URBAN FLOOD IMPACTS, FLOOD WATER QUALITY AND RISK MAPPING OF OLODO AREA, IBADAN, NIGERIA

This study assessed urban flood impact, flood water quality and vulnerability around Olodo area of Ibadan region, Nigeria. The study employed remote sensing and GIS techniques in creating vulnerability and risk maps. Digital terrain model (DTM) was used to get the topography of the study area. Footprints of buildings along the Egberi riverbank and flood plain in Olodo were created in the GIS environment from high resolution satellite imagery. Buffering operation was conducted to classify the buildings into risk zones based on closeness to the riverbank using ArcGIS 10.0. The study revealed that 326 buildings were within the very vulnerable and vulnerable zones because they were less than 15.2m away from the riverbank. The characteristics of water quality change during the flood and non-flood periods. TSS, DO, NOD, and COD were all higher during the flood event. Microbial analysis showed that water quality levels in the floodwater exceeded water quality standards (e.g., the coliform excess from 10 to 10,000 times), and thus this may be a health risk for local people during flood events. Concentration of Escherichia coli (E. coli) ranged from 484 to 1290 cfu/100 mL during flooding compared to 192 to 295 cfu/100 mL after flood. Salmonella was found to be high ranging from 659 to 1840 cfu/100 mL during flooding compared to 530 to 1034 cfu/100 mL after flooding.     &nbsp

SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION AND HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS IN URBAN PARKS AND GARDENS SOILS IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA

Distribution and health risk assessment of heavy metals in urban parks and gardens Gani Fawehinmi Park, Ojota, (GFP), Oshodi Heritage Park Oshodi (OHP), Ikorodu/Ipado Garden (IIG), MKO Abiola Gardens, Ojota (MKO), and MOE Garden, Alausa (MOE) soils in Lagos Metropolis, Nigeria were examined using Index of Geo-accumulation (Igeo), Potential Ecological Risk Index (RI) and health risk model. Urban parks and gardens soils were substantially polluted by Cu and Pb due closeness to highways where heavy metals emitted from motor vehicles are deposited.  Geoaccumulation index (Igeo) values for Pb were 10.616, 10.060, 9.027, 8.862 and 8.665 for GFP, OHP, IIG, MKO and MOE respectively. RI values for all the sites showed high pollution as they were all above 200. Health risk assessment revealed that children who visit the urban parks and garden in Lagos State are more exposed to cancer risk from Pb especially through ingestion. Results from this study provided valuable information on the pollution levels of urban parks in Lagos, Nigeria as a result of traffic related emissions and calls for proper monitoring of anthropogenic activities in the metropolis and reduce the human health impacts. The planting of hedge plants and erection of low walls could serve as shield against traffic pollution for the roadside parks     &nbsp

Prevalence and Determinants of Sickness Absenteeism among Healthcare Workers in a Tertiary Hospital in Southwestern Nigeria

Introduction: Sickness absenteeism is a global problem that affects almost all forms of workers, especially healthcare workers. This study assessed the prevalence and determinants of sickness absenteeism among healthcare workers in a tertiary hospital in Southwest, Nigeria. Methods: An institutional-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 360 healthcare workers in a Tertiary Hospital in Southwest, Nigeria from October to December 2022. A pre-tested interviewer-administered, semi-structured questionnaire was used to elicit information from the respondents who were selected using a stratified sampling technique. Bivariate analysis and binary logistic regression analysis were performed to identify the predictors of sickness absenteeism using SPSS version 25.0. The significance of associations was determined at p-value < 0.05. Results: The mean age ± SD of the respondents was 34 ± 7.15 years. The prevalence of sickness absenteeism among the health workers was 21.0%, while the causes of sickness absenteeism were malaria (51%), body pain (18%), and diarrhea (5%). Family obligation (AOR: 2.1, 95% CI: (1.20, 3.53), P=0.009) and the job type (AOR: 2.7, 95% CI: (1.05, 6.83), P=0.038) were the only predictors of sickness absenteeism. Conclusion: About one-fifth of the respondents had one spell of sickness keeping them away from work due to illnesses such as malaria, diarrhea, and body pain. Preventive interventions should be instituted by stakeholders based on the identified factors to reduce the prevalence of sickness absenteeism among these populations

A year of genomic surveillance reveals how the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic unfolded in Africa

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Emergence and spread of two SARS-CoV-2 variants of interest in Nigeria.

Identifying the dissemination patterns and impacts of a virus of economic or health importance during a pandemic is crucial, as it informs the public on policies for containment in order to reduce the spread of the virus. In this study, we integrated genomic and travel data to investigate the emergence and spread of the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.318 and B.1.525 (Eta) variants of interest in Nigeria and the wider Africa region. By integrating travel data and phylogeographic reconstructions, we find that these two variants that arose during the second wave in Nigeria emerged from within Africa, with the B.1.525 from Nigeria, and then spread to other parts of the world. Data from this study show how regional connectivity of Nigeria drove the spread of these variants of interest to surrounding countries and those connected by air-traffic. Our findings demonstrate the power of genomic analysis when combined with mobility and epidemiological data to identify the drivers of transmission, as bidirectional transmission within and between African nations are grossly underestimated as seen in our import risk index estimates

A year of genomic surveillance reveals how the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic unfolded in Africa.

The progression of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic in Africa has so far been heterogeneous, and the full impact is not yet well understood. In this study, we describe the genomic epidemiology using a dataset of 8746 genomes from 33 African countries and two overseas territories. We show that the epidemics in most countries were initiated by importations predominantly from Europe, which diminished after the early introduction of international travel restrictions. As the pandemic progressed, ongoing transmission in many countries and increasing mobility led to the emergence and spread within the continent of many variants of concern and interest, such as B.1.351, B.1.525, A.23.1, and C.1.1. Although distorted by low sampling numbers and blind spots, the findings highlight that Africa must not be left behind in the global pandemic response, otherwise it could become a source for new variants

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