Antifungal Activity Assessment of Selected Locally Sold Over-The-Counter Azole against Candida Isolates from Hospital and Community Settings of Rivers State, Nigeria

There seems to be multiple factors that could affect the performance of a drug which may range widely from measurements to packaging, storage, handling and standardization. Candida species are ubiquitous in nature and are found at different parts of the body, with some present as normal flora. However, drug abuse as mostly associated with the conscious intake of drugs without the guide or prescription of a physician, poses enormous challenge to personal and public health. Hence, this study was designed for comparative analysis of the antifungal activity of over the counter azole and standardized fluconazole disc on the Candida species isolated from community and hospital settings in Rivers State. All Candida isolates were inoculated onto a Sarbouraud dextrose agar plate to obtain a pure culture and then used for normal saline microscopy, germ tube test and carbohydrate assimilation tests to confirm Candida species. Antifungal susceptibility testing using the Kirby Bauer disc diffusion method was carried out and the data generated were type-set in Microsoft Excel version 2003, and transferred into statistical package for social sciences (SPSS), IBM version 21 for statistical analysis. The study results showed 59 Candida isolates with 11.9% Candida isolated testing negative to germ tube test while 88.1% of the tested positive to germ tube test. However, distribution of germ tube positive Candida species from hospital and community settings showed that the community setting had 90.6% germ tube positive Candida isolates and 9.4% germ tube negative Candida isolates while hospital settings showed 85.2% germ tube positive isolates and 14% germ tube negative isolates. In this study, 28.6% Non-albicans Candida (NAC) were susceptible to clotrimazole, 14.3% NAC were susceptible dose dependent while 57.1% were resistant to clotrimazole. However, fluconazole recorded 0% susceptibility dose dependence by Non-albicans Candida, 42.9% susceptibility and 57.1% resistance. Similarly, 63.5%, 15.4%, and 21.2% of Candida albicans were susceptible, susceptibility dose dependent and resistant respectively to fluconazole. While, 30.8%, 34.6% and 34.6% of Candida albicans were susceptible, susceptibility dose dependent and resistant to itraconazole. In conlusion, fluconazole had the best efficacy on non-albicans Candida while clotrimazole was best for killing Candida albicans It is believed that a change in attitude from self medication is very crucial as it remains a key factor that could be responsible for increased incidence of Candida species’ resistance to azole therapy. Furthermore, change towards adherence to antifungal drug regimes when encouraged and cultivated as a positive habit for all patients, could enhance monitoring of drug efficacy and clinical/treatment outcomes

Challenges of Home Treatment/Care of COVID-19 Patients in Nigeria: A Public Health Risk and a Huge Deceit of our Time

Background: Coronavirus disease-2019 was first discovered in a highly populated city of China in late 2019, and has since spread to most countries of the world, causing several morbidities and mortalities. In the bid to contain the disease and curtail its spread, different countries have instituted several policies, and while these policies may work for some countries, it may not work for others. Nevertheless, the disease has affected over 19 million people globally, killing as many as 700,000. Yet, thousands of persons are still being infected on a daily basis. Aim: To x-ray and evaluate the suitability of home-based treatment/care of COVID-19 patients in Nigeria. Methodology: Peer-reviewed articles revealing information about COVID-19 and its effects globally were sourced from different electronic databases (including WHO, Pub Med, Science Direct, NCDC, etc.), and appraised to extract valuable data and information from them for the purpose of analysis and synthesis of developing robust body of knowledge. Findings: The results obtained from our search include some details about COVID-19 infection, the disease epidemiology, diagnosis, management and guidelines for home-based treatment of COVID-19 patients. Also, discussed in this study are some loopholes in the Nigerian health system and leadership that makes it difficult for foreign policies or strategies (on COVID-19 containment) to be implemented in Nigeria. Conclusion/Recommendation: Differences in lifestyles and cultures among different countries of the world means that there is no one-size-fits-all solution to the problems created by the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hence, each country is advised to determine which policies best suit the lifestyles and cultures peculiar to her inhabitants. There is literally no room for copy and paste syndrome</jats:p

Malaria parasitaemia among long distance truck drivers in the Niger delta of Nigeria

Background: Malaria is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of malaria among long distance truck drivers in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. Methods: A total of one hundred consecutively recruited long distance truck drivers aged 21-60 years, with a mean age of 42.36 ±5.23 years were screened for the presence of malaria parasitaemia. Results: Out of the 100 truck drivers screened, 35 (35%) were positive for malaria while 65 (65%) were negative. Plasmodium falciparum was responsible for all cases of malaria infection. The highest prevalence of malaria occurred among drivers in the 51-60 years age group (40.5%). The mean and standard deviation (SD) of parasite load was 1 020 (125) parasites/ìl in subjects positive for malaria. The mean CD4 count wassignificantly higher among non-parasitized truck drivers compared to P. falciparum parasitized drivers 820 ± 42.0 (731-902 cells/ µl) and 570 ±30.0 (510-630 cells/ µl) respectively (chi square = 74.00; p = 0.03). We observed a significant negative correlation between plasmodial infection and CD4 lymphocyte count among Plasmodium falciparum-infected subjects with r = - 0.56 (p= 0.001). Conclusion: Preventative strategies including regular chemoprophylaxis, intermittent preventive treatment with antimalarials and provision of insecticide-treated bed nets should be implemented