Socioeconomic inequalities in access to health care: Examining the case of Burkina Faso

Copyright @ 2011 Johns Hopkins University PressThe past decade has recorded remarkable interest in socioeconomic inequalities in health care. A multivariate analysis of the World Health Survey data for Burkina Faso was conducted using STATA. This included questions on household economic factors, perceived need, and access to health care. Poverty was defined using Principal Components Analysis. There was no significant difference in perceived need on the basis of poverty or gender. The less poor accessed health care more than the poor, but this difference was significant only among males. Respondents who lived in urban areas accessed health care more than those in rural areas, but this difference was significant only among females. We argue that health care financing arrangements affect self-reported need and access to health care. Even when they perceive need, the poor do not access care, probably because of cost, exacerbated by non-availability of readily accessible health care facilities

Cystercercus Larva in the Anterior Chamber of the Eye of a 7- year-old Nigerian Girl

The case of a 7 year old Nigerian girl with features of traumatic uveitis which was later found to have anterior chamber cestode larva infestation is presented. Though uncommon, ocular cestode larva infestation should be considered when children present with features of ocular inflammation

Germplasm Collection of Highland Palms of Afikpo in Eastern Nigeria

The need for extensive germplasm collection to broaden the genetic base of the oil palm breeding material and to safeguard against crop vulnerability, inherent in growing of uniform and closely related cultivars over wide areas has become imperative. This paper highlights the oil palm germplasm collections from the highland areas of Afikpo in Eastern Nigeria. Fourteen oil palm accessions were collected from ten locations in Afikpo which do not form part of the continuous stretch of the oil palm belt and hitherto unexploited. Data on stem height, bunch weight, bunch length, bunch width, bunch spine length, bunch stalk weight, fruit length and width were recorded in-situ. Mesocarp, kernel, and shell to fruit ratios were computed. Elementary statistics (mean values, range and coefficient of variation) were evaluated using standard procedures. Results revealed very high variation for the fruit and bunch quality traits. It was however interesting to note the inheritance of most of the qualitative traits and their frequencies in the wild. Only nigrescens fruits were encountered in the groves while the dominant genotype for shell, the dura occurred at high frequency. The Ufensi Edda tenera had the highest mesocarp to fruit ratio (73.42%) while heavy bunch weight was recorded for the duras in the Oso Edda and Ndiba Edda groves. Height differences were generally very small in the tenera accessions than in the duras. The prospected fruits have been used to raise seedlings for future planting in the field gene banks following introgression into the breeding programme. Keywords: Afikpo, coefficient of variation, Edda grove, germplasm, mesocarp to fruit ratio, nigrescen

Is the Art of Renal Biopsy on the Decline in Nigeria?

Background: Renal biopsy remains the means by which definitive parenchymal kidney disease diagnoses are made. With the renal biopsy, the activity, progression and prognosis of renal parenchymal diseases can be studied with objectivity. We investigated the trend of renal histopathology request in a tertiary hospital in Nigeria over 31 years.Objective: To determine the trend of renal biopsy requests in one of the biggest tertiary hospitals in Nigeria over a 31-year period (1981- 2011).Methods: We retrospectively analysed all the renal biopsies submitted to the Department of Pathology, University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, South-West Nigeria over a 30 year period (1981-2011). Trend of requests of all the biopsies submitted from the Surgery, Paediatrics and Medicine departments was analysed using a test for linear  trend. Gender and age groups trends were also studied.Results: A significant reduction in the rates of renal biopsy request over the 31-year period (p=0.001) was noted which is attributed to diminution in requests from the Medicine and Paediatrics Departments (p<0.001), while the rates of requests from Surgery Department remain fairly uniform over this period (p=0.05). Decrease in biopsy requests significantly cuts across the ages in both genders. Conclusion: Lack of adequately trained manpower, poor health insurance scheme and lack of facilities may be contributory in renal biopsy requests decline. Adequate efforts should be made towards reviving this important investigative modality in Nigerian tertiary hospitals.Keywords: Kidney, Biopsy, Histology, Trend test, UCH Ibadan

In vitro effects of metals and pesticides on dehydrogenase activity in microbial community of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) rhizoplane

Effects of heavy metals and pesticides on cowpea (Vigna unquiculata) rhizoplane microbial community  were assessed in vitro via dehydrogenase activity. The microbial community was exposed to various concentrations of heavy metals and pesticides in a nutrient broth-glucose-2,3,5-triphenyl chloride (TTC) medium. At 0.2 mM, iron and cadmium stimulated the dehydrogenase activity of the microbialcommunity. For all the metal ions, there was progressive inhibition with each successive increase in the concentration of metal ion, reaching near 100% at 0.6, 0.8, 1.2, 0.12 and 12 mM for cobalt, cadmium,iron, mercury and nickel, respectively. Between 0.2 and 0.4 mM, zinc sharply inhibited dehydrogenase activity and at concentration above 0.4 mm, inhibition of dehydrogenase activity became lesspronounced. The order of toxicity is Hg2+ > Co2+ > Cd2+ > Zn2+ > Fe2+ > Ni2+. The herbicides Cotrazine (Atrazine 80W) and Northrin®10EC stimulated dehydrogenase activity of the microbial community at 0.2% and inhibited it at higher concentrations. The median inhibitory concentrations (IC50s) of Cotrazine(Atrazine 80W) and Northrin®10EC were 0.552 ± 0.028 and 0.593 ± 0.051%, respectively. The dehydrogenase activity varied significantly (p < 0.05) with the type and concentrations of metals orpesticides. The result indicates that the heavy metals and pesticides are potentially toxic to V. unquiculata root surface microorganisms. In soil, this toxicity may affect nitrogen fixation processes and by extrapolation affect crop yield

Knowledge of the Human Papilloma Virus vaccines, and opinions of Gynaecologists on its implementation in Nigeria

The objective of this study was to determine the knowledge and perception of Nigerian Obstetricians and Gynaecologists towards human papilloma virus vaccine use in Nigeria. A cross sectional study was conducted amongst participants that attended the 42nd Society of Gynaecology and Obstetrics of Nigeria. The findings revealed that 44.5% knew the correct HPV vaccine schedule. Regarding implementation in Nigeria, 87.4% suggested its incorporation into the national immunization program and about a third agreed that it should be a precondition for school enrolment. Regression analysis showed that senior residents were more likely to have adequate knowledge of the vaccine compared to junior residents (AOR 7.181 95% CI OR=1.792 – 28.782). We conclude that the knowledge of eligibility and schedule is poor. It is recommended that adequate information should be provided to this group of health workers because of their strategic position in its implementation in Nigeria (Afr J Reprod Health 2013); 17[2]:150-156).Keywords: Human papilloma Virus Vaccine, HPV, Knowledge, Perception, Nigeri

A novel nonparametric item response theory approach to measuring socioeconomic position: a comparison using household expenditure data from a Vietnam health survey, 2003

BACKGROUND: Measures of household socio-economic position (SEP) are widely used in health research. There exist a number of approaches to their measurement, with Principal Components Analysis (PCA) applied to a basket of household assets being one of the most common. PCA, however, carries a number of assumptions about the distribution of the data which may be untenable, and alternative, non-parametric, approaches may be preferred. Mokken scale analysis is a non-parametric, item response theory approach to scale development which appears never to have been applied to household asset data. A Mokken scale can be used to rank order items (measures of wealth) as well as households. Using data on household asset ownership from a national sample of 4,154 consenting households in the World Health Survey from Vietnam, 2003, we construct two measures of household SEP. Seventeen items asking about assets, and utility and infrastructure use were used. Mokken Scaling and PCA were applied to the data. A single item measure of total household expenditure is used as a point of contrast. RESULTS: An 11 item scale, out of the 17 items, was identified that conformed to the assumptions of a Mokken Scale. All the items in the scale were identified as strong items (Hi > .5). Two PCA measures of SEP were developed as a point of contrast. One PCA measure was developed using all 17 available asset items, the other used the reduced set of 11 items identified in the Mokken scale analaysis. The Mokken Scale measure of SEP and the 17 item PCA measure had a very high correlation (r = .98), and they both correlated moderately with total household expenditure: r = .59 and r = .57 respectively. In contrast the 11 item PCA measure correlated moderately with the Mokken scale (r = .68), and weakly with the total household expenditure (r = .18). CONCLUSION: The Mokken scale measure of household SEP performed at least as well as PCA, and outperformed the PCA measure developed with the 11 items used in the Mokken scale. Unlike PCA, Mokken scaling carries no assumptions about the underlying shape of the distribution of the data, and can be used simultaneous to order household SEP and items. The approach, however, has not been tested with data from other countries and remains an interesting, but under researched approach

The Structure Of The Tapping Panel Of Raphia hookeri,(Mann and Wendl).

The Raphia palm is known for its main product, palm wine, an alcoholic beverage obtained by skilfully harvesting the palm sap through incisions made at the apex of the palm at the onset of emergence of the palm’s massive inflorescence. During the duration of tapping the palm for wine,which varies from 7 to 60 days, sap flow is induced through the removal of thin slices of tissues of three major structures in the panel- the emerging petioles of the short spear leaves, the emerging primary branch inflorescences and the main inflorescence axis. The transverse section of these three structures is described through the dissection of the tapping panel

Impact of bilateral orchidectomy on men with advanced carcinoma of prostate. A short communication

The incidence of carcinoma of the prostate is increasing among the black Africans. Many more patients are however diagnosed with a late stage disease. As a result the patients are only amenable to palliative treatment in the form of androgen deprivation therapy. Bilateral orchidectomy is the treatment of choice for most of the patients mainly for financial reason. In this study we evaluated the impact of bilateral orchidectomy on patients who were treated for advanced carcinoma of the prostate. A structured questionnaire was administered to a consecutive series of patients attending our out-patient follow up clinic after bilateral orchidectomy for advanced prostate cancer. Fifty –six patients responded. The mean age of the patients was 69.9years. All the patients presented with features of an advanced disease. After orchidectomy the most common complications were impotence in 42 (72%) patients and hot flushes in 40 (71.4%). Fifty- four of the 56 patients (96.4%) were satisfied with bilateral orchidectomy. The study showed that though bilateral Orchidectomy has unpleasant complications, it was well accepted by many of our patients when they are adequately counseled

Packaging of oil palm seedlets/seedlings for air freighting

The mode of exporting oil palm planting materials from one country to another is by air and only sprouted seeds have been so transported. This method ensures that the seeds get to their destinations in good time and in healthy condition. Presently, there are indications that other forms of planting materials viz: seedlets and transplantable seedlings may be required for airfreighting. Oil palm seedlets of 4 - 5 leaf stage and nine month old seedlings with roots dipped in 0.2% Dithane M 45 solution to prevent fungal attack were used for this study. The roots of the seedlets and seedlings were given different treatment viz: dipping in clay slurry, planting in reduced soil, sawdust and with naked roots. The seedlets and seedlings were packaged in particle foam crates and stored at 18&#176C for 14 days. They were then transplanted into nursery polybags, filled, and scored for survival and growth. It was concluded from the study that it would be more feasible and cost effective to engage in the air transportation of preheated seeds, sprouted seeds or seedlets than planting materials in form of transplantable seedlings.Keywords: oil palm, seedlets, seedlings, freightingJournal of Agriculture, Forestry and the Social Sciences Vol 3(1) 2005: 146-15