Pattern of pericardial diseases in HIV positive patients at University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria

Rationale. Pericarditis has been reported as the most common cardiac complication of HIV disease, followed by pericardial effusion. Methods. A retrospective review was conducted of all 68 patients treated for pericardial diseases between August 2003 and July 2008 at University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. HIV-positive patients (N=42) were compared with those who were HIV negative (N=26). Results. More male than female patients presented with pericardial disease, and the HIV-positive patients were younger than those who were HIV negative. Pericardial effusion was the commonest mode of presentation, accounting for 20 HIV-positive patients (47.7%) and 13 HIV-negative patients (50%). Pericardiostomy was the commonest surgical intervention performed in HIV-positive patients (N=15), while the majority of HIV-negative patients had pericardiocentesis. Conclusion. Pericardial effusion was the commonest cardiac presentation in HIV-positive patients in our setting. We recommend that patients with pericardial effusion be investigated for HIV infection

Congenital diaphragmatic eventration in a nigerian child

No Abstract. Nigerian Journal of Medicine Vol. 14(3) 2005: 317-31

Yellow nail syndrome and bronchiectasis

The Yellow Nail Syndrome includes slow growing, opaque yellow nails with exaggerated lateral curvature, associated with lymphoedema and chronic respiratory disorders. The nail changes may precede the lymphoedema by a number of years. Bronchiectasis may be the only chronic respiratory disorder; others include chronic bronchitis, pleural effusions and chronic sinusitis. Two illustrative cases show the combinations of some of these clinical features in two black Africans. Key words: Yellow nail, bronchiectasis Nig. J. of Surgical Research Vol.4(3-4) 2002: 115-11

Coarctation of the Aorta: Experience at the University College Hospital, Ibadan

Between May 1977 and June 1998, 697 patients with congenital heart diseases were admitted to the cardiothoracic surgical unit (CTSU) at the University College Hospital, Ibadan. Eighteen (2.6 per cent) of the patients with 19 coarctations of the aorta (CoA) were retrospectively studied. The age range of all the patients with CoA was 18 days to 30 years (mean 7.2±8.2 years), but for the 15 patients who underwent surgery, it was one month to 30 years (mean 8.6±8.3 years). Three patients died preoperatively of congenital cardiac anomalies associated with infantile CoA. There were 16 thoracic and two abdominal CoA, while one patient had recurrent CoA. Resection and end-to-end anastomosis was performed in four patients, dacron tube interposition graft in three, and dacron patch graft in four patients. Other procedures were employed in five patients. Operative mortality was 25 per cent. Operative deaths occurred in two infants with isolated CoA, a neonate who had associated pulmonary hypertension and a 17-year old who had surgery for re-coarctation. Complications of surgery included post-operative haemorrhage in two patients, intra-operative hemorrhage in one and hoarseness of the voice in four patients. Paradoxical hypertension occurred in three patients, graft occlusion and wound dehiscence occurred together in one patient and two patients had chylothorax. It is concluded that CoA is a surgically correctable congenital anomaly which is probably less frequently diagnosed locally.Nigerian Journal of Paediatrics 2002;29:27-33

Study on mycotoxin contamination in South African food spices

A validated QuEChERS-based method was used to investigate the occurrence of mycotoxins in 70 South African food spices [coarse chilli (n=14), ground chilli (n=4), paprika (n=7), ginger (n=5), chicken spices (n=8), onion spices (n=8), beef spices (n=5), Mexican chilli (n=9), vegetable spice (n=1), fruit chutney spices (n=4), and cheese spices (n=5)]. Mycotoxins were quantified using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Results revealed that 40% of the samples were contaminated with aflatoxin B-1, aflatoxin G(1), ochratoxin A, sterigmatocystin, 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol, fumonisin B-1, fumonisin B-2 and/or roquefortine C. The contamination levels for aflatoxin B-1 ranged from 3-19 mu g/kg; aflatoxin G(1), 10-11 mu g/kg; ochratoxin A, 4-20 mu g/kg; fumonisin B-1 104-591 mu g/kg; fumonisin B-2, 64-5,897 mu g/kg; sterigmatocystin, 11-18 mu g/kg; 3-acetyldeoxynivalenol, 42-46 mu g/kg; and roquefortine C, 17-57 mu g/kg. Mycotoxins co-occurred in 11% of the spice samples. Amongst the samples analysed in this study, paprika had the highest positives (100%) for the determined mycotoxins. Previous reports on mycotoxin contamination in spices, focused on the incidence of aflatoxins and ochratoxin A, but not on the multi-mycotoxin profile in South African spices. This study thus provides a comprehensive assessment of mycotoxin contamination of spices in South Africa