The psychological impact of intensive care unit admission on relatives of critically ill patients

Introduction: It is recognized that ICU patients are exposed to massive stresses both from their life-threatening illness and the necessary intensive medical procedures they are subjected to. These stresses may lead to psychological problems like depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. However, the psychological demands and impact of the ICU on the relatives of these patients are often not appreciated. We aimed to determine the prevalence of anxiety and depression and the influence of ICU specific interventions on the development of psychological symptoms in relatives of ICU patients. Methods: This prospective, descriptive, questionnaire-based study was conducted on all consenting primary caregivers of patients on admission in the intensive care unit during the study period. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the General Health Questionnaire were used to determine the presence of psychological disorders during this study.Result: In this study, GHQ demonstrated a 72.5% prevalence of psychological illness in relatives of ICU patients. The prevalence of psychological illness using Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was 56.3% on the anxiety scale and 55% on the depression scale.Conclusion: Critical care can result in the development of psychological disorders among primary caregivers of ICU patients. Intensive care physicians need to pay more attention to their care's impact on the psychological health of their patients’ relatives

Prevalence and Correlates of Reproductive Morbidity among Female Traders in Ibadan Nigeria

Background: Efforts to mobilise resources for reproductive health services require data on common reproductive morbidities which constitute a significant proportion of global ill-health among women of reproductive age. This study assessed the prevalence and correlates of reproductive morbidity among female traders of reproductive age in Ibadan, Nigeria.Methods: Using systematic random sampling, 410 female traders aged 15-49 years were selected and data collected with interviewer-administered structured questionnaires in a cross-sectional study at a major Ibadan market. Univariate, bivariate and multivariate analysis were done using SPSS version 23.0 and WINPEPI version 11.65 at 5% significance level.Results: The respondents’ mean age was 34.6±7.8 years and 223 (58.7%) had secondary education. Most 349 (91.8%) had experienced reproductive morbidity, of which 279 (79.9%) had gynaecologic morbidities with menstrual problems (273; 97.8%) being the commonest; 262 (75.1%) had obstetric morbidities among whom 221 (84.4%) had pregnancy complications while 185 (53.0%) experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). Women aged 30-39 years had lower odds of any reproductive (OR=0.27; 95% CI=0.08–0.89) and obstetric morbidities (OR=0.18; 95% CI=0.10–0.31) while those ≥40years had twice the odds of gynaecologic morbidity (OR=2.18; 95% CI=1.22–3.90) as those <30 years. The odds of IPV and of experiencing any reproductive morbidity reduced with increasing wealth status.Conclusion: Reproductive morbidity is common among traders in Ibadan. Obstetric and gynaecological morbidities were commoner among older women while higher wealth status was a protective factor. Reproductive health interventions should prioritise older and poorer women as at-risk groups for gynaecological interventions. Keywords: Reproductive morbidity; Female traders; Pregnancy complications; Menstrual problems; Intimate partner violence; Ibada

Relationship between the plasma testosterone level and pain reaction times in male rats

Male prepubertal (about 4 weeks old) Wistar rats were used to estimate the pain reaction times using the tail-flick and hot-plate models; the testosterone concentration in all the animals before the tests in the blood plasma was measured. The same sets of animals were kept for the next 4 weeks under standard conditions; the experiment was repeated, and pain reaction times were also evaluated in the 8-week-old rats with blood samples collected to determine the plasma testosterone level. The results showed significant (P < 0.01) increases in the pain reaction times in both pain models in pubertal animals observed in a parallel manner with a corresponding significant (P < 0.01) increase in the plasma testosterone level. Therefore, age and sex are important factors in the choice of animals in pain experiments.У щурів-самців препубертатного віку (чотири тижні) вимірювали латентні періоди больових реакцій в умовах тестів «відсмикування хвоста» та «гарячої пластинки»; у всіх тварин перед тестами вимірювалася концентрація тестостерону в плазмі крові. Ці ж самі групи тварин утримувалися протягом чотирьох тижнів у стандартних умовах, після чого експеримент повторювали на восьмитижневих щурах (вимірювали час больових реакцій та рівень тестостерону). Для тварин, що досягли віку статевої зрілості, було характерне істотне (P < 0.01) збільшення латентних періодів больових реакцій в обох використаних моделях, що відбувалося паралельно з відповідним вірогідним (P < 0.01) збільшенням рівня тестостерону в плазмі. Отже, вік і стать є найважливішими факторами при відборі тварин для проведення експериментів з больовою стимуляцією

The evolving SARS-CoV-2 epidemic in Africa: Insights from rapidly expanding genomic surveillance

INTRODUCTION Investment in Africa over the past year with regard to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) sequencing has led to a massive increase in the number of sequences, which, to date, exceeds 100,000 sequences generated to track the pandemic on the continent. These sequences have profoundly affected how public health officials in Africa have navigated the COVID-19 pandemic. RATIONALE We demonstrate how the first 100,000 SARS-CoV-2 sequences from Africa have helped monitor the epidemic on the continent, how genomic surveillance expanded over the course of the pandemic, and how we adapted our sequencing methods to deal with an evolving virus. Finally, we also examine how viral lineages have spread across the continent in a phylogeographic framework to gain insights into the underlying temporal and spatial transmission dynamics for several variants of concern (VOCs). RESULTS Our results indicate that the number of countries in Africa that can sequence the virus within their own borders is growing and that this is coupled with a shorter turnaround time from the time of sampling to sequence submission. Ongoing evolution necessitated the continual updating of primer sets, and, as a result, eight primer sets were designed in tandem with viral evolution and used to ensure effective sequencing of the virus. The pandemic unfolded through multiple waves of infection that were each driven by distinct genetic lineages, with B.1-like ancestral strains associated with the first pandemic wave of infections in 2020. Successive waves on the continent were fueled by different VOCs, with Alpha and Beta cocirculating in distinct spatial patterns during the second wave and Delta and Omicron affecting the whole continent during the third and fourth waves, respectively. Phylogeographic reconstruction points toward distinct differences in viral importation and exportation patterns associated with the Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omicron variants and subvariants, when considering both Africa versus the rest of the world and viral dissemination within the continent. Our epidemiological and phylogenetic inferences therefore underscore the heterogeneous nature of the pandemic on the continent and highlight key insights and challenges, for instance, recognizing the limitations of low testing proportions. We also highlight the early warning capacity that genomic surveillance in Africa has had for the rest of the world with the detection of new lineages and variants, the most recent being the characterization of various Omicron subvariants. CONCLUSION Sustained investment for diagnostics and genomic surveillance in Africa is needed as the virus continues to evolve. This is important not only to help combat SARS-CoV-2 on the continent but also because it can be used as a platform to help address the many emerging and reemerging infectious disease threats in Africa. In particular, capacity building for local sequencing within countries or within the continent should be prioritized because this is generally associated with shorter turnaround times, providing the most benefit to local public health authorities tasked with pandemic response and mitigation and allowing for the fastest reaction to localized outbreaks. These investments are crucial for pandemic preparedness and response and will serve the health of the continent well into the 21st century

Sources of recycled aggregates for concrete production

There is a need for the implementation of sustainability principles in the construction industry. One of the ways this can be achieved is to drastically reduce the exploitation of natural resources and maximize the recycling of both construction and industrials wastes to be employed in the manufacture of concrete. In recent times, natural aggregates have been replaced by recycled waste aggregates to produce concrete, and since concrete is made up of about 70% of aggregates, the properties of the aggregates determine the properties of the concrete. Hence, it is important to obtain adequate knowledge of the sources of the recycled aggregates employed in the production of concrete. This chapter attempts to describe various sources of recycled aggregates and carry out a comprehensive review of the viability of the recycled aggregates explored in the previous research works as main components of concrete and presents various results emerging from the investigations that have been carried out on each source and type of recycled aggregates

A stone age conduct of unsafe abortion in adolescent: Complicated by gangrenous uterus and bowel

Unsafe abortion in adolescents is of great public health challenge and it occupies a large armamentarium in contemporary adolescent reproductive health issues. This case report was that of induced unsafe abortion, done without analgesia and inside a sitting room, in a 15‑year‑old, secondary school girl, nullipara; complicated by gangrenous uterus and bowel for which she had subtotal hysterectomy, bowel resection, and anastomosis. Primary preventive strategies should be the cornerstone of prevention with more emphasis on advocacy for adolescent sexuality and  reproductive health education, information, and family planning/emergency contraception.Keywords: Adolescent; complication; unsafe abortio

Vagal reflex stimulation complicating retrieval of an unusual foreign body from the laryngotracheal lumen: Case report

Foreign body impaction in the aero digestive tract is a life-threatening emergency, particularly in the paediatric age group. Removal under general anaesthesia poses both surgical and anaesthetic challenges and this may rarely result in mortality. We report a case of a 4 year old boy with an unusual foreign body (FB) impacted in the laryngotracheal causing difficult intubation and precluding tracheostomy with attendant vasovagal reflex stimulation and cardiac arrest. Clinical presentation and radiological evaluation of the patient were highlighted with a review of pertinent literature. We conclude that dis-impacting a foreign body in the trachea could potentiate bradycardia and cardiac arrest; co-existing hypercarbia and/or sepsis increase the risk and worsen the prognosis

Determinants of Outcome among Intensive Care Unit Patients in a Nigerian Tertiary Hospital

No Abstract

Assessment of the growth of Vernonia amygdalina (L) with organic and inorganic manure

This research assessed the growth of Vernonia amygdalina (L) seedlings with organic and inorganic manure at different levels. Two weeks after transplanting, cowdung and NPK 15:15:15 at two different levels were applied to the seedlings, using Complete Randomized Design (CRD). Parameters assessed include collar diameter, shoot height, leaf number and branching. Data collected were subjected to statistical analysis. The result revealed that seedlings that received 1g and 1.5g of NPK performed better than those with 5g and 10g of cowdung. Plants with 1g of NPK had the highest mean shoot height and mean collar diameter of 16.25cm and 5.98mm while those with 5g of cowdung had low mean shoot height and collar diameter of 5.03cm and 3.02mm respectively. Seedlings with 1.5g NPK had mean leaf and mean branch number of 13.2 and 1.20, while those with 10g of cowdung had 10.00 and 3.02 respectively. Analysis of variance revealed that significant difference for all parameters assessed among the treatments (organic, inorganic and control at different levels) except for the number of branching which was not significant at p< 0.05.Keywords: Vernonia amygdalina, organic, inorganic, cowdung, NPK, top soil