Potency of aqueous stem bark extract of Khaya senegalensis against liver diseases in rats

In order to assess the potency of aqueous stem bark extract of Khaya senegalensis (KS) against liver diseases, serum aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) were assayed in rats treated with two (2) different doses of the extract after the induction of liver damage in the rats using carbon tetrachloride, CCl4. The rats treated with a daily dose of 80mg/kg for six (6) days had serum liver enzymes activities not significantly different from those in control rats; whereas those treated with a daily dose of 200mg/kg for nine (9) days had serum liver enzymes activities significantly higher (

Comparative analysis of micronutrients status of HIV infected and HIV non- infected subjects attending three selected hospitals in Kano Metropolis, Kano State, Nigeria

Comparative studies on serum levels of micronutrients (iron, iodine, Vitamin A and β – carotene) were carried out among HIV negative and people living with HIV and AIDS attending three hospitals in Kano, namely Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital, Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital and Infectious Diseases Hospital. HIV infection was confirmed using indirect solid phase enzyme immunoassay technique of Immunocomb II HIV 1 and 2 Bi spot kits. Serum micronutrients levels of 270 subjects were detected using colorimetric and spectrophotometric techniques. Results obtained showed that serum vitamin A and β-carotene concentrations decrease with increase in age and were higher in males than females. The mean serum concentrations (in µg/dl) of iron, iodine, vitamin A and β- carotene were found to be 99, 1.53, 39.4, 45.98 for HIV negative subjects; 62.6, 1.54, 20.16, 19.2 for HIV positive subjects and 28.8, 0.9, 16.1 and 18.0 for AIDS subjects respectively. Deficiency of iron, vitamin A and β-carotene were found to be more common among people living with HIV and AIDS when compared with HIV negative subjects at 5% level of significance with AIDS patients having the lowest value (p<0.05). This could be due to malabsorption, altered metabolism, reduced food intake and/or infection in HIV infected persons. Iodine level of these patients was found to be normal (1.54 and 0.9 µg/dl). The results imply that HIV infection affects the serum levels of iron, vitamin A and β-carotene by reducing their levels; hence, dietary supplementation with them could be useful in maintaining good health in HIV infected subjects and reducing mortality.Key words- AIDS, HIV, Kano, Micronutrients, Serum

The Genetic and Molecular Studies of Hepatitis C Virus: A Review

The role of Hepatitis viruses, particularly Hepatitis c virus (HCV) as human pathogen and their transmission have been of interest over the years. The virus is a small (55-65nm in size), included in Group IV, enveloped, positive sense, single stranded RNA virus, the family Flaviviridae, genus Hepacivirus, and Hepatitis c virus type species. Based on genetic differences between HCV isolates, the virus species is classified into six genotypes (1-6) with several subtypes within each genotype (represented by letters). Persistent infection with Hepatitis c virus (HCV) has emerged as one of the primary causes of chronic liver disease with an estimated 170 million people infected by HCV, more than 4 times the number of people living with HIV throughout the world. The present review looks at the genetic and molecular nature of this virus with the view to provide more information about its biology which may be useful to the present and feature researchers. Key words: Hepatitis c virus, biology, genome, chronic, liver, diseas

Uterine rupture an obstetrics catastrophy; incidence, risk factors, management and outcome at Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital Bauchi Nigeria

Context: Ruptured uterus is still an important obstetrics complication because it contributes significantly to both maternal and foetal morbidity and mortality in our setting. Therefore there is a need to further evaluate its causes and the outcome of its management.Objective: To determine the incidence, risk factors, management and outcome of ruptured uterus in our centre and thus provide a baseline data on the subject for comparison in the future as the hospital is now upgraded to a Teaching Hospital.Materials and Methods: A two year retrospective review carried out on 67 patients that were managed for uterine rupture during the study period. Data was obtained from patients' case files, labour ward registry, theatre registry, admission /discharge registry and entered into a proforma. Descriptive analysis was done with SPSS software (version16.0).Results: There were a total of 19,412 deliveries in the review period out of which there were 67 ruptured uteri. The incidence of ruptured uterus is 0.35% and the common risk factors include high parity, exposure to oxytocin in labour, scar on the uterus, prolonged labour and unbooked status. Foetal mortality was 100% and maternal mortality 13.4%.Wound sepsis/dehiscence, vesicovaginal fistula and anaemia were the common complications in this study.Conclusion: Ruptured uterus remains an important obstetrics problem in our centre. It is associated with high maternal mortality and foetal mortality. More effort is needed to reduce this obstetrics problem.  Key Words: Uterine rupture, Risk factors, Management, outcome, Bauch

Ectopic Pregnancy in Bauchi, North-East Nigeria

Background: Ectopic pregnancy is an important life-threatening emergency and a cause of reproductive morbidity and mortality especially in developing countries. The significance of ectopic pregnancy in our environment lies in its late presentations with its attendant consequences compounded by structurally weak health systems. This is at variance with the global trend of early diagnosis and conservative approach to thiscondition.Objective: To assess the incidence, presentation and management of ectopic pregnancy (EP), in Bauchi north-east Nigeria over a two-year period.Methods: This was a retrospective study of cases of EP managed at gynaecological unit of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University Teaching Hospital (ATBUTH) Bauchi between 1st of January 2009 and 31st December 2010.Results: During the period under review, a total of 19,412 deliveries were recorded in the hospital and 119 ectopic pregnancies were managed. This gives an incidence of 0.61%. Majority of the patients were 30 yearsand below with mean age of 26.8 years. The common clinical features at presentation were abdominal pain (95%), amenorrhea (87%), vaginal bleeding (51.5%). More than half of the patients were in shock (51.4%)before intervention. Seventy patients (69%) had the EP on the right tube, 10(9.9%) on the left tube while the side was not stated in 20 patients (20.8%). The mode of surgical treatment in majority of the patients wasunilateral salpingectomy 83(82.2%); one patient (1%) had bilateral salpingectomy while the type of surgical operation was not stated in 13 cases (12.9%). None of the patients had minimal access surgery, medical or conservative management. Anaemia (65.3%) was the commonest post-operative complication. Case fatality was 4%.Conclusion: Late presentation of EP was the commonest way of  presentation in our centre. Laparotomy with salpingectomy was the main modality of management. This has adverse effect in a society which placeshigh premium on child bearing. Reproductive health education and strengthening support services like blood transfusion services are needed. Provision of minimal access approach facilities and other forms of conservative management for those that present early should be considered.Keywords: Ectopic pregnancy, incidence, presentation and management at a newly established teaching hospital, Nigeri

Measuring the health-related Sustainable Development Goals in 188 countries : a baseline analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015

Background In September, 2015, the UN General Assembly established the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The SDGs specify 17 universal goals, 169 targets, and 230 indicators leading up to 2030. We provide an analysis of 33 health-related SDG indicators based on the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2015 (GBD 2015). Methods We applied statistical methods to systematically compiled data to estimate the performance of 33 health-related SDG indicators for 188 countries from 1990 to 2015. We rescaled each indicator on a scale from 0 (worst observed value between 1990 and 2015) to 100 (best observed). Indices representing all 33 health-related SDG indicators (health-related SDG index), health-related SDG indicators included in the Millennium Development Goals (MDG index), and health-related indicators not included in the MDGs (non-MDG index) were computed as the geometric mean of the rescaled indicators by SDG target. We used spline regressions to examine the relations between the Socio-demographic Index (SDI, a summary measure based on average income per person, educational attainment, and total fertility rate) and each of the health-related SDG indicators and indices. Findings In 2015, the median health-related SDG index was 59.3 (95% uncertainty interval 56.8-61.8) and varied widely by country, ranging from 85.5 (84.2-86.5) in Iceland to 20.4 (15.4-24.9) in Central African Republic. SDI was a good predictor of the health-related SDG index (r(2) = 0.88) and the MDG index (r(2) = 0.2), whereas the non-MDG index had a weaker relation with SDI (r(2) = 0.79). Between 2000 and 2015, the health-related SDG index improved by a median of 7.9 (IQR 5.0-10.4), and gains on the MDG index (a median change of 10.0 [6.7-13.1]) exceeded that of the non-MDG index (a median change of 5.5 [2.1-8.9]). Since 2000, pronounced progress occurred for indicators such as met need with modern contraception, under-5 mortality, and neonatal mortality, as well as the indicator for universal health coverage tracer interventions. Moderate improvements were found for indicators such as HIV and tuberculosis incidence, minimal changes for hepatitis B incidence took place, and childhood overweight considerably worsened. Interpretation GBD provides an independent, comparable avenue for monitoring progress towards the health-related SDGs. Our analysis not only highlights the importance of income, education, and fertility as drivers of health improvement but also emphasises that investments in these areas alone will not be sufficient. Although considerable progress on the health-related MDG indicators has been made, these gains will need to be sustained and, in many cases, accelerated to achieve the ambitious SDG targets. The minimal improvement in or worsening of health-related indicators beyond the MDGs highlight the need for additional resources to effectively address the expanded scope of the health-related SDGs.Peer reviewe