Effect of Processing Methods on Nutritive and Antinutritive Properties of Seeds of Brachystegia eurycoma and Detarium microcarpum from Nigeria

Proximate analysis of the seeds of Brachystegia eurycoma and Detrarium microcarpum were carried out on both the dehulled and undehulled samples of the flour. The protein content of the seeds are quite low 9.1;7.2 and 11.4;8.2 for undehulled and dehulled Brachystegia eurycoma and Detarium microcarpum, respectively. Crude fibre is less than 3% in each, while ash was less than 5% each per 100gm dry weight of sample. Detarium microcarpum has a higher crude fat composition 18.5±0.03, 15.5±0.02 while Brachystegia eurycoma 15.5±0.04, 14.0±0.01 for the undehulled and dehulled samples respectively. Moisture content is higher in dehulled samples 14.3±0.01 and 16.7±0.03 for both seed types. The available carbohydrate is equally higher in the dehulled samples 59.0±0.01 and 57.0±0.01, respectively for both seeds. The sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium contents were less than 1% each, with calcium having the highest concentration, followed by phosphorous. The phytochemical analysis showed the presence of alkaloids, tannins, saponins and flavonoids. Brachystegia eurcoma showed no presence of tannin. The findings are of nutritional relevance since these seeds are used for soup thickening by many homes in the southeastern Nigeria

Clinical profile of hypertension at a University Teaching Hospital in Nigeria

Arthur C Onwuchekwa, Sunday ChinenyeDepartment of Internal Medicine, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, NigeriaBackground: Hypertension in Nigeria is a widespread problem of immense social and economic importance because of its high prevalence and the severity of its complications.Aim: To define the morbidity and mortality pattern of hypertension at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH).Method: Records of all patients admitted to the medical wards of the UPTH over a 5-year period with essential hypertension or any of its complications were retrieved from the ward and medical records and reviewed.Result: A total of 780 hypertensive patients were reviewed, constituting 28.2% of all ­medical admissions. Only 424 (15.2%) had complete records and were analyzed. Record keeping was poor. There were 173 (41%) males and 251 (59%) females with a male to female ratio of 1:1.5. The ages ranged from 18 years to 100 years with a mean of 56.5 ± 16.2. Stroke was responsible for 169 (39.9%) hypertensive complications. Heart failure occurred in 97 (22%) cases while renal failure and encephalopathy accounted for 40 (9.4%) and 7 (1.7%) hypertensive complications respectively. There were 99 deaths out of which 51 (51.5%) were due to stroke, 14 (14.12%) were due to heart failure, and 12 (12.1%) were due to renal failure.Conclusion: The contribution of systemic hypertension to the morbidity and mortality of adults at UPTH is quite significant.Keywords: clinical profile, hypertension, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospita

Pattern of heart failure in a Nigerian teaching hospital

Arthur C Onwuchekwa, Godspower E AsekomehDepartment of Internal Medicine, University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, NigeriaBackground: Congestive cardiac failure (CCF) has emerged as a major public health problem worldwide and imposes an escalating burden on the health care system. Objective: To determine the causes and mortality rate of CCF in the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), south Nigeria, over a five-year period from January 2001 to December 2005.Methods: A retrospective study of CCF cases were identified from the admission and discharge register of the medical wards of UPTH and the case notes were retrieved from the medical records department and analyzed.Results: There were 423 patients: 242 males and 181 females. Their ages ranged from 18 to 100 years with a mean of 54.4 ± 17.3. The commonest causes of CCF were hypertension (56.3%) and cardiomyopathy (12.3%). Chronic renal failure, rheumatic heart disease, and ischemic heart disease accounted for 7.8%, 4.3%, and 0.2% of CCF, respectively. Peripartum heart disease was rare despite being commonly reported in northern Nigerian females. Eighteen patients died from various complications with a mortality rate of 4.3%.Conclusion: The burden of CCF in the Niger Delta is mainly attributed to hypertension. Efforts should be geared towards hypertension awareness, detection, treatment, and prevention in the region.Keywords: pattern, cardiac failure, Nigeria, etiological factor

Evaluation of scatter radiation to the thyroid gland attributable to brain computed tomography scan in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Background: Computed tomography (CT) is an axial imaging modality that uses X-ray. The study is to determine the amount of X-radiation that reaches the thyroid glands during brain CT.Methods: A prospective study was carried out in Rivers State University Teaching Hospital’s Radiology Department with 60 participants sent for brain CT scan. A 64 slice helical GE Optima CT machine was used while radiation dose reaching the thyroid gland was measured with themoluminiscent dosimeter (TLD) chips (TLD LiF-100). The TLD chip was placed on the anterior aspects of the neck at the level of 6th cervical vertebra (C6) and held in place with adhesive tapes. The TLD chip was later sent to the radiation dosimetric laboratory for reading. Collected data was analyzed using SPSS windows version 22.0 statistical software. A descriptive statistical tool was used to determine central tendencies. Pearson correlation and linear regression analysis models were also used to evaluate correlation between variables.Results: The mean (±SD) CTDI, DLP and brain Effective Dose were 37.265±13.098mGy, 662.451±230.782mGy-cm and 1.667±0.603mSv respectively. The Scatter X-Radiation reaching the thyroid gland and resultant Effective Dose were 5.26±3.13mSv and 0.26±0.16mSv respectively. A positive correlation between brain and thyroid gland effective doses yielded a Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) of 0.892 within a confidence interval of 0.01 (p value of 0.01) showing significant correlation.Conclusions: The amount of radiation received by the thyroid gland during brain computed tomography scan is significant. Therefore, it is pertinent to protect the thyroid gland during the procedure

Study of The Lumbosacral Angles of Males In Port Harcourt, South- South, Nigeria

Background: This study was carried out to evaluate the lumbosacral angles of males in the south south geopolitical region of Nigeria in the age group.Methods: A total of 100 lumbosacral lateral radiographs of normal from subjects South South geopolitical region of Nigeria taken in the department of Radiology, UPTH were evaluated. The lumbosacral angles were measured using Ferguson's method.Results: The mean lumbosacral angle in the sample o o population is 36.1 +/- 9.41 .The lumbosacral angle was found to increase with age up to a maximum in the age group of 36-40years.It remains fairly constant there after until the seventh decade.Conclusion: The normal range of lumbosacral angles in Nigerians of South-South geopolitical zone is demonstrated and it does not increase significantly after the age 36-40years

Comparison of electrocardiographic parameters of racing and non-racing horses in Sokoto Nigeria

The study was conducted due to the economic importance of horses and shortage of information on electrocardiographic parameters of horses in Sokoto, Nigeria. This study established the normal electrocardiographic parameters of racing and non-racing horses in Sokoto and statistically compared the values. The study used forty horses comprising of 20 racing and 20 non-racing horses with mean age of 8 ± 0.5 years and average weight of 200 ± 2.0 kg. ECG was recorded using the base apex system with the animals in standing position using single lead channel ECG recorder (EDAN VE-100 manufactured by Edan instruments China). The paper speed was set at 25mm/s while the sensitivity of the machine was adjusted to 10 mm/mV. The durations and amplitudes of P, R and T, the durations of Q and S and the durations of PR, QRS and QT intervals were all determined. These parameters were determined for the three standard limb leads (I, II and III) as well as the augmented limb leads (aVR, aVL and aVF). Descriptive statistics using SPSS version 16 was used to calculate the means and standard error of mean at 95 % confidence interval. One-way ANOVA was used to compare between the values of the racing and non-racing horses. The highest values of P amplitude, R amplitude, Q amplitude, QRS complex and P-R interval were recorded in racing horses, while highest T wave amplitude was recorded in non-racing horses. Highest duration of P wave, T wave and QRS was recorded in racing horses while highest duration of Q wave was recorded in non-racing horses. Significant difference was found in the T amplitude in racing horses in lead aVF. The mean heart rate for the racing and non-racing horses was 80.3 ± 8.4 and 63.1 ± 9.2 beats/minute respectively. Higher values recorded in racing horses indicates that exercise has influence on electrical activities in horses. Keywords: Electrocardiograph, Non-racing horses, Parameters, Racing horses, Sokot

Correction to: Comparison of electrocardiographic parameters of racing and non-racing horses in Sokoto Nigeria

The initial version of the article published in Volume 18 number 1 (March, 2020) contained errors in the names of AJ Ishaq and N Abduazeez. Their correct names are: AI Ja’afaru and N Abdulazeez, respectively

Ivermectin and albendazole coadministration: opportunities for strongyloidiasis control

7 páginas.In 2020, WHO recognised the importance of strongyloidiasis alongside soil-transmitted helminths (STH) in their 2021–30 roadmap, which aspires to target Strongyloides stercoralis with preventive chemotherapy by use of ivermectin. Combination treatment with both albendazole, the primary drug used to treat STH, and ivermectin, would improve the efficiency of mass drug administration targeting both STH and S stercoralis. In this Personal View, we discuss the challenges and opportunities towards the development of an efficient control programme for strongyloidiasis, particularly if it is to run concurrently with STH control. We argue the need to define the prevalence threshold to implement preventive chemotherapy for S stercoralis, the target populations and optimal dosing schedules, and discuss the added benefits of a fixed-dose coformulation of ivermectin and albendazole. Implementation of an efficient control programme will require improvements to current diagnostics, and validation of new diagnostics, to target and monitor S stercoralis infections, and consideration of the challenges of multispecies diagnostics for S stercoralis and STH control. Finally, the evolution of ivermectin resistance represents a credible risk to control S stercoralis; we argue that genome-wide approaches, together with improved genome resources, are needed to characterise and prevent the emergence of resistance. Overcoming these challenges will help to reduce strongyloidiasis burden and enhance the feasibility of controlling it worldwide.Our group, the Stopping Transmission of intestinal Parasites (STOP) consortium, is funded by the EDCTP2 programme supported by the European Union (RIA2017NCT-1845-STOP). The Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) acknowledges support from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and State Research Agency through the Centro de Excelencia Severo Ochoa 2019–2023 Program (CEX2018-000806-S) and support from the Generalitat de Catalunya through the CERCA Program. SRD is supported by a UK Research and Innovation Future Leaders Fellowship [MR/T020733/1] and the Wellcome Trust through core funding to the Wellcome Sanger Institute [108413/A/15/D]. MC-P is supported by the Junta de Castilla y León and Fondo Social Europeo. The funders of the study had no role in the manuscript preparation or the decision to publish. The views, opinions, assumptions, or any other information set out in this Personal View are solely those of the authors and should not be attributed to the funders or any person connected with the funders.Peer reviewe

Diarrhoeal disease and subsequent risk of death in infants and children residing in low-income and middle-income countries: analysis of the GEMS case-control study and 12-month GEMS-1A follow-on study

Background: The Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS) was a 3-year case-control study that measured the burden, aetiology, and consequences of moderate-to-severe diarrhoea (MSD) in children aged 0–59 months. GEMS-1A, a 12-month follow-on study, comprised two parallel case-control studies, one assessing MSD and the other less-severe diarrhoea (LSD). In this report, we analyse the risk of death with each diarrhoea type and the specific pathogens associated with fatal outcomes. Methods: GEMS was a prospective, age-stratified, matched case-control study done at seven sites in Africa and Asia. Children aged 0–59 months with MSD seeking care at sentinel health centres were recruited along with one to three randomly selected matched community control children without diarrhoea. In the 12-month GEMS-1A follow-on study, children with LSD and matched controls, in addition to children with MSD and matched controls, were recruited at six of the seven sites; only cases of MSD and controls were enrolled at the seventh site. We compared risk of death during the period between enrolment and one follow-up household visit done about 60 days later (range 50–90 days) in children with MSD and LSD and in their respective controls. Approximately 50 pathogens were detected using, as appropriate, classic bacteriology, immunoassays, gel-based PCR and reverse transcriptase PCR, and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). Specimens from a subset of GEMS cases and controls were also tested by a TaqMan Array Card that compartmentalised probe-based qPCR for 32 enteropathogens. Findings: 223 (2·0%) of 11 108 children with MSD and 43 (0·3%) of 16369 matched controls died between study enrolment and the follow-up visit at about 60 days (hazard ratio [HR] 8·16, 95% CI 5·69–11·68, p<0·0001). 12 (0·4%) of 2962 children with LSD and seven (0·2%) of 4074 matched controls died during the follow-up period (HR 2·78, 95% CI 0·95–8·11, p=0·061). Risk of death was lower in children with dysenteric MSD than in children with nondysenteric MSD (HR 0·20, 95% CI 0·05–0·87, p=0·032), and lower in children with LSD than in those with nondysenteric MSD (HR 0·29, 0·14–0·59, p=0·0006). In children younger than 24 months with MSD, infection with typical enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, enterotoxigenic E coli encoding heat-stable toxin, enteroaggregative E coli, Shigella spp (non-dysentery cases), Aeromonas spp, Cryptosporidium spp, and Entamoeba histolytica increased risk of death. Of 61 deaths in children aged 12–59 months with non-dysenteric MSD, 31 occurred among 942 children qPCRpositive for Shigella spp and 30 deaths occurred in 1384 qPCR-negative children (HR 2·2, 95% CI 1·2–3·9, p=0·0090), showing that Shigella was strongly associated with increased risk of death. Interpretation: Risk of death is increased following MSD and, to a lesser extent, LSD. Considering there are approximately three times more cases of LSD than MSD in the population, more deaths are expected among children with LSD than in those with MSD. Because the major attributable LSD-associated and MSD-associated pathogens are the same, implementing vaccines and rapid diagnosis and treatment interventions against these major pathogens are rational investments