Hand hygiene practices post ebola virus disease outbreak in a Nigerian teaching hospital

Introduction: Ebola virus disease (EVD) is a highly contagious viral infection that requires a high risk perception and practice of good hand hygiene by regular hand washing or use of hand sanitizers for infection control at all time. The declaration of Nigeria as an Ebola-free country by the World Health Organization on the 20th of October, 2014 has prompted many Nigerians, including healthcare workers, to discontinue the regular practice of good hand hygiene which was commonplace during the EVD outbreak.Objectives: The study assessed hand hygiene practices for infection control after the West African Ebola virus disease outbreak in a Nigerian teaching hospital.Methods: This study was cross-sectional in design. A total of 450 staff of the University College Hospital, Ibadan participated in the survey. Data was collected using a structured, self-administered questionnaire. Chi-square test and multivariate logistic regression were used to determine associations between predictors of good hand hygiene practice at 5% level of significance.Result: The mean age was 42.2 ± 8.6 years. A higher proportion of respondents in this study had a good knowledge of the risk factors of EVD; good knowledge of the precautionary measures against EVD and a good risk perception towards EVD. However, the majority of respondents, 359 (80.0%), had a poor practice of hand hygiene for infection control. Having good knowledge of risk factors and precautionary measures against EVD was associated with practice of good hand hygiene. Respondents with good risk perception of EVD were 1.63 times more likely to practice good hand hygiene (OR= 1.63; 95% CI= 1.20 – 4.38; p= 0.019).Conclusion: There was a good knowledge of risk factors and precautionary measures of EVD among staff of the University College Hospital, Ibadan. However, the majority of respondents had a poor practice of hand hygiene for infection control, Post EVD. Sensitization workshops to promote the regular practice of good hand hygiene is recommended for healthcare workers to control infection from EVD.Keywords: Hand hygiene, Ebola virus disease, University College Hospita

Management of septic sludge in Southwest Nigeria

This paper describes our experience on septic sludge management in a (South Western) Nigerian City, Ibadan, with a sprawling population of about 2.9 million. The main objectives of the study included assessment of the current management practices as far as septic sludge is concerned as well as design of a feasible management system

Assessment of Renewable Sources of Energy for Residential Estate in Lagos State

The study investigated the use of renewable energy sources for residential estates in Lagos state; identified the available energy sources in the study area, determined the factors influencing the choice and utilization of renewable sources in the study area and examined the level of satisfaction derived from the chosen energy source by residents of Lagos state. The study was aimed at investigating the possibility of making energy available for residential estates dwellers from renewable energy sources so as to enhance uninterrupted energy supply and promote sustainability. To achieve the aim and objectives of the study, both primary and secondary data were used. The study made use of primary data collected by administration of e-questionnaire (google form) to building users. Data collected included energy source used by residents, the level of awareness of residents about various renewable sources, average amount of money spent on energy monthly, daily hours of energy supply, level of satisfaction derived from energy sources used. Data collected were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social it was analyzed using frequencies, mean score and tables. The result from the sources of energy used by residents in Lagos state revealed that 74% of buildings make use of generators alongside the energy provided from national grids. The result from the number of hours of energy supply daily revealed that residents only have access to electricity being an end use of energy for maximum of 8 hours. The level of awareness of residents revealed that 51.7%, 21.2%, 17.2%, 10.3%, 17.7% and 30.5% of the respondents are well informed about a possibility of generating energy from solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, biogas, and hydropower respectively. To promote the use of energy generated from renewables, the study made recommendations for intensified awareness schemes on the socioeconomic and environmental benefits of renewable energy sources, adequate investment in critical areas of renewable R&D and policy adjustments to create an investor friendly environment to attract greater renewable energy investment

Institutional stakeholder perceptions of barriers to Green IT policy in Nigeria

This article inductively identifies barriers and limitations to Green IT policy as perceived by IT and environmental regulators in Nigeria. Qualitative interviews were conducted with the set of senior executive managers of Nigerian regulators who share Green IT as a key remit. The data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Although mostly reactive, Green IT policy in Nigeria has mainly targeted e-waste and incentivized innovative uses of renewable energy. However, insufficient financial provision towards the promotion of Green IT was perceived to hinder efficient regulatory activities. Similarly, poor energy infrastructure and insufficient collection and recycling facilities prevented the regulators from enforcing Green IT strategies. Major impeding barriers were also reported at the levels of policy ownership and control. This article is valuable to public administration agencies who must collaborate to address the issues of information technology/information systems and sustainability. It exposes regulators’ perceived difficulty to establish lines of accountability between agencies that intervene in Green IT policy, from the perspective of a developing country. Each regulator is currently focused on taking individual efforts and steps which are perceived to lead to conflict in policies and overlapping authority. As remedial action we propose tighter coordination amongst regulators who share Green IT as a key remit

Anti-SARS-CoV-2 inactivated vaccine in patients with ANCA-associated vasculitis: Immunogenicity, safety, antibody decay and the booster dose

Objective: To evaluate inactivated CoronaVac prime vaccination, antibody decay, booster dose, and safety in ANCA-Associated Vasculitis (AAV) patients. Methods: Fifty-three AAV patients and 106 Controls (CG) received CoronaVac on days: D0 (first dose), D28(second dose), and D210 (booster dose, 32 AAV: 32 CG). The primary outcome was immunogenicity after the second vaccine dose (day 69) assessed by Seroconversion Rates (SC) of anti-SARS-CoV-2 S1/S2 IgG and Neutralizing Antibodies (NAb). Secondary outcomes were safety, immunogenicity (D28/D240), 6-months antibody decay (D210) and the booster dose response (D240). Results: At D69 SC (65.1% vs. 96.8%, p = 0.0001), GMT (21.3 UA/mL vs. 67.7 UA/mL, p < 0.001) and NAb- positivity (53.7% vs. 80.6%, p = 0.001) were moderate but lower in naïve-AAV patients than CG. Patients without SC used more often IS (93.3% vs. 53.3%, p = 0.015), mycophenolate mofetil (20% vs. 0%, p = 0.037) and prednisone (60.0% vs. 28.6%, p = 0.057) than seroconverted. NAb negativity in AAV patients was associated with prednisone treatment (57.9% vs. 18.2%, p = 0.015) and IS (84.2% vs. 55.0%, p = 0.046). Logistic regression analysis models showed that only prednisone was associated with lower seroconversion (OR = 0.2, 0,95% CI 0.05‒0.86, p = 0.030) and with lower NAb positivity (OR = 0.2, 0,95% CI 0.05‒0.88, p = 0.034). After six months (D69‒D210) a decrease in IgG positivity occurred in 32 AAV patients (15.7%, p = 0.074) and 32 CG (18.7%, p = 0.041). For the NAb positivity, the 6-month decrease was not significant (p = 0.114) whereas a major reduction occurred for CG (p < 0.001). A booster dose (D240) resulted in an increment in IgG-positivity (21.9%, p = 0.023) and NAb-positivity (34.4%, p = 0.006) in AAV patients. No moderate/severe adverse events attributable to the vaccine were observed. Conclusion: This study provides novel data on the excellent safety and moderate immunogenicity of CoronaVac in AAV patients. A six-month mild antibody waning was observed with a good response to the booster dose, although levels remained lower than CG (CoronavRheum-NCT04754698)

Paving Plant-Food-Derived Bioactives as Effective Therapeutic Agents in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder, where social and communication deficits and repetitive behaviors are present. Plant-derived bioactives have shown promising results in the treatment of autism. In this sense, this review is aimed at providing a careful view on the use of plant-derived bioactive molecules for the treatment of autism. Among the plethora of bioactives, curcumin, luteolin, and resveratrol have revealed excellent neuroprotective effects and can be effectively used in the treatment of neuropsychological disorders. However, the number of clinical trials is limited, and none of them have been approved for the treatment of autism or autism-related disorder. Further clinical studies are needed to effectively assess the real potential of such bioactive molecules

Manejo da irrigação e fertirrigação com nitrogênio sobre as características químicas da videira 'Niágara Rosada'

A qualidade da uva pode responder ao manejo da irrigação e ao ajuste da adubação nitrogenada. Assim, este trabalho teve como objetivo estudar o efeito do manejo de irrigação e doses de nitrogênio sobre a qualidade da uva 'Niagara Rosada' no município de Colatina-ES. Foram avaliadas três doses de nitrogênio, aplicadas via fertirrigação: 35, 70 e 140g planta-1 e quatro estratégias de manejo de irrigação. No início do experimento até a fase de maturação das bagas, todos os tratamentos receberam a mesma lâmina de irrigação, elevando-se a umidade do solo à capacidade de campo (M1=100%). Após este período, foram avaliados mais três estratégias de manejo de irrigação: m²=67%, M3=33% e M4=0% da lâmina correspondente ao tratamento M1. Foram avaliados os teores de sólidos solúveis (SS), pH e acidez titulável (AT). Os resultados indicaram que os tratamentos sob déficit hídrico (M3 e M4), nas doses de 70 e 140g planta-1 apresentaram maiores teores de SS e pH das bagas e diminuição dos valores de AT