Effect of Health Education on the Uptake of breast cancer screening among nursing students in Plateau State, Nigeria: A quasi-experimental study

Objective: This study aimed to assess the effect of health education on breast cancer screening uptake among female nursing students in Plateau State, Nigeria. Methods: A quasi-experimental study involving 50 female nursing students that were selected using a systematic random sampling each from the Colleges of Nursing Jos South Local Government Area (LGA) (experimental group) and Jos North LGA (control group) both in Plateau State. The intervention involved health education training in the experimental group only for six (6) weeks. The tool used was a structured questionnaire with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.782. Data analysis was done using IBM SPSS Version 22. ANOVA was used to compare mean changes in uptake scores as appropriate. Results were presented in tables and p< 0.05 was taken as statistically significant. Results: The mean breast cancer screening uptake scores were 1.00 ± 0.700, 2.46 ± 0.706 and 2.54 ± 0.676   at baseline, one-month and three-month post-intervention respectively among the experimental group with a statistically significant difference in mean uptake score, (F[2, 147] = [77.982], p <0.001) (Effect size, R2=0.515). In the control group, the uptake scores were 1.04 ± 0.755, 1.16 ± 0.738, and 1.26 ± 0.694 at baseline, one month post-intervention and three-month post-intervention respectively. There was no statistically significant difference in mean uptake scores between at least two phases (F [2, 147] = (1.140), p =0.323). Conclusion: Health educational intervention can significantly improve breast screening uptake. There is a need to constantly educate youths on this benefit

Short communication - IN VIVO ANTIMALARIAL AND CYTOTOXIC PROPERTIES OF ANNONA SENEGALENSIS EXTRACT

The in vivo animal antimalarial and in vitro cytotoxic activities of the methanol extract of Annona senegalensis Pers. (Annonaceae) was investigated in this study. The in vivo antimalarial activity of the methanol extract against Plasmodium berghei was assessed using the 4-day suppressive test procedure. The extract of A. senegalensis had intrinsic antimalarial property that were dose – dependent. At doses of 100mg/kg weight of mice, it produced significant chemosuppression of parasitemia (> 57%) when administered orally. It had the highest activity at 800mg/kg weight of mice (91.1%) compared to Chloroquine disphosphate, the standard reference drug which had a chemosuppression of 96.2%. The in vitro cytotoxicity evaluations were perfomed using A2780 ovarian cancer cells in the drug sensitivity assay. Extract of A. senegalensis exhibited low cytotoxicity with an IC50 of 28.8μg/ml. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the plant extract indicated the presence of alkaloids, saponins, tannins and cardiac glycosides. This finding supports the traditional use of the plant for the treatment of malaria

In vivo antimalarial and cytotoxic properties of Annona senegalensis extract

The in vivo animal antimalarial and in vitro cytotoxic activities of the methanol extract of Annona senegalensis Pers. (Annonaceae) was investigated in this study. The in vivo antimalarial activity of the methanol extract against Plasmodium berghei was assessed using the 4-day suppressive test procedure. The extract of A. senegalensis had intrinsic antimalarial property that were dose–dependent. At doses of 100mg/kg weight of mice, it produced significant chemosuppression of parasitemia (> 57%) when administered orally. It had the highest activity at 800mg/kg weight of mice (91.1%) compared to Chloroquine disphosphate, the standard reference drug which had a chemosuppression of 96.2%. The in vitro cytotoxicity evaluations were perfomed using A2780 ovarian cancer cells in the drug sensitivity assay. Extract of A. senegalensis exhibited low cytotoxicity with an IC50 of 28.8&#956;g/ml. Preliminary phytochemical screening of the plant extract indicated the presence of alkaloids, saponins, tannins and cardiac glycosides. This finding supports the traditional use of the plant for the treatment of malaria.Keywords: Annona senegalensis, mice antimalarial, cytotoxicity, Plasmodium bergheiAfrican Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines Vol. 3(1) 2006: 137-14

Factors Influencing Hepatitis-B Infection among Traditional Birth Attendants in Ikenne Local Government Area, Ogun State, Nigeria

The main objective of this study was to investigate the factors influencing Hepatitis B infection and vaccine uptake among traditional birth attendants in Ikenne Local Government Area, Nigeria. The study was a cross-sectional survey design. The study population were TBAS in the LGA. The study utilized a total enumeration sampling method of 70 registered traditional birth attendants in Ikenne LGA. Data collected, were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. All statistical tests were at 5% level of significance. Majority were more females than males 6 (11.5%). TBAs had no formal education; 24 (46.2%) TBAs had between 1 and 10 years of experience in their occupation and mean±SD of the years of experience reported by all the TBAs was 15.13±9.65 years. TBAs had a low level of knowledge on HBV (mean±SD = 5.81±2.78). Majority had good perception towards HBV. Years of experience had no statistical relationship with the knowledge on HBV (r = -0.180; p = 0.201). Knowledge had a statistically significant relationship with practice of preventive measures (r = 0.382; p = 0.005) with a 14.6% contribution (r2 = 0.146) of the variation observed. The study concludes that adequate knowledge of TBAs on hepatitis B will induce a change in TBAs‟ practice of preventive measures against the infection. Key words: Hepatitis B, Traditional Birth Attendants, Vaccine, Knowledge, Preventio

A SURVEY OF TREATMENT PRACTICES FOR FEBRILE ILLNESSES AMONG TRADITIONAL HEALERS IN THE NIGERIAN MIDDLE BELT ZONE

This survey was conducted to investigate the pattern of treatment practices for febrile illnesses among one hundred and eighty five traditional healers from the Nigerian Middle belt zone ethnomedicine. Data collection was through use of the semi structure questionnaire administered by trained interviewers recruited from the study sites - Gboko and Katsina Ala Local Government Areas. A total of 176 (95.1%) reportedly diagnosed through the presenting complaints and symptoms and 3 (1.6%) made diagnoses through divination. All the respondents indicated their referral practices, with 100 (54.1%) of the respondents reported that they had once referred clients. Respondents listed 164 plants used in the preparation of the various treatment modalities. Institution of treatment follows this diagnostic practice. Treatment of different febrile illnesses involve the use of liquid herbs, powdered herbs, medicinal scarifications, incantations and sacrifices which suggests the confidence this group has in the efficacy of their herbs for treating febrile illnesses. An appreciable level of referral 54.1% practice was also found among the traditional healers. The findings of this study strengthen the need to recognize the traditional health practitioners in the treatment of health problems especially febrile illnesses, and to establish quality control mechanism in partnership with them to improve their treatment practices

Research Paper - A SURVEY OF TREATMENT PRACTICES FOR FEBRILE ILLNESSES AMONG TRADITIONAL HEALERS IN THE NIGERIAN MIDDLE BELT ZONE

This survey was conducted to investigate the pattern of treatment practices for febrile illnesses among one hundred and eighty five traditional healers from the Nigerian Middle belt zone ethnomedicine. Data collection was through use of the semi structure questionnaire administered by trained interviewers recruited from the study sites - Gboko and Katsina Ala Local Government Areas. A total of 176 (95.1%) reportedly diagnosed through the presenting complaints and symptoms and 3 (1.6%) made diagnoses through divination. All the respondents indicated their referral practices, with 100 (54.1%) of the respondents reported that they had once referred clients. Respondents listed 164 plants used in the preparation of the various treatment modalities. Institution of treatment follows this diagnostic practice. Treatment of different febrile illnesses involve the use of liquid herbs, powdered herbs, medicinal scarifications, incantations and sacrifices which suggests the confidence this group has in the efficacy of their herbs for treating febrile illnesses. An appreciable level of referral 54.1% practice was also found among the traditional healers. The findings of this study strengthen the need to recognize the traditional health practitioners in the treatment of health problems especially febrile illnesses, and to establish quality control mechanism in partnership with them to improve their treatment practices

A survey of treatment practices for febrile illnesses among Traditional Healers in the Nigerian Middle Belt Zone

This survey was conducted to investigate the pattern of treatment practices for febrile illnesses among one hundred and eighty five traditional healers from the Nigerian Middle belt zone ethnomedicine. Data collection was through use of the semi structure questionnaire administered by trained interviewers recruited from the study sites - Gboko and Katsina Ala Local Government Areas. A total of 176 (95.1%) reportedly diagnosed through the presenting complaints and symptoms and 3 (1.6%) made diagnoses through divination. All the respondents indicated their referral practices, with 100 (54.1%) of the respondents reported that they had once referred clients. Respondents listed 164 plants used in the preparation of the various treatment modalities. Institution of treatment follows this diagnostic practice. Treatment of different febrile illnesses involve the use of liquid herbs, powdered herbs, medicinal scarifications, incantations and sacrifices which suggests the confidence this group has in the efficacy of their herbs for treating febrile illnesses. An appreciable level of referral 54.1% practice was also found among the traditional healers. The findings of this study strengthen the need to recognize the traditional health practitioners in the treatment of health problems especially febrile illnesses, and to establish quality control mechanism in partnership with them to improve their treatment practices. Key words: fever, traditional, treatment practices, Nigeria, middle belt Afr. J. Trad. Comp. Alt. Med. Vol.2(3) 2005: 337 - 34

Biting of anthropophilic Culicoides fulvithorax (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), a vector of Mansonella perstans in Nigeria

Anthropophilic Culicoides were investigated in a rural community endemic for Mansonella perstans in Ijebu North area of western Nigeria between December 2003 and October 2004. Three hundred and fifty-nine adults of Culicoides fulvithorax collected by human bait in the morning were dissected for Mansonella perstans larvae, and 1.95% of infection rate was found. Seasonal abundance of C. fulvithorax was investigated by monthly biting rates, and showed that higher prevalence was observed in rainy season, with peak in September. Culicoides prevalence was positively correlated with rainfall and relative humidity, but not temperature. Human perceptions on the behavior of these biting midges were determined by interviewing 854 self-selected villagers, of which 86.5% of the interviewees confessed having experienced Culicoides bites. Between 76.5 and 99.1% of the various age groups complained body reactions to Culicoides bites. Itching was the most frequent body reaction. No interviewees associated Culicoides with transmission of any parasitic infections. The results showed need to adequately control Culicoides in the community