Synthesis and antigiardial activity of formononetin analogues

The synthesis and antigiardial activity of formononetin analogues is hereby reported. Formononetin, an isoflavone commonly obtained from the Leguminoseae family has previously been reported to possess antigiardial activity. In this paper, 10 analogues of formononetin were synthesized and tested for antigiardial activity. One compound was found to be active, 3 were moderately active and 6 were found to be inactive. All the 10 analogues were found to be inactive against other protozoa such as Trichomonas vaginalis and Tritrichomonas foetus.Keywords: Antigiardial, Formononetin, Activit

Factors associated with infant feeding practices and nutritional status among children aged 6-24 months attending child welfare clinics in Kajiado Sub-County

Objective: To determine knowledge and practices on infant feeding, socio-demographic factors that influence choice of infant feeding method and nutritional status of children aged 6 to 24 months attending Mother Child Health Clinics (MCH) in Kajiado North Sub-county.Design: A hospital based cross-sectional study.Setting: Three public health facilities: Ngong sub-district hospital, Ongata Rongai and Olo-sirkon health centres in Kajiado North Sub-county.Subjects: Three hundred and fifty mother-child pairs as participants.Results: All mothers were of reproductive age, mean age was 25 years (95%= 25+-5.03) and 92.6% were married. A high proportion of mothers 94.3% and of their spouses 88.9% had attended formal education at varying levels. Out of the 350 children in the study, 56.3% were males while 43.7% were females, 84.5% of all children being one year and below. Majority of mothers 68.6% had knowledge on infant feeding practices, mainly obtaining information from health workers. Only 38.8% of mothers had complete correct information on both breast and complementary feeding. All children were breastfed at one point in their life, 55.1%, immediately after birth, not all children were exclusively breastfed for the first six months or for a total of two years as recommended. Main reasons for early termination of breastfeeding were, voluntary refusal by the child to breastfeed or feeding on complementary food. Stunting level among the children was 26.5%, underweight level was 11.1% and no child was wasted. There was a significant association between marital status, children age group and stunting using ordinal regression.Conclusion: The study showed a knowledge gap on infant complementary feeding in area of quality and quantity of food. There is need for further interventions and more education regarding infant feding practices

Factors influencing cervical cancer screening in a Kenyan Health Facility: a mixed qualitative and quantitative study

Background: Cervical cancer is the commonest cause of cancer-related morbidity and mortality among women in developing countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Screening for cervical cancer among HIV infected women is crucial as they are more at risk of developing the disease and progressing faster once infected with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV).Methods: We aimed to determine the factors affecting the utilization of cervical cancer screening among HIV infected women above 18 years of age at Kenyatta National Hospital by conducting a cross-sectional mixed quantitative and qualitative methods study. Descriptive and inferential analysis was carried out on quantitative data to determine significant associations with cervical cancer utilization. Qualitative data were analyzed after coding for significant clauses and transcribing to determine themes arising.Results: Three hundred and twenty eight of the total 387 women enrolled reported they had been advised by their health providers to go for screening. However, only 179 (46%) reported cervical cancer screening.  Women were more likely to report cervical cancer screening if recommendation by a staff was made (p <0.001), and prior to joining KNH CCC (p <0.001). Qualitatively the main barrier to screening included fear of screening due to concerns about excessive pain or bleeding, lack of proper communication on screening procedures and long waiting timeConclusions: The utilization of cervical cancer screening services was low despite high rates of health care recommendation. The women were more likely to utilize the service if recommendation from the health care worker was made, and if they had ever screened before

Evaluation of Technical Efficiency of Sweet Corn Production among Smallholder Farmers in Njoro district, Kenya

The National Agriculture Policy stresses the involvement of all stakeholders in decision making as one of the major strategies for eradicating poverty and increased productivity. Therefore, in recognition to the economic importance of horticulture to Kenya, technical efficiency of sweet corn production was evaluated to substantiate the paradox behind persistent reduction in productivity that impedes the development of the vibrant industry. A semi-structured and pre-tested questionnaire was used to collect data from smallholder producers through face-to-face interview. The census and purposive sampling methods were employed to obtain 76 respondents who were subjected to a stochastic production frontier model to estimate technical efficiency of sweet corn production. The results showed a mean efficiency score of 74% indicating that there was a 26% allowance for improvement. Land tenure with title (p≤0.05), hired labour (p≤0.05) and off-farm activities (p≤0.1) with positive effects while age (p≤0.05) and gender of the household head (p≤0.1) with negative effects on technical inefficiency. Therefore, there exists opportunity to improve efficiency in production given existing farm technologies more so if they embrace the use of family labour effectively and deterministic lawful land ownership. Besides, off-farm activities would reduce the overreliance on farming and promote higher returns by boosting on efficient resources use. Keywords: Technical, Efficiency, Farm technologies, Sweet corn, Stochastic frontie

Analysis of lead content in paints used for face painting in Nairobi county

Face painting is a common practice among young children. 59 samples from 7 manufacturers of paints used for face painting in Nairobi County were purchased and analysed for lead content using atomic absorption spectroscopy. The labels were also examined for batch number, date of manufacture and expiry as well as instructions for use. All samples analysed were found to contain lead with the highest being 10.5413 ppm. Only one manufacturer declared on the label that the paint was intended for use in face painting.Keywords: Face painting, lead conten

Association between levels of pain and disability in patients with somatic and neurogenic low back pain at Mbagathi District Hospital in Nairobi County, Kenya

Background: Low Back Pain is a problem of public health importance in developed countries as well as developing ones including Kenya. Low Back Pain, sub-categorized into somatic and neurogenic pain manifests in different unknown levels which have enormous health and socio economic impact. In Kenya, information on levels of pain and disability and how the two affect each other remain scanty.Objective: To determine the relationship between levels of pain and disability among patients with somatic and neurogenic Low Back Pain at Mbagathi District Hospital in Nairobi County, Kenya.Design: A cross-sectional study.Setting: Mbagathi District Hospital from May 2016 to August 2016.Subjects: All consenting Low Back Pain patients referred for out-patient physiotherapy clinic at Mbagathi District HospitalResults: Out of 176 participants enrolled in the study, majority, (63.1%) were females compared to 36.9% who were males. The proportion of patients with somatic Low Back Pain was 72.7 %( n=128) compared to 27.3 % (n=48) that had neurogenic Low Back Pain. More than half, 55.7 % (n=98) of the participants had pain intensity of moderate level while the remainder, 44.3 %( n=78) presented with severe pain level. Most respondents, 60.8 %( n=107) had minimal disability level compared to 33.5 %( n=59), and 5.7 %( n=10) whose levels were moderate and severe disability respectively. Results showed significant association between severe pain and moderate and severe disability (P&lt;0.001). Neurogenic pain was also significantly associated with severe and moderate disability (P=0.006).Conclusion: A great majority of patients attending out-patient physiotherapy clinic presented with somatic Low Back Pain whose disability level was Minimal. A smaller proportion of patients with neurogenic Low Back Pain had moderate and severe disability. Neurogenic pain posed the highest risk of moderate and severe disability

Key factors affecting performance of biogas latrines in urban informal areas: Case of Kampala and Nairobi, East Africa

Large scale application of biogas latrine technology in developing countries faces technical, socioeconomic and financial  challenges. As a result, harnessing its full potential has not been realized. This study examined variables describing the design, construction, operation and maintenance of nineteen biogas latrines in  relation to their performance in Kampala and Nairobi, based on survey and field observations. Pre-tested questionnaires were administered to users, owners and construction  technicians/masons of the biogas latrines. Field observations were also undertaken to assess physical conditions of the biogas latrines. Principal component analysis was then used to establish correlation between variables of design, construction, operation and maintenance in relation to the performance of biogas latrines in terms of burning hours in a day. The design types of all the studied biogas latrine digesters were found to be of fixed dome. Co-digestion of human excreta and cow dung increased the number of biogas burning hours in a day from 0.5 to 1.1. The findings also show that the performance of the biogas latrines was influenced by six of the variables examined describing construction, operation and maintenance: skills of masons, use of standards in construction, training of users on operation and maintenance aspects, number of users/owners and their motivation for installation of biogas plants and physical conditions of the biogas latrines. This  implies that the use of skilled masons,  comprehensive training of users on operation and maintenance aspects and use of cosubstrates are key variables for optimal performance of biogas latrines.Key words: Biogas latrines, Kampala, Nairobi, performance

Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis impact on Cd4+ cells & infection reduction in HAART naïve HIV infected adults in our urban population, Kenya

Background: The study was undertaken to explore and generate information on the morbidity patterns in HAART Naïve HIV infected adults on oral Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis (CTXp) attending Mbagathi and Kenyatta National Hospitals, comprehensive care centres.Methods: A qualitative , retrospective study design of mixed methods was used which comprised; Clinical data extraction and Secondary data analysis of 450 personal medical records that existed and which met inclusion criteria based on age, baseline CD4+ cells ≥ 350 count, non-pregnant, absence of active TB and on  CTXp for duration of six months at the time of enrollment.Results: The study showed that patients in both Mbagathi district and Kenyatta National hospitals comprehensive care centres (CCC) had at baseline CD4+ cells range; 350-600 and later at 12 months CD4+ cells range; 400-1500. Patients of younger age, when given CTXp, had a consistent high CD4+ cells count (above 1000 CD4+ cells count) while those of older age had CD4+ levels that were fluctuating. The median age was 31 years. In over 50% documentation, common infections were frequent and patients treated with essential antimicrobial drugs. We observed that CTXp prophylaxis may have reduced severity of infections and this could also have supported up to 60% of the resolved infections. The self-reported adherence to CTXp was observed as part of quality monitored care.Conclusion: The findings of this study support work in a number of literature in other studies done outside Kenya on CTXp not associated with a worsened progression of HIV disease. Stockouts should be avoided due to public health implications. Further studies may be done to find out what potential CTXp has on HIV infected Kenyan patients with serious threat of bacterial infections in conjunction with the customized highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART)

Socioeconomic Factors Influencing Meat Value Addition by Rural Agribusinesses in Kenya.

Abstract: The aim of this study was to determine and quantify the socio-economic factors influencing decision by meat agribusiness operators to add value to their products, describe and characterize the existing systems of value addition in rural Kenya. The study carried out a census of 120 butchery operators in Igembe north district. Data was collected with the help of a structured questionnaire. Using a probit model to evaluate the socioeconomic factors influencing the decision to add value, the study found that credit, management&apos;s level of education and age significantly influenced the decision to engage in value addition. The study therefore recommends policy interventions to enhance access to credit, reduce illiteracy levels among rural entrepreneurs through training and extension services

Identifying user needs for weather and climate services to enhance resilience to climate shocks in sub-Saharan Africa

The vulnerability of social-ecological systems in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to climate variability and change means that there is an urgent need to better integrate weather and climate information into societal decision-making processes. Long-term climate adaptation in these regions has received increasing attention, with recent initiatives aiming to increase resilience to climate change at timescales of years to decades. Less focus has been given to weather and short-term climate information. However, users are principally interested in shorter timescales (hours to seasons) where actions can immediately reduce the impacts of severe weather events. Focusing on the priority sectors of agriculture and food security, water and disaster management, this paper uses a systematic literature review approach to analyse 61 empirical case studies drawn from academic literature and projects across SSA. We identify the main users of climate services and outline current practices and reported benefits. Barriers that impede the delivery and uptake of climate services are identified and potential strategies for overcoming them outlined based on the reporting of successful practices. Our findings show that greater capacity building of personnel working for National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and Agricultural Extension staff and reinforcing and sustaining collaboration between different stakeholders (climate scientists, hydrologists, extension workers, farmers and other user groups), are essential factors for improving the uptake and utility of weather and climate services to enhance resilience to climate shocks in SSA