Modelling the survivorship of Nigeria children in their first 10 years of life

Introduction: Several studies have attributed social demographic and environmental characteristics to differentials in children mortality rates worldwide but there is paucity of information on modelling of children survival in Nigeria. In this study we modelled children survival in Nigeria and predicted their chances of survival in their first ten years of life.Methods: We used the data from the 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey to carry out a retrospective analysis of children survival. We computed the probability of survival and mortality rates for the first five years and predicted survivals for 6th to 10th years of life using life table techniques and compared our estimates with Brass indirect techniques.Results: The probability of a child surviving up to exact age 1 and 5 were 0.9212 (95% CI: 0.919-0.923) and 0.8583 (95% CI: 0.855-0.861) respectively. About 142 of every 1000 children would not make their tenth birthday in Nigeria. We found higher survivorship trend among female children than the males with higher rates in Southern Nigeria than in the Northern parts. The estimates of probabilities of survival from age 1 to 5 from the fitted curves agreed very closely with those obtained from Brass indirect techniques as the variability was less than 2%.Conclusion: Child mortality is high in Nigeria with fewer children deaths among females. Probability of not attaining age 10 in South West is lower than chances of not marking first birthday in North West zone. Efforts must be concentrated in reversing the worrisome survival trend in Nigeria especially in the Northern parts of the country.Keywords: Survivorship, Nigeria, children mortality, Kaplan Meier, Brass Indirect method, Predictio

Compliance with epidemic-prone diseases surveillance and response guidelines among health officers at surveillance units in South-West Nigeria

Introduction: Although compliance with surveillance guidelines is crucial to epidemic diseases control, determinants of use of these guidelines in Nigeria are poorly documented. We assess health workers compliance and factors associated with the surveillance and response guidelines for epidemic-prone diseases in South-West Nigeria.Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 199 disease surveillance and notification officers in Oyo state were interviewed using a questionnaire on knowledge of disease surveillance and performance of surveillance activities. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, chi-square and multiple logistic regression at P= 0.05.Results: Most surveillance units submitted disease outbreaks reports (81.48% at the health facility and 100% at the local government level). Timeliness and completeness of weekly reporting were 94% and 95% respectively. a quarter (25.9%) adhered to national case definitions guidelines. About 85.7% did laboratory case confirmation while 2.6% did facility level data analysis. Predictors for six months reporting activity include attending a training on surveillance and reporting (OR=7.92; CI=1.65–37.92), fund adequacy (OR=27.81; CI=7.68–100.60) and knowledge of surveillance dataflow (OR=4.80; CI=1.64–14.10).Conclusion: In addition to provision of adequate financial and laboratory resources, surveillance activities would benefit from continuous training on surveillance data flow.Keywords: Epidemic-prone diseases, case definitions guidelines, surveillance and response

Compliance with epidemic-prone diseases surveillance and response guidelines among health officers at surveillance units in South-West Nigeria

Introduction: Although compliance with surveillance guidelines is crucial to epidemic diseases control, determinants of use of these guidelines in Nigeria are poorly documented. We assess health workers compliance and factors associated with the surveillance and response guidelines for epidemic-prone diseases in South-West Nigeria. Methods: In a cross-sectional study, 199 disease surveillance and notification officers in Oyo state were interviewed using a questionnaire on knowledge of disease surveillance and performance of surveillance activities. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, chi-square and multiple logistic regression at P= 0.05. Results: Most surveillance units submitted disease outbreaks reports (81.48% at the health facility and 100% at the local government level). Timeliness and completeness of weekly reporting were 94% and 95% respectively. a quarter (25.9%) adhered to national case definitions guidelines. About 85.7% did laboratory case confirmation while 2.6% did facility level data analysis. Predictors for six months reporting activity include attending a training on surveillance and reporting (OR=7.92; CI=1.65\u201337.92), fund adequacy (OR=27.81; CI=7.68\u2013100.60) and knowledge of surveillance dataflow (OR=4.80; CI=1.64\u201314.10). Conclusion: In addition to provision of adequate financial and laboratory resources, surveillance activities would benefit from continuous training on surveillance data flow

Putting Children First: New Frontiers in the Fight Against Child Poverty in Africa

Despite important strides in the fight against poverty in the past two decades, child poverty remains widespread and persistent, particularly in Africa. Poverty in all its dimensions is detrimental for early childhood development and often results in unreversed damage to the lives of girls and boys, locking children and families into intergenerational poverty. This edited volume contributes to the policy initiatives aiming to reduce child poverty and academic understanding of child poverty and its solutions by bringing together applied research from across the continent. With the Sustainable Development Goals having opened up an important space for the fight against child poverty, not least by broadening its conceptualization to be multidimensional, this collection aims to push the frontiers by challenging existing narratives and exploring alternative understandings of the complexities and dynamics underpinning child poverty. Furthermore, it examines policy options that work to address this critical challenge.Comparative Research Programme on Poverty (CROP) at the University of Bergen.publishedVersio

Household environment and symptoms of childhood acute respiratory tract infections in Nigeria, 2003–2013: a decade of progress and stagnation

Abstract Background Acute respiratory infections (ARIs) remains a disease of public health importance in Nigeria. Though, previous studies have identified factors associated with childhood ARI symptoms, the progress made in reducing the burden of this major childhood morbidity in the past decade in Nigeria has not been quantified. Therefore, this study describes the trends in the prevalence and factors associated with ARI symptoms among under-five (U5) children in Nigeria between years 2003 and 2013. Methods A retrospective cross-sectional analysis of nationally representative data from the Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) for years 2003, 2008 and 2013 was done. The study sample included women of reproductive age who had U5 children presenting with a cough accompanied with short rapid breaths in the last 2 weeks prior data collection. Data were analysed using complementary log regression model. Results Prevalence of ARI symptoms were 10.3, 4.6 and 3.8% for years 2003, 2008 and 2013 respectively. The use of unclean cooking fuel was not associated with ARI symptom in 2003 and 2008, but in 2013 (OR = 2.50, CI: 1.16–5.42). Living in houses built with poor quality materials was associated with higher risk of ARI symptoms in 2008 (OR = 1.34, CI: 1.11–1.61) and 2013 (OR = 1.59, CI: 1.32–1.93). Higher risk of ARI symptoms was also associated with younger child’s age, Northern regions and household wealth quintile between 2003 and 2013. Conclusions Though there has been a significant progress in the reduction of the prevalence of ARI symptoms between 2003 and 2013, the same could not be said of household environmental risk factors. Interventions to reduce the contributory effects of these factors to the occurrence of ARI symptoms should be instituted by government and other relevant stakeholders

Determinants of maternal utilization of health services and nutritional status in a rural community in South-West Nigeria

Poor Maternal Health (MH) remains an issue of public health concern in Nigeria. This study identified the determinants of maternal utilization of health services and nutritional status in a rural community in south-west Nigeria. It was a cross-sectional house-hold survey of women aged 15-49 years. Data were analysed using Chi-square, logistic regression and generalized linear models (α=.05). Respondents’ mean age was 29.9±7.8 years and about 9.0% were underweight, 76.7% attended ≥4 ANC visits and 65.7% were provided with ANC by skilled health workers. Sixty-two percent delivered in modern health facility, 67.5% were assisted by skilled health worker and 29.1% sought post-natal care within the first 3 days after delivery. The likelihood of delivery in health facility was 1.48(C.I=1.10-1.99, p<0.05) higher among women in monogamous than those in polygamy family. The estimated maternal mortality ratio was 448 deaths/100,000 live-births. The findings emphasize the need to scale-up MH improvement strategies in the study area. (Afr J Reprod Health 2016; 20[2]: 72-85).Keywords: Maternal health care; Rural community, Maternal nutritional statu

Semi-parametric model for timing of first childbirth after HIV diagnosis among women of childbearing age in Ibadan, Nigeria.

BackgroundHIV diagnosis is a watershed in women's childbearing experience. It is usually accompanied by the fear of death and stigmatisation. Women diagnosed of HIV are often sceptical about pregnancy. Meanwhile, availability of antiretroviral treatments has impacted positively on childbearing experience among women living with HIV. We therefore investigated the timing of first childbirth after HIV diagnosis and its determinants among women in Ibadan, Nigeria.MethodsWe extracted and analysed data from a 2015 cross-sectional study on childbearing progression among 933 women living with HIV and receiving care at University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria. Extended Cox proportional hazards regression, a semi-parametric event history model was used at 5% significance level.ResultsThe women's mean age was 38.1 (± SD = 6.1) years and the median time to first birth after HIV diagnosis (FBI_HIV) was 8 years. The likelihood of first birth after HIV diagnosis was lower among women who desired more children (HR = 0.63, CI: 0.51-0.78). Women whose partners had primary and secondary education respectively were about 2.3 times more likely to shorten FBI_HIV compared to those whose partners had no formal education. Knowledge of partner's HIV-positive status (HR = 1.42, CI: 1.04,1.93) increased the likelihood of having a first birth after HIV diagnosis. Older age, longer duration on ART and a higher number of children at diagnosis were associated with a declined hazard of first birth after HIV diagnosis.ConclusionsThe median time to first childbirth after HIV diagnosis was long. Partner's HIV-positive status and higher educational attainment were associated with early childbearing after HIV diagnosis

Predictors of blood pressure levels, knowledge and practices of adult hypertensives attending a Secondary Health Care Centre in South-Western Nigeria

Introduction and aim. The prevalence of hypertension is increasing with accompanying poor control. The aim of this study was to assess the predictors of knowledge and practices of adult hypertensives. Material and method. The study was a prospective (before and after) study with health education as the intervention. A simple random sampling technique with computer-generated random numbers was used to recruit 386 patients. Data were analysed using SPSS version 23. Logistic regressions were used to determine the predictors of knowledge and practices. Results. Those who had tertiary education were about four times more likely to have good knowledge of hypertension than those who had secondary education (OR=0.256; 95% CI=0.106–0.617). The females were about 1.73 times more likely to have good practices of hypertension than males (OR=1.729; 95% CI=1.008–2.966). For every 1 unit increase in the body mass index, there was a statistically significant increase in diastolic blood pressure by about 0.22 units (95% CI=0.046–0.394, p=0.013). The health education had a positive impact on the blood pressure reduction. Conclusion. The predictors of knowledge of hypertension, practices of hypertensives and diastolic blood pressure were level of education, sex, and body mass index respectively