Knowledge, Attitude and Practice of General Medical Practitioners In Port Harcourt Towards The Prevention Of Mother-To-Child Transmission of HIV.

Background: Pregnant women living with HIV infection are at risk of transmitting HIV to their babies. Most of this transmission occurs during labour and delivery and during breast feeding. About 45% of all deliveries are conducted in private clinics. This study aims to access the knowledge, attitude and practice of general medical practitioner in Port Harcourt toward the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.Methods: A questionnaire survey was carried out on two hundred and twenty four private medical practitioners in Port Harcourt. Data  management was carried out using ® SPSS 15 for windows statistical software.Results: Only 50% of respondents had read the national guideline on PMTCT while 48.2% had three or more sources of information on PMTCT. Majority of the respondents (95.5%) identified prevention of HIV in the pediatric age group as the primary aim of PMTCT. Labour was identified by 80%of respondents as the time of transmission of MTCT of HIV while 48.2% preferred a specialist unit for HIV positive pregnant women. Forty two percent would screen pregnant women without consent. About half (46.6%) do not offer antenatal or delivery services to HIV positive women. Of the doctors that offer those services 58.7% could name 2 or more drugs to prevent MTCT of HIV during pregnancy. Of the respondents, 74% would offer HIV positive women elective caesarean section. Most of the respondents (89.3%) agreed that their knowledge, attitude and practice of PMTCT was deficient and 90.1% were willing to attend an update course.Conclusion: The Private General Practitioners were not well informed on practical aspects of prevention of MTCT of HIV/AIDS. They showed a discriminatory attitude towards HIV positive pregnant women.Key words: Private Practitioners, HIV, PMTCT

The Impact of Galactorrhoea on Infertility In Port Harcourt.

Background: Infertility is a major global problem and is regarded as a social stigma in the Nigerian society. At least one in every ten couples of reproductive age has infertility. Galactorrhoea is one of the complaints often associated with infertility. Its relationship with amenorrhoea and infertility is well established. The objective of this study is to determine the incidence and contribution of galactorrhoea to female infertility and to determine any correlation between galactorrhoea and hyperprolactinaemia.Methods: A descriptive prospective study involving 186 consecutive patients presenting with infertility at the University of Port Harcourt teaching Hospital between 1st January 2009 and 30th June 2009. All patients presenting with infertility at the gynaecological clinic of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital between 1st January 2009 and 30th June 2009 were included in this study. Data was collected based on a protocol developed for the study. Data collected was entered into a spread sheet ® using SPSS 14.0 for Windows statistical software which was also used for analysis.Results: Galactorrhoea was present in 101 (54%) of the infertile patients. Only 58% of the patients who had galactorrhoea were aware they had galactorrhoea. Galactorrhoea was associated with menstrual abnormalities in 37.8% of the patients, 17% had amenorrhoea while 20.8% had oligomenorrhoea. Hyperprolactinaemia was found in 55% of the study population, 76.9% of these had galactorrhoea while 80% o f all patients with galactorroea had hyper prolactinaemia. Galactor rhoea (with  hyperprolactinaemia) was the only abnormality found in 16.1% of the study population and in 29.7% of those with anovulation.Conclusion: There is a high incidence of galactorrhoea (54%) and hyperprolactinaemia (55%) amongst infertile women as seen in this study. 16.1% of the study population had galactorrhoea (with hyperprolactinaemia) as the only abnormal finding. Most patients with galactorrhoea would also have Hyperprolactinaemia.There is a positive correlation between galactorrhoea & hyper prolactinaemia, not all women with hyperprolactinaemia had galactorrhoea and vice-versa.Keywords: Galactorrhoea; infertility; Nigeria

Estrategia vital y distribución ecológica de camaleones (Reptilia, Chamaeleonidae) de los bosques húmedos de Nígeria: implicaciones en la conservación

Five species of chameleons were observed in the continuous forest zone of southern Nigeria: Chamaeleo gracilis gracilis Hallowell, 1842, Chamaeleo owenii Gray, 1831, Chamaeleo cristatus Stutchbury, 1837, Chamaeleo wiedersheimi Nieden, 1910, and Rhampholeon spectrum (Bucholz 1874). Many original locality records are presented for each species. One species is apparently rare and confined to montane habitats (C. wiedersheimi), another species is relatively common and its habitat is generalist (C. gracilis), and the other three species are vulnerable and limited to specific micro–habitats. Female R. spectrum had clutch sizes of two eggs each and exhibited a prolonged reproductive season with oviposition likely occurring during the late phase of the dry season. Females of both C. cristatus (clutch sizes: 11–14 eggs) and C. owenii (clutch sizes: 15–19 eggs) have a shorter reproductive season with oviposition occurring most probably at the interphase between the end of the wet season and the onset of the dry season, and female C. gracilis (clutch sizes: 14–23 eggs) appeared to exhibit two distinct oviposition periods (one at the interphase between the end of the wet season and the onset of the dry season, and one at the peak phase of the dry season). Diets of four sympatric species of chameleons consisted almost exclusively of arthropods. There were significant inter–group differences at either intra–specific level (with the females of the two best studied species, i.e. R. spectrum and C. gracilis, having a wider food niche breadth than males) or inter–specific level (with a continuum of dietary specialization from the less generalist (C. cristatus) to the more generalist (C. gracilis). However, “thread–trailing” experiments indicated that activity patterns of Nigerian chameleons were relatively similar among species. The overall abundance of chameleons (as estimated from the number of specimens observed in the time unit of field effort) was relatively similar in three contrasted habitat types, but lizards were more abundant in the mature secondary forest. When greatly altered by massive logging activity, the overall abundance of chameleons in the mature secondary forest habitat declined only slightly, whereas the species diversity declined drastically. This was an effect of (i) the simultaneous extinction of three of the four species originally present in the forest plot, and of (ii) the rapid increase in abundance of a single species (C. gracilis) as a response to habitat alteration. The conservation implications of all these data are also discussed.Se observaron cinco especies de camaleones en la zona de bosque ininterrumpido del sur de Nigeria: Chamaeleo gracilis gracilis Hallowell, 1842, Chamaeleo owenii Gray, 1831, Chamaeleo cristatus Stutchbury, 1837, Chamaeleo wiedersheimi Nieden, 1910 y Rhampholeon spectrum (Bucholz 1874). Se presentan muchos registros de localidad originales para todas las especies. Una especie es aparentemente rara y está confinada a los hábitats montañosos (C. wiedersheimi), otra especie es relativamente común y generalista en cuanto al hábitat (C. gracilis), y las otras tres especies son vulnerables y están limitadas a microhábitats específicos. El tamaño de cada puesta de la hembra de R. spectrum fue de dos huevos, mostrando una prolongada estación reproductora con oviposición durante la última fase de la estación húmeda. Las hembras de C. cristatus (tamaño de puesta: 11–14 huevos) y C. owenii (tamaño de puesta: 15–19 huevos) tienen una estación reproductora más corta y la oviposición se da con mayor probabilidad en la interfase entre el final de la estación húmeda y el inicio de la estación seca, y la hembra de C. gracilis (tamaño de puesta: 14–23 huevos) presenta dos periodos distintos de oviposición (uno en la interfase entre el final de la estación húmeda y el inicio de la estación seca y el otro durante el período más seco de la estación seca). Las dietas de cuatro especies simpátricas de camaleones consistían prácticamente de forma exclusiva en artrópodos. Había diferencias significativas dentro del grupo tanto a nivel intraespecífico (con las hembras de las dos especies mejor estudiadas, es decir R. spectrum y C. gracilis, con un extenso nicho alimentario más amplio que los machos) o interespecíficas (con una continua especialización alimentaria desde los menos generalistas (C. cristatus) a los más generalistas (C. gracilis). Sin embargo los experimentos “thread–trailing” indican que los patrones de actividad de los camaleones de Nigeria eran relativamente similares entre especies. La abundancia de camaleones (estimada a partir de el número de especímenes observado en la unidad de tiempo de esfuerzo de campo) era relativamente similar en tres tipos de hábitats contrastados, pero el bosque secundario maduro fue el hábitat donde los lagartos fueron más abundantes. En cuanto al hábitat del bosque secundario, cuando estaba fuertemente alterado por una fuerte explotación forestal, la abundancia de camaleones disminuía sólo ligeramente, mientras que la diversidad de especies disminuía de forma drástica. Esto era debido a: (i) la extinción simultánea de tres de las cuatro especies originalmente presentadas en el bosque, y (ii) el rápido incremento en abundancia de una única especie (C. gracilis) como respuesta a una alteración del hábitat. Se discuten las implicaciones de estos datos sobre la conservación

Helminth community structure and diet of three Afrotropical anuran species: a test of the interactive-versus-isolationist parasite communities hypothesis

The interactive-versus-isolationist hypothesis predicts that parasite communities should be depauperated and weakly structured by interspecific competition in amphibians. A parasitological survey was carried out to test this hypothesis using three anuran species from Nigeria, tropical Africa (one Bufonidae; two Ranidae). High values of parasite infection parameters were found in all three species, which were infected by nematodes, cestodes and trematodes. Nonetheless, the parasite communities of the three anurans were very depauperated in terms of number of species (4 to 6). Interspecific competition was irrelevant in all species, as revealed by null models and Monte Carlo permutations. Cluster analyses revealed that, in terms of parasite community composition, the two Ranidae were similar, whereas the Bufonidae was more different. However, when prevalence, intensity, and abundance of parasites are combined into a multivariate analysis, each anuran species was clearly spaced apart from the others, thus revealing considerable species-specific differences in terms of their parasite communities. All anurans were generalists and probably opportunistic in terms of dietary habits, and showed no evidence of interspecific competition for food. Overall, our data are widely consistent with expectations driven from the interactive-versus-isolationist parasite communities hypothesis

Intervention Strategy, Banking Reengineering and Capital Formation in Nigeria

Over the years, successive governments in Nigeria have not relented in advancing measures designed to boost capital formation in the economy. Prominent among these efforts is the commitment to upgrade critical socio-industrial amenities in order to bring about meaningful transformation of various parts of the country. Against this backdrop, this study adopts gross fixed capital formation as focal criterion variable. It encapsulates all production and distribution – oriented facilities in such core economic areas as transportation, communication, electricity, education, and industrial equipment manufacturing, among others. The provision of these critical effects in the right quantity and quality determines, to a large extent, separates thriving economies from merely surviving economies. For analytical purposes in this study, secondary data are drawn from the publications of the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN), National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and Federal Ministry of Finance (FMF). The time series are utilized in testing three formulated hypotheses, through the statistical instrumentality of software package for social sciences (SPSS). The outcome fundamentally indicates that banking reform, the intervention strategy thrust, is significantly related to the dynamics of capital formation in the Nigerian economy. To this end, the ideals which make for structural viability, auspicious liquidity and sustainable functionality are strongly recommended to form the thrust of on-going systemic soundness advocacy. This is good for the repositioning of the financial sector in general and banking reengineering in particular. No economy can afford to showcase banks which are peripherally hale and intrinsically pale. Keywords: Banking reform, Capital formation, Nigerian econom

Economic Aggregates, Sustainable Development and Dialectics of Deficits in Nigeria

The dialectics of deficits in Nigeria are associated with gross domestic product, inflation, interest rates and money supply in the economy. In This study, time series relating to these variables are drawn from publications of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). They are subsequently analyzed using econometric methods with a view to establishing the extent of relationship among the various variables. The analytical outcomes reveal that budget deficits are significantly related to gross domestic product, inflation, interest rates and money supply in Nigeria. To justify the subsisting deficit financing regime, it is recommended that key organs of government should uphold the strategic ideals of economic management and administration, especially budgeting objectivity, fiscal frugality and investment viability. Furthermore, the fiscal correlates of macroeconomic growth and development should be purposely directed at achieving sustainable downward movement in prices, including cost of borrowing, so as to ultimately stimulate rather than merely simulate the Nigerian economy. Keywords: Deficit financing, Infrastructure investment, Nigerian econom

Diversité et distribution des tortues marines dans le delta du Niger, Nigeria

Diversité et distribution des tortues marines dans le delta du Niger, Nigeria. - Des recherches ont été conduites en 2007 et 2008 le long de la côte du delta du Niger (Nigeria) sur la diversité et la distribution des tortues marines. Cinq espèces ont été identifiées comme visitant les côtes nigérianes, en particulier les plages sableuses d'Akassa, Brass, Bonny et Andoni. Chelonia mydas fut l'espèce la plus communément rencontrée; Lepidochelys olivacea et Dermochelys coriacea se sont avérées répandues dans toutes les stations inventoriées. En revanche Eretmochelys imbricata et Caretta caretta n'ont que très occasionnellement été rencontrées. Les eaux nigérianes peuvent constituer des zones importantes pour la conservation des tortues marines, plus particulièrement pour Dermochelys coriacea, mais des études plus détaillées sont nécessaires pour mieux évaluer l'abondance de ces espèces

Exchange Rate Dynamics and Balance of Payments Repositioning in Nigeria

The study examines foreign exchange dynamics in the Nigerian economy in relation to balance of payments, using time series drawn from the publications of the Central bank of Nigeria (CBN), Debt Management Office (DMO) and National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The regression method was adopted in data analysis, facilitated by software package for social sciences (SPSS). The statistical results justified the alternate hypotheses, thus affirming that the foreign exchange proxies specified in this study are significant predictors of variations in balance of payments. In explaining the variations in the current and capital accounts of balance of payments, the predictor coefficients are positive for exchange rate and external reserves but negative for external debt. This analytical manifest is traditional as a favorable exchange rate (positively) stimulates trade and capital flows. Also, an increase in external reserves (positively) boosts the confidence of foreign investors and this fundamentally mirrors the strength and depth of liquidity in the global economy. It is a critical factor of foreign investment interest in the economy. Furthermore, a nation’s external indebtedness apparently (negatively) conveys a profile of macroeconomic weakness and flakiness. It is, therefore, vitally imperative for more auspicious management systems to be institutionalized for the close monitoring stabilization of favorable profiles of exchange rate, external reserves and external debt. This will advance and sustain a more attractive, competitive and productive Nigerian economy. Keywords: Foreign exchange, International investment, Nigerian econom

Sero-Epidemiology of HIV Infection among Abandoned Babies in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Background: HIV infection is endemic in Nigeria and is an important cause of infant mortality and morbidity. This study was undertaken to determine the sero-epidemiology of HIV among abandoned babies in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Methods: One hundred and forty (n = 140) consecutively recruited abandoned babies mean age 11.5 \ub1 24.1 weeks made up to 79 males and 61 females, referred to the HIV screening unit from motherless babies home in Port Harcourt for pre-adoption HIV screening within a five years period (1999 - 2003) were screened for HIV using the WHO approved immunocomb HIV I & II kits (Organics, Israel) - an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for the quantitative and differential diagnosis of HIV in serum or plasma. Initially reactive samples were continued using Genscreen HIV 1 & 2 (p24) antigen test (Bro Rad, France). Results: HIV was detected in 19(13.6%) of babies tested. Sero-prevalence was highest in babies 9 - 16 weeks (25.0%). Males accounted for the highest infection burden (57.9%) compared to (42.1%) for females. Data indicated that the prevalence of HIV declined from 12.5% in 1999 to 8.3% in 2000 and increased subsequently to 20% in 2001 but declined steadily to 16.1% in 2002 and 14.3% in 2003. HIV-1 accounted for the predominant viral subtype among babies sero-positive for HIV (89.5%). Chi square analysis indicates that symptom at abandonment was an independent risk factor for HIV infection among abandoned babies (\u3c72 = 40.97; p = 0.0001). Conclusions: This study demonstrates a high prevalence of HIV among abandoned babies in Port Harcourt. This calls for an urgent need for government, non governmental organization and faith-based organization to critically examine the issue of child abandonment and HIV infection by initiating care and support programme aimed at providing knowledge and information which emphasizes a combination of behavioural and social changes and providing a youth-friendly health services to control the HIV scourge.Fond: L'infection de VIH est end\ue9mique au Nig\ue9ria et elle est une cause importante de la mortalit\ue9 et de la morbidit\ue9 infantiles. Cette \ue9tude a \ue9t\ue9 entreprise pour d\ue9terminer la s\ue9ro-\ue9pid\ue9miologie de VIH parmi les b\ue9b\ue9s abandonn\ue9s \ue0 Port Harcourt, Nig\ue9ria. M\ue9thodes : Cent quarante (n = 140) b\ue9b\ue9s abandonn\ue9s et cons\ue9cutivement recrut\ue9s avec l'\ue2ge moyen de 11.5 \ub1 24,1 semaines faisant 79 m\ue2les et 61 femelles envoy\ue9s pour un test de VIH pr\ue9-adoption d'une maison pour les b\ue9b\ue9s abandonn\ue9s \ue0 Port Harcout au cours d'une p\ue9riode de cinq ans (1999 - 2003) ont \ue9t\ue9 examin\ue9s pour VIH en utilisant des kits d'immunocomb VIH I et II approuv\ue9 par OMS (Orgenics, Isra\uebl); une enzyme li\ue9 \ue0 l'analyse d'immunosorbant pour le diagnostic quantitatif et diff\ue9rentiel de VIH dans le s\ue9rum ou le plasma. Au commencement des \ue9chantillons r\ue9actifs ont \ue9t\ue9 continu\ue9s avec l'utilisation de VIH de Genscreen 1 et 2 (p.24) examen de l'antig\ue8ne (Bro rad, France). R\ue9sultats : HIV a \ue9t\ue9 d\ue9tect\ue9 dans 19(13,6%) des b\ue9b\ue9s examin\ue9s. la S\ue9ro-pr\ue9dominance \ue9tait la plus haute dans les b\ue9b\ue9s ages de9 - 16 semaines (25,0%). Les m\ue2les ont repr\ue9sent\ue9 la population la plus affect\ue9e par le fardeau d'infection (57,9%) compar\ue9 \ue0 (42,1%) pour des femelles. Les donn\ue9es ont indiqu\ue9 que la pr\ue9dominance de VIH a diminu\ue9 de 12,5% en 1999 \ue0 8.3% en 2000 et ont augment\ue9 plus tard \ue0 20% en 2001 mais a diminu\ue9 solidement \ue0 16,1% en 2002 et \ue0 14.3% en 2003. VIH-1 a repr\ue9sent\ue9 le sous-type viral pr\ue9dominant parmi les b\ue9b\ue9s s\ue9ropositifs pour VIH (89.5%). L'analyse de chi-carr\ue9e indique que le sympt\uf4me \ue0 l'abandon \ue9tait un facteur de risque ind\ue9pendant pour l'infection de VIH Parmi les b\ue9b\ue9s abandonn\ue9s (x2 = 40,97 ; p = 0,0001). Conclusions : Cette \ue9tude d\ue9montre une forte pr\ue9sence de VIH parmi les b\ue9b\ue9s abandonn\ue9s \ue0 Port Harcourt. Ceci r\ue9clame un besoin pressant de gouvernement, des organisations non gouvernementales et des organizations religieuses d'examiner critiquement la question de l'abandon d'enfant et l'infection dee HIV en lan\ue7 ant les programmes de soin et de soutien vis\ue9s \ue0 fournir la connaissance et l'information et les informations qui soulignent une combinaison des changements sociaux et comportementaux et qui fournissent des services de sant\ue9 amicaux aux jeunes \ue0 la lutte ontre le fl\ue9au de VIH.

Macro-habitat preferences by the African manatee and crocodiles – ecological and conservation implications

African manatees (<i>Trichechus senegalensis</i>) and crocodiles are threatened species in parts of their range. In West Africa, crocodiles may constitute the main predators for manatees apart from humans. Here, we explore the macro-habitat selection of manatees and two species of crocodiles (West African crocodiles <i>Crocodylus suchus</i> and dwarf crocodile <i>Osteolaemus tetraspis</i>) in the Niger Delta (Nigeria), testing the hypotheses that (i) manatees may avoid crocodiles in order to minimize risks of predation, and (ii) the two crocodile species do compete. The study was carried out between 1994 and 2010 with a suite of different field techniques. We observed that the main macro-habitat types were freshwater rivers and coastal lagoons for manatees, mangroves for West African crocodiles, and rivers and creeks for dwarf crocodiles, with (i) the three species differing significantly in terms of their macro-habitat type selection, and (ii) significant seasonal influence on habitat selection of each species. Null models for niche overlap showed a significantly lower overlap in macro-habitat type use between manatee and crocodiles, whereas the two crocodiles were relatively similar. Null model analyses did not indicate any competitive interactions between crocodiles. On the other hand, manatees avoided macro-habitats where crocodiles, and especially West African crocodiles, are abundant