Persistence of onchocerciasis in villages in Enugu and Ogun states in Nigeria following many rounds of mass distribution of ivermectin

BACKGROUND: Onchocerciasis is endemic in most local government areas (LGAs) in Enugu and Ogun states. Most meso- and hyper-endemic LGAs have received many rounds of ivermectin mass drug administration (MDA). This study aimed to determine the current prevalence of onchocerciasis in villages in Enugu and Ogun states that were formerly highly endemic and to assess progress toward elimination of the infection in areas believed to be at high risk for persistence. METHODS: Cross-sectional community surveys were conducted 8 to 12 months after the last round of MDA in 16 villages (6 in Enugu state and 10 in Ogun state) in individuals aged ≥ 18 years. Study participants were examined for the presence of palpable subcutaneous nodules. Skin snips from the posterior iliac crests were used to assess microfiladermia (Mf) prevalence and density. RESULTS: 643 subjects were palpated for nodules and 627 individuals (225 in Enugu state; 402 in Ogun state) provided skin snips. Nodule prevalence in the study villages ranged from 42 to 66.7% in Enugu state and from 0 to 25.0% in Ogun state. Mf prevalence in the Enugu and Ogun study villages ranged from 32 to 51.1% and 0 to 28.6%, respectively. Geometric mean skin Mf density in surveyed Enugu state villages ranged between 1 and 3.1 Mf/mg; these values were \u3c 1 Mf/mg in all but one community in Ogun state villages. CONCLUSION: Results from this study show that onchocerciasis persists in adults in many villages in Enugu and Ogun states despite many prior rounds of ivermectin MDA. Prevalence was higher in villages surveyed in Enugu than in Ogun. Low Mf densities suggest the MDA program is working well to reduce disease, but more time will be required to reach the elimination goal

Stress Among Parents of Hospitalized Infants in NICU: Effects on Parental Needs and Expectations

Abstract. Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) environment has the potential to exacerbate stress for parents of infants admitted to the unit. This study investigated the stress among parents of hospitalized infants in neonatal intensive care unit, and its effects on parental needs and expectations. Convenient sampling method was used to select 216 parents of at-risk infants in the NICU from two Teaching Hospitals in the South-East Zone of Nigeria. Two research questions and three null hypotheses guided the study. Parental Stressor Scale: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Parental Self -report Scale on coping measures were used to measure the stress among the parents. A parent -infant demographic information was obtained and used to determine the extent to which the characteristics serve as stress predictors. Mean score, standard deviation (SD) and Spearman Rank correlation Coefficient (rho) were used to answer the research questions while Chi-square, Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney U tests were adopted in testing the null hypotheses at 0.01 level of significance. Parental stress for NICU infant behaviour and appearance significantly correlated with parental role alteration while infant gestational age correlated with parental stress for NICU staff behaviour and communication. Significant differences resulted in parental self-report of coping measures and their role alterations with regard to number of children born by parents and across the fertility history of the parents respectively. Parents of infants in the NICU need to take more active part in decision making and care of their infants

Bio-Efficacy of Insecticide-Treated Bednets (ITNs) Distributed through the Healthcare Facilities in a Boundary Community in Nigeria

This study was conducted to evaluate the susceptibility and efficacy of three insecticidal treated bednets; Olyset®, PermaNet2.0® and MAGNet® collected from the different health facilities, against Anopheles mosquitoes under laboratory conditions. PermaNet3.0 was used as a positive control. Larval collections were carried out and reared at the insectary of National Arbovirus and Vector Research Centre, Enugu State. Anopheles Kisumu mosquitoes were used as the standard control in the cone bioassay test. The bioassay showed that the wild An. gambiae s.l. and An. gambiae Kisumu strains were susceptible (100% mortality) to the PermaNet3.0® used as positive control while the wild-caught Anopheles were resistant to the mono-treated ITNs. The mortality effect of the net brands showed that the brands have a statistically significant effect on the mosquito mortality after 24 hours F (2, 18) = 14.32, p < .001), while the sides of the net did not have a statistically significant effect on the mosquito mortality (F (3, 18) = 1.67, p = .209). This study also suggests the need to develop and adopt routine monitoring of the ITNs at the health facilities, as it will inform the replacement of ineffective nets. However, a mass campaign of PBO nets is necessary for the state to achieve and maintain the universal coverage of ITNs

A survey of plant-parasitic nematodes of yam farms in Awka-North local government area, Anambra state, Nigeria.

Objective: Soil-inhabiting plant parasitic nematodes of yam were investigated in yam fields in Awka-North Local Government Area of Anambra state, Nigeria.Methodology and Results: Three farmlands each were randomly selected for sampling from the seven communities that make up the study area. Five yam plants were also randomly selected from each farm for sampling. Soil samples around the roots of each plant were collected using a hand trowel at a depth of 15- 30 cm. The relative percentage composition of nematodes in soils and yam tubers from each of the sampled communities (in 10mL of extract suspension) was determined at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Ibadan. The results showed that Pratylenchus sp. 140 (40.60%) were the most prevalent species in the soil samples followed by Meloidogyne sp. 95 (27.54%), Scutellonema sp. 50 (14.50%), Helicotylenchus spp. 25 (7.25%), Criconema sp. 20 (5.80%), Radopholus sp. 10 (2.90%) and cysts of Heterodera sp. being the least prevalent with prevalence rate of 5 (1.45%). Similarly, out of the 180 plant parasitic nematodes recovered from the yam tubers, 130 (72.22%) were Pratylenchus spp., 40 (22.24%) were Scutellonema spp., 5 each (2.78%) were Meloidogyne spp. and Radopholus spp. respectively. However, Helicotylenchus spp., Criconema spp. and cyst nematodes were not encountered in yam tuber samples. Amansea and Isuaniocha had the highest level of both soil and yam parasitic nematode infestation, although difference with respect to percentage composition of nematodes in the samples and the communities were not significantly different (P&gt;0.05). However, there was a significant difference (P&lt; 0.05) between the number of nematode genera encountered in the soil and tuber samples.Conclusion and application of results: The presence of these parasitic nematodes in the study area suggests that they can be important pathogens of yams although their presence has usually been neglected. The presence of these plant parasitic nematodes could constitute serious impediments to the growth and yield of yams in Awka-North L.G.A.Key Words: Soil nematodes, Meloidogyne, Helicotylenchus, Dioscorea spp