Sonographic Determination of Normative Values of Infra-Renal Aortic Diameter in a Negroid Population in Nigeria

Objective: To establish normal values of infra-renal aortic diameter and to determine its relationship with anthropometric variables.Methods: A prospective and cross sectional clinical study involving 742 subjects (369 males and 373 females) aged 18 to 45 years which was carried out in Nigeria in 2012. Subjects were scanned supine and at rest. Measurements were taken from freezed longitudinal images using an exterior landmark of lumbar regions and an interior landmark of aortic bifurcation. The average of two values was recorded as the infra-renal aortic diameter. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences v16.0 was used for data analyses. The probability value adopted for statistical significance was p < 0.05.Results: The mean infra-renal aortic diameter for male and female subjects was 15.0mm ± 1.8mm and 13.5 ± 2.0mm respectively. There was a statistically significant difference between both means (p = 0.000). Pearson correlation showed significant correlations between infra-renal aortic diameter and waist circumference (r = 0.493), weight (r = 0.465), BSA (r = 0.432), BMI (r = 0.403), height (r = 0.238) and age (r = - 0.033). Conclusion: A normogram for infra-renal aortic diameter is generated. The study would be relevant in the determination of abdominal aortic dilatation in young adults. It might also find usefulness in pre-transplantation assessment of the vessel and screening of siblings of patient who have infra-renal aortic aneurysm

Assessment of Indoor Radon Concentration Levels in Offices of University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus, Nigeria

Background: Indoor radon concentration levels are an essential component for assessing radiation exposure to populations. Indoor Radon levels have not been reported for offices of academic staff of The University of Nigeria, Enugu, which is located on a hilly rocky plain.Purpose: To establish potential for radiation hazards to persons using offices for extended periods of time.Materials and Methods: Four offices were randomly selected from each of the five faculties in the campus, making a total of twenty surveyed offices. Short term Electret Ion Chamber Technology (EIC) with the trade name E-PERMTM was employed for the measurement of radon concentration in the offices.Results: Average indoor radon concentration in the offices range between 2.5 Bq m-3 to 21.3 Bq m-3 with an arithmetic mean of 11.8 Bq m-3.Conclusion: Indoor Radon levels in University of Nigeria, Enugu Campus offices is currently within acceptable safe limits

Sonographic assessment of petroleum-induced hepatotoxicity in Nigerians: does biochemical assessment underestimate liver damage?

Background: Exposure to petroleum products has been shown to have significant adverse effects on the liver which can manifest either as morphological or physiological changes.Objectives: The aim of the study was to assess the effects of chronic exposure to some petroleum products on the liver of exposed workers using sonography and to determine whether biochemical assessments underestimated hepatotoxicity.Methods: Abdominal ultrasound was performed on 415 exposed workers in order to evaluate liver echogenicity and size. Also, biochemical assessment of the liver was done to evaluate its functionResults: Statistically significant increase in the liver parenchymal echogenicity and the liver size was seen in the exposed workers compared with control (p ≤ 0.05). These increased as the exposure duration increased. It was also noted that out of 16.87% (N=70) exposed workers with abnormal liver echopattern, only 2.65% (N=11) had alanine aminotransferase above the reference range.Conclusion: The study revealed evidence of ultrasound detectable hepatotoxicity among the exposed subjects. Sonography appeared to detect petroleum products-induced hepatic toxicity more than biochemical assays suggesting that biochemical assessment may have underestimated toxicity.Keywords: Petroleum Products, Exposure, Hepatotoxicity, Sonography, Biochemical assessment, Nigeri

Sonographic assessment of petroleum-induced hepatotoxicity in Nigerians: does biochemical assessment underestimate liver damage?

Background: Exposure to petroleum products has been shown to have significant adverse effects on the liver which can manifest either as morphological or physiological changes. Objectives: The aim of the study was to assess the effects of chronic exposure to some petroleum products on the liver of exposed workers using sonography and to determine whether biochemical assessments underestimated hepatotoxicity. Methods: Abdominal ultrasound was performed on 415 exposed workers in order to evaluate liver echogenicity and size. Also, biochemical assessment of the liver was done to evaluate its function Results: Statistically significant increase in the liver parenchymal echogenicity and the liver size was seen in the exposed workers compared with control (p 64 0.05). These increased as the exposure duration increased. It was also noted that out of 16.87% (N=70) exposed workers with abnormal liver echopattern, only 2.65% (N=11) had alanine aminotransferase above the reference range. Conclusion: The study revealed evidence of ultrasound detectable hepatotoxicity among the exposed subjects. Sonography appeared to detect petroleum products-induced hepatic toxicity more than biochemical assays suggesting that biochemical assessment may have underestimated toxicity

Intracranial CT findings in traumatic brain injury: A retrospective, cross-sectional study among Igbo population in Nigeria

Introduction: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of death and disability and in recent years has been increasingly reported even in developing countries. Computed Tomography (CT) plays a key role in accurate TBI diagnosis and management. The objective of this study was to document the pattern of CT findings in TBI cases reported from Igbo people, in Nigeria. Method: In this retrospective, cross-sectional study, a sample of 287 patients, who were consecutively referred to the CT Unit of the Radiology Department of Federal Medical Centre in Umuahia, Nigeria, between January 2015 and December 2016, on account of trauma to the head was reviewed. Only CT scan without contrast and intracranial findings were considered. Descriptive statistics (frequency and percentages) and confidential intervals were collected. Results: After applying exclusion criteria, our sample comprised 242 patients (M = 163, 67.4%; mean age 32.6 ± 17.6 years). The peak age range was 20–29 years. Abnormal findings were reported for 205 patients (84.72%, 95% Confidential Interval [CI] 80.0 to 86.8). Cerebral oedema was the most common finding observed in the study (n = 64, 24.44%, CI 19.03% to 29.85%), followed by subarachnoid haemorrhage (n = 41, 16.94%, CI 12.21% to 21.67%) and epidural haematoma (n = 26, 10.74%, CI 6.84% to 14.64%). Only 37 patients (15.28%) showed normal findings. Main reported causal factors of TBI were: Road Traffic Accidents (RTA) (35.5%), falls (20.2%) and assault (15.7%). Most cases of RTA (34.9%) occurred in the age group of 20–29 years. Discussion and Conclusion: CT brain without contrast is useful in screening of patients with TBI. In this Nigeria-based study the most common cause of TBI was RTA and cerebral oedema was the most common intracranial finding reported