment applied via the combination of seed and foliar methods at the highest rate of 0.75 + 0.75kg a.i/ha gave the highest percentage delay in senescence (100%) as well as highest grain yield of (2.1 t/ha) which were significantly different (

Influences on smoking behaviour of adolescents and young adults in a Nigerian university

The study investigated whether parenting style, parental level of education and smoking peers have any influence on the smoking behaviour of adolescents and young adults. The participants were students of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Purposive sampling technique was adopted in the sample selection. Three hundred students who consented participated in the study. A self constructed questionnaire was used to collect the data. The validity of the instrument was determined. The reliability of the instrument was also determined using test retest method. Correlation co-efficient of 0.75 was obtained. This study revealed that there is a significant influence of parenting style on the smoking behaviour of students (x2 = 36.03, df = 6, p ≤ 0.05). It also showed that there is a significant relationship between parents’ educational attainment and students’ smoking behaviour (x2 = 60.40, df = 6, p ≤ 0.05). Finally, it was revealed that there was a significant influence of peers on smoking behaviour (x2 = 19.97, df = 2, p ≤ 0.05). KEY WORDS: Smoking, Behaviour, Parent, Adolescent, Universit

Antibiotic resistance profile of bacterial isolates from food sold on a University campus in south western Nigeria

The antibiotic resistance profile of bacterial isolates from cooked food samples sold in different eateries on the campus of the University of Ado-Ekiti was investigated. A total of seventy-eight bacterial isolates belonging to six genera were encountered in the following proportion: Escherichia coli (29.5%),Klebsiella spp. (25.6%), Proteus spp. (18.0%), Salmonella spp. (12.8%), Pseudomonas spp. (11.5%) and Enterobacter spp. (2.5%). The antibiotic resistance pattern of the isolates revealed that resistance to sixout of the eight antibiotic tested was above 50%. Nalidixic acid was the only antibiotic with a resistance rate below this range. Resistance to amoxicillin was the highest (89.1%), followed by augmentin (76.9%) and gentamycin (71.8%). The results suggest the need for intensive surveillance of isolates throughout food production continuum to prevent food-borne infections and also to detect emerging antimicrobial resistance phenotypes

Quality of primary care physicians’ communication of diabetes self-management during medical encounters with persons with diabetes mellitus in a resource-poor country

Background: Most of the Nigerian studies on the determinants of diabetes self-management have focused on patient-related factors. There is no previous local study that examined the quality of diabetes self- management education provided by primary care physicians to people with diabetes mellitus.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 105 primary care physicians during a workshop. The quality of diabetes self-management education provided by the physicians was assessed using a self-designed scale of 39 Likert questions derived from American  Association of Diabetes Educators seven domains of diabetes self-management. Cronbach’s reliability coefficient of each domain/subscale was ≥ 0.7. The data was analysed using the independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA.Results: Over half of the physicians provided ‘inadequate quality’ diabetes self-management education in all the domains. Physicians had the highest mean score in the ‘taking medication’ domain (4.35 ± 0.59). The mean scores in the ‘problemsolving domain’ (3.63 ± 0.74) and the ‘being active domain’ (3.57 ± 0.71) were low. The quality of diabetes self-managementeducation provided by the physicians was not associated with any of the physician characteristics.Conclusion: The quality of physicians’ communication of diabetes self-management was suboptimal in this study. The majority of the adequately communicated diabetes self-management behaviours were risk factors reduction related and disease-centred. Thus, training of primary care physicians on diabetes self-management education is recommended because of the key role these physicians play in diabetes management in resource-poor countries.Keywords: diabetes self-management, patient–physician communication, primary care physicians, resource-poor countries, Nigeri

Prevalence and correlates of substance use among persons with mental disorders in a Nigerian Psychiatric Hospital

Few studies in Nigeria have investigated the relationship between psychiatric disorders and substance use. Yet, evidence worldwide suggests that substance related problems might be a major burden among persons with psychiatric disorders. One hundred and five persons with mental illness (105) were evaluated for substance use with the Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement screening test (ASSIST). A questionnaire was used to elicit Sociodemographic variables. A high proportion had initiated tobacco (50.9%) and cannabis (34.5%) during adolescent. Factors associated with hazardous drug consumption were male sex (p<0.05), younger age (p<0.05)  unemployment (p<0.01) being unmarried (p<0.05) and lower educational level (p<0.05). Routine screening and brief interventions for substance use in psychiatric facilities should be critical components of mental health service delivery

Effects of Nigeria Ekete light crude oil on plasma electrolytes, packed cell volume (PCV) and lipids profile in wistar (Rattus norvegicus) rats

Hydrocarbon is known to alter blood parameters; some of these blood parameters may affect the activities of certain systems like cardiovascular system. Hydrocarbon gets into man and animal either through ingestion of contaminated food and water, bio-concentration through food chain, occupational exposure or by using hydrocarbon products. Effects of crude oil on plasma electrolytes, packed cell volume (PCV) and plasma lipid profile were examined in male Rattus norvegicus in this study. Crude oil was administered orally at dosages of 5 ml/kg (group I), 10 ml/kg (group II) and 20 ml/kg (group III) for two weeks while the control group received drinking water only. The result shows a reduction in packed cell volume in all treated groups compared to control (37.14±0.85, P < 0.05) and a significant (P < 0.05) increase in plasma sodium level in treated groups compared to control (22.486±2.983 mg/L) while there was no significant alteration in plasma lipids profile of the treated groups relative to the control. Oral administration of crude oil significantly altered the plasma levels of electrolytes and PCV.Keywords: Electrolytes, crude oil, plasma lipids profile, packed cell volume

Diagnostic value of procalcitonin in neonatal sepsis

Introduction: Neonatal sepsis is a major cause of mortality in developing countries. Accurate and quick diagnosis are difficult because clinical presentation are non-specific, bacterial cultures are time-consuming and other laboratory tests lack sensitivity and specificity. Serum procalcitonin (PCT) has been proposed as an early marker of infections in neonates.Objectives: This study investigated the value of PCT in the diagnosis of Neonatal Sepsis.Methods: Neonates undergoing sepsis evaluation at the Special Baby Care Unit, Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, Nigeria between January and April 2013 were included. Blood samples were obtained for white cell count, blood cultures, serum CRP and PCT analysis. Neonates were categorised into Proven Sepsis, Suspected Sepsis and Clinical Sepsis groups on the basis of laboratory findings and risk factors. A control group with no clinical and biological data of infection was also included. Predictive values and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of PCT were evaluated.Result: Of the 85 neonates, 19 (22.4%) had positive blood culture. PCT level was significantly higher in neonates in all sepsis groups in comparison with those in the control group (P< 0.05). At a cut-off of 0.5 ng/ml, the negative predictive value (NPV) of PCT was 80% and the positive predictive value (PPV) 39%. There were no significant statistical difference between the AUC values of PCT in Early onset and Late onset sepsis, as well between AUC in Preterm and term cases. A higher percentage of neonates who died (96%) had elevated PCT levels compared to those who survived (46%).Conclusion: These findings support the usefulness of the PCT in diagnosis of Neonatal sepsis.Keywords: Neonatal Sepsis, Diagnosis, Procalcitonin, Receiver Operating Characteristic Curv