Entrepreneurship Education as Panacea For Youth Unemployment: Implication Of Vocational Counselling For Sustainable National Development

One of the many pressing challenges facing Nigeria today is youth unemployment with the ripple effect of their resort to violent crimes. The concern of many educationists and the public in general is to encourage youths to engage in useful livelihood. This paper x-rayed the promotion of entrepreneurship education and vocational counselling in eradicating youth unemployment in the society. An attempt has been made to look at entrepreneurship education based on the goal of the newly introduced senior secondary education curriculum enriched with the aims and objectives of Vocational Counselling. It was concluded that guiding the young people to pursue the right type of entrepreneurship education through effective and continuous vocational counselling is a sure way of eradicating unemployment and will build a more prosperous and advanced country. Some recommendations towards improving entrepreneurship education were also made. Key words: Unemployment, Entrepreneurship Education, Vocational Counselling, Sustainable Developmen

Resting serum concentration of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in sportsmen and untrained male adults

There is an inverse relationship between regular physical activity and concentration of serum inflammatory markers, with variations in resting CRP in trained and  untrained subjects. The effect of acute and prolonged exercises has been studied on inflammatory markers with dearth of information and controversies on the resting serum values of high sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP). Therefore, this study sought to  identify and compare variations that occur in serum levels of high sensitivity CRP in groups of sportsmen (6) and physically active untrained subjects. Eighty-one healthy male participants made up of 21 untrained (control), 10 footballers, 10 athletes, 10 karates, 10 volleyballers, 10 basketballers, and 10 baseballers  voluntarily participated in the study. Participants rested while in sitting position for about 30 minutes during which blood pressures and heart rates were taken. 5 mls of venous blood was withdrawn from the antecubital vein of the participants  (aseptically) between 7:00 and 10:00 am into lithium heparin bottles following an overnight fast. The supernatant was decanted and centrifuged at 3000 rpm, serum was collected and stored at -20ºC prior to biochemical assay which was done with the use of enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kits for hs-CRP. Differences in the means within the sporting groups were analysed using one-way ANOVA while the difference between the trained sportsmen and untrained young adults was analysed using the independent T-test. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. The Mean ±SEM age, weight, height, and BMI of the participants were 22.0±0.8 years, 64.1±2.2 kg, 1.74±0.3 m, and 20.6±0.2 kg/m2 respectively. The resting concentration of hs-CRP (μg/ml) was 1.0±0.2 in the untrained, 2.6±0.7 in footballers, 3.6±2.1 in track athletes, 2.4±0.5 in basketballers, 2.2±0.5 in volleyballers, 2.4±1.3 in baseballers, and 1.7±0.5 in karate respectively. There was no significant difference in the resting hs-CRP amongst the sporting groups, and in the sportsmen and untrained group. Resting serum levels of hs-CRP falls within normal range, and varies insignificantly in groups of sports, and in sportsmen and untrained young male adults. This may suggest that the types of sporting activities or participation in sports has no impact on the resting serum hs-CRP.Keywords: Resting hs-CRP, Sportsmen, Young male adult

Honey health benefits and uses in medicine

The generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and other free radicals during metabolism is an essential and normal process that ideally is compensated through the antioxidant system. However, due to many environmental, lifestyle, and pathological situations, free radicals and oxidants can be produced in excess, resulting in oxidative damage of biomolecules (e.g., lipids, proteins, and DNA). This plays a major role in the development of chronic and degenerative illness such as cancer, autoimmune disorders, aging, cataract, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases (Pham-Huy et al. 2008; Willcox et al. 2004). The human body has several mechanisms to counteract oxidative stress by producing antioxidants, which are either naturally synthetized in situ, or externally supplied through foods, and/or supplements (Pham-Huy et al. 2008).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Prehospital transdermal glyceryl trinitrate in patients with ultra-acute presumed stroke (RIGHT-2): an ambulance-based, randomised, sham-controlled, blinded, phase 3 trial

Background High blood pressure is common in acute stroke and is a predictor of poor outcome; however, large trials of lowering blood pressure have given variable results, and the management of high blood pressure in ultra-acute stroke remains unclear. We investigated whether transdermal glyceryl trinitrate (GTN; also known as nitroglycerin), a nitric oxide donor, might improve outcome when administered very early after stroke onset. Methods We did a multicentre, paramedic-delivered, ambulance-based, prospective, randomised, sham-controlled, blinded-endpoint, phase 3 trial in adults with presumed stroke within 4 h of onset, face-arm-speech-time score of 2 or 3, and systolic blood pressure 120 mm Hg or higher. Participants were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive transdermal GTN (5 mg once daily for 4 days; the GTN group) or a similar sham dressing (the sham group) in UK based ambulances by paramedics, with treatment continued in hospital. Paramedics were unmasked to treatment, whereas participants were masked. The primary outcome was the 7-level modified Rankin Scale (mRS; a measure of functional outcome) at 90 days, assessed by central telephone follow-up with masking to treatment. Analysis was hierarchical, first in participants with a confirmed stroke or transient ischaemic attack (cohort 1), and then in all participants who were randomly assigned (intention to treat, cohort 2) according to the statistical analysis plan. This trial is registered with ISRCTN, number ISRCTN26986053. Findings Between Oct 22, 2015, and May 23, 2018, 516 paramedics from eight UK ambulance services recruited 1149 participants (n=568 in the GTN group, n=581 in the sham group). The median time to randomisation was 71 min (IQR 45–116). 597 (52%) patients had ischaemic stroke, 145 (13%) had intracerebral haemorrhage, 109 (9%) had transient ischaemic attack, and 297 (26%) had a non-stroke mimic at the final diagnosis of the index event. In the GTN group, participants’ systolic blood pressure was lowered by 5·8 mm Hg compared with the sham group (p<0·0001), and diastolic blood pressure was lowered by 2·6 mm Hg (p=0·0026) at hospital admission. We found no difference in mRS between the groups in participants with a final diagnosis of stroke or transient ischaemic stroke (cohort 1): 3 (IQR 2–5; n=420) in the GTN group versus 3 (2–5; n=408) in the sham group, adjusted common odds ratio for poor outcome 1·25 (95% CI 0·97–1·60; p=0·083); we also found no difference in mRS between all patients (cohort 2: 3 [2–5]; n=544, in the GTN group vs 3 [2–5]; n=558, in the sham group; 1·04 [0·84–1·29]; p=0·69). We found no difference in secondary outcomes, death (treatment-related deaths: 36 in the GTN group vs 23 in the sham group [p=0·091]), or serious adverse events (188 in the GTN group vs 170 in the sham group [p=0·16]) between treatment groups. Interpretation Prehospital treatment with transdermal GTN does not seem to improve functional outcome in patients with presumed stroke. It is feasible for UK paramedics to obtain consent and treat patients with stroke in the ultraacute prehospital setting. Funding British Heart Foundation

Effects of fluoxetine on functional outcomes after acute stroke (FOCUS): a pragmatic, double-blind, randomised, controlled trial

Background Results of small trials indicate that fluoxetine might improve functional outcomes after stroke. The FOCUS trial aimed to provide a precise estimate of these effects. Methods FOCUS was a pragmatic, multicentre, parallel group, double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial done at 103 hospitals in the UK. Patients were eligible if they were aged 18 years or older, had a clinical stroke diagnosis, were enrolled and randomly assigned between 2 days and 15 days after onset, and had focal neurological deficits. Patients were randomly allocated fluoxetine 20 mg or matching placebo orally once daily for 6 months via a web-based system by use of a minimisation algorithm. The primary outcome was functional status, measured with the modified Rankin Scale (mRS), at 6 months. Patients, carers, health-care staff, and the trial team were masked to treatment allocation. Functional status was assessed at 6 months and 12 months after randomisation. Patients were analysed according to their treatment allocation. This trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, number ISRCTN83290762. Findings Between Sept 10, 2012, and March 31, 2017, 3127 patients were recruited. 1564 patients were allocated fluoxetine and 1563 allocated placebo. mRS data at 6 months were available for 1553 (99·3%) patients in each treatment group. The distribution across mRS categories at 6 months was similar in the fluoxetine and placebo groups (common odds ratio adjusted for minimisation variables 0·951 [95% CI 0·839–1·079]; p=0·439). Patients allocated fluoxetine were less likely than those allocated placebo to develop new depression by 6 months (210 [13·43%] patients vs 269 [17·21%]; difference 3·78% [95% CI 1·26–6·30]; p=0·0033), but they had more bone fractures (45 [2·88%] vs 23 [1·47%]; difference 1·41% [95% CI 0·38–2·43]; p=0·0070). There were no significant differences in any other event at 6 or 12 months. Interpretation Fluoxetine 20 mg given daily for 6 months after acute stroke does not seem to improve functional outcomes. Although the treatment reduced the occurrence of depression, it increased the frequency of bone fractures. These results do not support the routine use of fluoxetine either for the prevention of post-stroke depression or to promote recovery of function. Funding UK Stroke Association and NIHR Health Technology Assessment Programme

Antiulcer And Gastric Antisecretory Effects Of Landolphia owariensis Extracts In Rats

Water, Methanol and Chloroform Extracts of Landolphia owariensis were investigated for their effects on gastric acid secretion and ulceration in male albino rats. Two models of gastric lesion induced in experimental Wistar rats- HC1/ethanol- induced gastric lesions and Pylorus ligation-induced gastric lesions – were employed. In both models, the antiulcer activity of LA was compared with that of cimetidine (100 mg kg p.o.). In the HCl/Ethanol model,ulcer index and mucus production was determined. In pylorus ligated rat, ulcer index, mucus production, total volume of gastric juice and gastric acidity level were measured. Pre-treatment of animals with the aqueous extracts (100mg/kg and 200mg/kg) orally once daily for two weeks significantly reduced formation of ulcers induced by HCl/ethanol mixture, the percentage inhibition being 43.8% and 55.27% respectively. The Chloroform extract afforded the least protection with 23.07% and 14.77% inhibition. This was also accompanied by significant increases in gastric mucus production. In pylorus ligated rats, total volume of gastric juice and gastric acidity was significantly decreased as compared to control group, to levels comparable to that produced by cimetidine. The results indicate that the leaf extracts of LO contains antiulcer principles