Sexuality in Nigerian older adults

Introduction: Oftentimes the older adults are assumed to be asexual as few studies explore into the sexuality of this age group worldwide and even in Nigeria. It is an important aspect of quality of life which is often neglected by people in this age group, attending physicians and the society as a whole. The study was aimed at determining the perception of older adults about sexuality, identify the factors that could militate against sexuality and fill any void in information in this regard. Methods: Descriptive study conducted in one hundred older adults. A semistructured questionnaire was administered to consenting participants between 1st of September 2013 and 31st of March 2014. Results: Mean age of respondents was 66.42± 5.77 years. Seventy-eight percent of the male respondents considered engaging in sexual activity as safe compared to 45.8% of the female respondents. More of the women (33.3%) regarded sexuality in the older adults as a taboo when compared to the men (5.4%). However, the men were more favourably disposed to discussing sexual problems than the women with their spouses (42% vs 20%) and Physicians (23.2% vs 0.0%). Major factors responsible for sexual inactivity were participants' medical ailments (65%), partners' failing health (15%) as well as anxiety about sexual performance (25%) in the men and dyspareunia (25%) in women. Conclusion: There is an urgent need to correct the misconception about sexuality in this age group especially among the women and for the physicians to explore the sexual history of every patient.Pan African Medical Journal 2015; 2

Assessment of genetic diversity among cultivated Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum, Poaceae) accessions from Benin, West Africa

UMR AGAP : équipe GE2popSimple sequence repeat (SSR) molecular markers were used for genetic diversity analysis and population structure of the cultivated Pearl millet in Benin, West Africa. In order to assess the level of genetic diversity, 14 polymorphic SSR markers were used to screen 114 accessions from different agro-ecological zones in Benin. SSR markers were found to reveal a total of 57 alleles with an average of 4.071 allele per locus. Genetic diversity index varied from 0.099 to 0.633 with an average of 0.405. The average observed heterozygosity was found to reach 0.425. The analysis of molecular variance showed no real differentiation between regions. Only 5% of genetic variation was observed between samples collected from north-eastern and north-western region. A high level of variation (95%) was observed among accessions. Moreover, both principal component analysis (PCA) and the dendrogram obtained from the genetic distance among accessions revealed the absence of any specific structuration of accessions from each region under study. Our results confirmed diversity among cultivated Pearl millet in Benin and such diversity is not clustering according to geographical patterns

Organizational readiness to implement task-strengthening strategy for hypertension management among people living with HIV in Nigeria

Abstract Background Hypertension (HTN) is highly prevalent among people living with HIV (PLHIV), but there is limited access to standardized HTN management strategies in public primary healthcare facilities in Nigeria. The shortage of trained healthcare providers in Nigeria is an important contributor to the increased unmet need for HTN management among PLHIV. Evidence-based TAsk-Strengthening Strategies for HTN control (TASSH) have shown promise to address this gap in other resource-constrained settings. However, little is known regarding primary health care facilities’ capacity to implement this strategy. The objective of this study was to determine primary healthcare facilities’ readiness to implement TASSH among PLHIV in Nigeria. Methods This study was conducted with purposively selected healthcare providers at fifty-nine primary healthcare facilities in Akwa-Ibom State, Nigeria. Healthcare facility readiness data were measured using the Organizational Readiness to Change Assessment (ORCA) tool. ORCA is based on the Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services (PARIHS) framework that identifies evidence, context, and facilitation as the key factors for effective knowledge translation. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (including mean ORCA subscales). We focused on the ORCA context domain, and responses were scored on a 5-point Likert scale, with 1 corresponding to disagree strongly. Findings Fifty-nine healthcare providers (mean age 45; standard deviation [SD]: 7.4, 88% female, 68% with technical training, 56% nurses, 56% with 1–5 years providing HIV care) participated in the study. Most healthcare providers provide care to 11–30 patients living with HIV per month in their health facility, with about 42% of providers reporting that they see between 1 and 10 patients with HTN each month. Overall, staff culture (mean 4.9 [0.4]), leadership support (mean 4.9 [0.4]), and measurement/evidence-assessment (mean 4.6 [0.5]) were the topped-scored ORCA subscales, while scores on facility resources (mean 3.6 [0.8]) were the lowest. Conclusion Findings show organizational support for innovation and the health providers at the participating health facilities. However, a concerted effort is needed to promote training capabilities and resources to deliver services within these primary healthcare facilities. These results are invaluable in developing future strategies to improve the integration, adoption, and sustainability of TASSH in primary healthcare facilities in Nigeria. Trial registration NCT05031819