Preliminary study on the antioxidant effect of Kigelia africana fruit extract (Bignoniacieae) in male Sprague- Dawley rats

Testicular germ cells as well as epididymal maturing spermatozoa are endowed with enzymatic and non-enzymatic scavenger systems to protect lipid peroxidation damage. A number of pathologies and systemic challenges can lead to an antioxidant/pro-oxidant disequilibrium. With increasing interest in herbal therapies for management of some fertility-related and inflammatory conditions, we investigated the antioxidant effect of Kigelia africana fruit extract (KAFE) on normal rats. KAFE showed a non-dose dependent elevation in testicular catalase (p < 0.05), significant decline in malondialdehyde (p < 0.001) and an up-regulation of glutathione (p < 0.001) levels. Seminal parameters were also enhanced by KAFE with the lower dose producing better effects. Male infertility is frequently accompanied by increased testicular or seminal fluid oxidative stress. This result provides further scientific basis for the use of KAFE in the treatment of male infertility

Childhood Renal Neoplasms in Lagos Nigera- A 28 Year Review

Out of 131 nephretomies received at the Morbid Anatomy Department of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, there were 63 cases of childhood renal cancer representing 48% of total renal neoplasm seen over a period of 1970-1997. The ages range from 21/2 months - 11 years; over 75% of the cases were found under 5 years with only 3.2% occurring above 10 years. The male female ratio is 1:1. Of the cancers, there were 42 cases of classical nephroblastoma and 10 cases of the blastema type of nephroblastoma. We had 7 cases of purely sarcomatous nephroblastoma one of which is a rhabdomyosarcoma and the remaining 6 were undifferentiated sarcoma. There was one case of anaplastic carcinoma. Also seen was a case of mesoblastic nephroma in a 21/2 months male infant. In this study, neither benign neoplasm nor congenital tumour (angiomyolipoma) was encountered, in all cases, there was no age nor sex disparity. Most of the patients presented with abdominal mass with a unilaterally enlarged kidney, abdominal pain, haematuria and weight loss. All of them had nephrectomy as initial treatment followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Nigerian Quarterly Journal of Hospital Medicine Vol. 9, No. 1 (1999) pp. 4-

Tuberculosis Revisited - a review of surgical biopsies and autopsy speciments (1992-1996)

Nigerian Quarterly Journal of Hospital Medicine Vol.10(2) 2000: 126-12

Chronic Toxicity Of Enantia Chlorantha in Animal Model

Enantia chiorantha (Annonaceae) bark, a traditional medicinal plant often used in the treatment of P.falciparum infections has been indiscriminately ingested by individuals especially in this part of the world. The present study was conducted to determine the cumulative effects of E. chlorantha in the body tissues. The bark after procurement was sun-dried and chopped into tiny pieces. A 150g sample was boiled in 1.5L distilled water and the resultant aqueous extract was administered ad - libitum to 5 groups of rats consisting of 10 animals each for a period of 16 weeks. The animals were thereafter sacrificed and the important body organs/tissues were excised for histopathological study. The aqueous extract of E.chlorantha was found to produce certain pathological changes in most of the animals studied. Among the parts affected were the lungs, liver, heart, tongue and pancreas. The kidney, however showed mild pathology. This therefore suggests that specific recommended regimen be ingested by users. Nigerian Quarterly Journal of Hospital Medicine Vol. 9, No. 2 (June 1999) pp. 143-14

Metabolic and histopathological effects of extracts of Musanga cecropiodis and Neogynon-EDFe in mature female Sprague-Dawley rats

No abstract Nigerian Quarterly Journal of Hospital Medicine Vol. 13(1-2): 52-5

Water purification properties, Cardiovascular and metabolic effects of potash alum (Trona)

Nigerian Quarterly Journal of Hospital Medicine Vol.10(2) 2000: 132-13

Severe traumatic brain injury in Austria II: Epidemiology of hospital admissions

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this paper is to describe the hospital-based epidemiology of severe TBI in Austria. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Data sets from 492 patients included in the study by 5 Austrian hospitals were available. Age and gender distribution, education, occupation, location of trauma, mechanism of injury, alcohol use, type and severity of injury, associated injuries, length of intensive care unit stay, and intensive care unit outcome were evaluated for each of the 5 centers. RESULTS: The sample represents roughly 13% of all cases with severe TBI which were treated in Austrian hospitals during the study period. Mean age was 48 ± 21 years, and most patients were male (72%). The most important trauma locations were roads (50%), home (24%), outdoors (10%), and workplace (7%). Transportrelated trauma was the most important mechanism (44%) followed by falls 3 m (11%), and sports injuries (5%). Detailed analysis of transport-related trauma showed that car accidents (45%) were most common, followed by pedestrian (20%), motorbike (19%), and bicycle (16%) accidents. Significant differences between the centers were found for most of the variables analyzed. The severe traumatic brain injury was associated with spinal cord injury in 10%, and with severe multiple trauma in 38% of cases. Intensive care mortality was 31.7%. There were no significant correlations between mechanisms of injury and severity of trauma, nor between mechanisms and ICU outcome. CONCLUSIONS: Epidemiology of severe traumatic brain injuries in Austria is not much different from other industrialized countries. Traffic accidents are responsible for the majority of traumas, stressing the importance of road injury prevention. Attention should also be paid to the specific risks of older people and to prevent injuries at home. © 2007 Springer-Verlag