HIV/AIDS Awareness Amongst Female Adolescents in Owerri

Objective: The objective of this study was to ascertain the level of awareness, knowledge and attitude of female secondary school students to the disease.Method: Pre tested structured questionnaires were distributed to randomly selected female students of four secondary schools in Owerri .Results: The mean age of the students was 15.7 years. All the students knew about the disease getting most of their information from television (31.7%) and radio (27.2%).The aetiological agent of HIV/AIDS was known by 76.3% of the students while blood test was correctly identified as the best method of diagnosis. Only 49.8% mentioned the condom as a method of prevention .The routes of transmission mentioned were blood transfusion 91%,sharing of needles and syringes 91.9% and sexual intercourse 85.2% and mother to child transmission by 69.3% of the students. Methods of prevention of mother to child transmission mentioned were the use of anti retroviral drugs in pregnancy( 41.6%),avoidance of breast feeding( 53%), giving anti retroviraldrugs to the newborn (34.2%) and delivery by caesarean section( 19.4%) .The use of strong antibiotics in pregnancy was wrongly identified as a method of preventing mother to child transmission by 47.1% of the students..Conclusion: The level of awareness is high but there still exists large gaps in knowledge which suggest that more effort should be put into imparting more detailed information to the students

Awareness and use of emergency contraception by students of Federal University of Technology, Owerri

Questionnaires were distributed to 335 randomly selected female students of Federal University of Technology Owerri in order to determine the awareness, knowledge and sources of information on emergency contraception. It was found that 29.5% of the respondents had had an induced abortion while 74.6% had used family planning .The percentage that correctly identified postinor, oral contraceptive and intra uterine contraceptive as methods of emergency contraception was 9;15.7; and 4.3 % respectively. Only 16.5% knew the correct timing of emergency contraception and the main sources of information were doctors (19%) and pharmacists (15.8%) The potential benefits of emergency contraception remain largely untapped .It is suggested that all fresh students should be given talks on family planning as part of their orientation

Reasons for, and timing of ultrasound requests in pregnant women in Owerri south eastern Nigeria

Although ultrasonography is an important investigation in obstetrics not much information is available about its use in developing countries. The study is across sectional questionnaire study of two hundred and fifty pregnant women who presented for ultrasound to the St Elizabeth hospital ultrasound centre between January 1st and June 30th 2010.Most of the patients were aged between 20-29(58%), married (93.2%), had 1-4 children (52.4%), and tertiary education (55.6%). The major indications were determination of fetal well being, dating and viability determination in that order. Most of the patients presented in the third trimester and only 66 (26.4%) presented on or before 22 weeks the ideal time for anomaly scan. It is concluded that physicians should be better educated so that they can refer patientsearlier to benefit maximally from ultrasound scanning. There is also a need for more studies on ultrasound in developing countries

Stillbirths at the Federal Medical Center Owerri

Background: A stillbirth is a calamity and causes great distress both to parents and to the attending obstetrician or midwife. There is a paucity of information about stillbirths in Imo State, Nigeria. Aim : This study is to determine the causes and rate of stillbirths in Federal Medical Centre Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria. Method: This is a retrospective study of 296 stillbirths at st Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, between 1 of January2000 st and December 31 2004. Results: The stillbirth rate was 59.6/1000 deliveries. Most cases,208(72.7%), occurred in unbooked patients and nullipara accounted for 34.4% of cases. Most 126(44.1%) cases were in the 26-30 year age range and the major risk factors were pre-eclampsia 40(13.9%),abruptio placentae 39(13.6%), prolonged obstructed labour 30(10.5%)and prolonged pregnancy 28(9.8%). Conclusion: Most cases of stillbirth were preventable and could be avoided by simple measures like antenatal care booking, delivery under the care of skilled personnel and early referral to centres that could perform caesarean section. The role of congenital abnormalities needs to be researched as the absence of postmortem examination made it impossible to determine their contribution. Key words: Stillbirths, causes, Tertiary Centre, Nigeria

The Relevance of Corporate Affairs Commission to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMES) in Nigeria (A Study of Konum Farms Limited, Amai, Delta State)

This study examined the relevance of Corporate Affairs Commission to Small and Medium  Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria with a case study of KONUM FARMS Limited, Amai, Delta State. The research problem is borne out of the general outcry that government establishments do not perform efficiently and effectively because they are not profit oriented organizations. The objectives of the study were, among others, to appraise the functions and roles of Corporate Affairs Commission as a regulatory body under the Nigeria Law. The research questions and hypotheses were structured in line with the objectives of the study. The research methodology explained the techniques adopted in carrying out the study. The descriptive research design was used. The population of the study comprised the Management and Staff of Konum Farms Limited, Amai. The sample size was determined using the simple percentage statistical tool. A questionnaire instrument was used for data collection. The data were presented in tables and analyzed in percentages. The chi-square was used to test the hypotheses. The findings were, among others: (i) that frequent changes and sometimes conflicting government monetary policies had in many ways tended to hurt SMEs in Nigeria. (ii) that government neglected SMEs in the area of incentives and infrastructural development to facilitate business entity. (iii) that government does not give SMEs in Nigeria financial support in order to thrive. It was recommended, among others, (i) that government should stop improper implementation of its policies towards SMEs. (ii) that government should enhance its incentive measures and infrastructural development to SMEs. (iii) that government should adequately support the SMEs through lending institutions to enhance their capacity base

Pattern of Ultrasound Scanning in Owerri South Eastern Nigeria

BACKGROUND: The gynaecologist is called upon daily to diagnose pelvic pathologies. Ultrasound is a useful, safe and widely used method of investigation of such problems.OBJECTIVE: To determine the indications and findings of pelvic ultrasound in Owerri, South Eastern Nigeria.METHOD: Two hundred and fifty consecutive women referred for pelvic ultrasound in Owerri South Eastern Nigeria were examined by abdominal and transvaginal ultrasound.RESULTS: Most 148(59.2%) of the patients were nulliparous and majority 108(43.2%) were in the 30-39year age group. Doctors referred most 164(64%) of the patients, while 74(29.6%) were self referred. The most common indication was ‘to check the womb’ in 89(35.6%) of cases followed by threatened abortion in 30(12%) of patients. The most common post ultrasound diagnosis was ‘normal uterus’ in 111(44.4%) while fibromyoma was second with 41(16.4%) of patients. On the whole abnormalities were picked up in 36.4% of patients.CONCLUSION: We conclude that pelvic ultrasound even when not originating from the doctor should be encouraged because of the significant number of abnormalities detected. These could then be treated with greater success while they are still small

Maternal hiv positive sero-prevalence at delivery at a tertiary hospital in south-eastern Nigeria

Background Key Words: Maternal HIV positive sero-prevalence, delivery, birth sex ratio,Orlu.: The duo of HIV/AIDS infection has become a Global public health problem. This study was conducted to determine the maternal HIV positive seroprevalence at delivery at the Imo State University Teaching Hospital, Orlu. Methods: A retrospective analysis of the case records of women (both booked and unbooked) who tested positive to Human Immune-deficiency Virus at delivery at the Imo State University Teaching Hospital (IMSUTH), Orlu from 1st May 2005 to 30th April 2010 was made. The biosocial, obstetric and fetal sex data were extracted and analysed. Results: The maternal HIV positive sero-prevalence at delivery was 6.9%. The highest sero prevalence rate of 42.4% occurred in the age group of 31-35years. Sixty three (68.5%) of the women were multiparous (para 1- 4). The male: female birth ratio was 1 : 1.42. Forty one (44.6%) of the women were unbooked. None of the women were symptomatic of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) on presentation. Conclusion: There is high maternal HIV seroprevalence at delivery at IMSUTH, Orlu. There should be improvement on interventions to reduce this ugly trend. There should also be early booking and adequate antenatal care services

Competitive Intelligence and Product Development/Innovations in Pharmaceutical Firms in Lagos State, Nigeria

This study examined competitive intelligence and product development and innovation in pharmaceutical firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. Three hypotheses were formulated to determine whether or not a relationship exist between competitive intelligence and product development and innovation in pharmaceutical firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. The study adopted a survey research design to obtain data, using a structured questionnaire which was analyzed using Pearson’s product moment coefficient of correlation. The result indicated that there exists a significant relationship between competitive intelligence and product development and innovation in pharmaceutical firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. Based on the finding it was concluded that the process of product development and innovation cannot be successful except there is information about customer’s needs, wants and expectations of which the innovation products or services intends to serve. The study recommended among others that pharmaceutical firms should leverage on information gathering and sharing to determine the nature of the new product and service so that the new product offerings will be more valued and satisfying than the existing ones that are offered by the competitors. Keywords:     Competitive Intelligence, Information gathering and sharing, Product Development and innovations, New products, New product offerings, Pharmaceutical firms

Relationship Between Exposure to Phthalate and Obesity in the United States

Obesity is a public health problem. The global obesity problem has been attributed to unhealthy diet, inactivity, and hereditary factors. However, phthalates may also contribute to the obesity epidemic. The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to examine whether there was a relationship between exposure to phthalates and obesity among adults 18 years and older in the United States. The theoretical framework was based on the socioecological model. The quantitative, cross-sectional design, and data analysis were based on the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2011-2012 database. Descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the association between phthalates, obesity, and other independent variables (phthalates exposure, socioeconomic status, gender, age, race/ethnicity, physical activity and place of residence) According to study results, exposure to phthalates does not have a statistically significant effect on the odds of obesity. In terms of the influence of the sociodemographic variables such as race, age, and gender on the relationship between total phthalate exposure and obesity, only race showed statistical significance at p \u3c 0.05. In addition, physical activity did not have influence on relationship between total phthalate exposure and obesity among adults 18 years and older in the United States. Despite the lack of significant relationships, the results of this study are useful in addressing the concerns about the exacerbation of obesity. The results of this study could enhance academic research by showing the effect of phthalate chemical exposure, age, gender, race/ethnicity, physical activity, income, and educational level on obesity