Bacteria Associated with Fresh Tilapia Fish (Oreochromis niloticus) Sold At Sokoto Central Market in Sokoto, Nigeria.

A research was conducted on bacteria micro flora associated with fresh Tilapia fish (Oreochromis niloticus) sold at Sokoto central market, Sokoto. Nigeria. Sections of the skin, gills and intestine of ten randomly selected fishes were aseptically removed by means of a sterile scalpel and pair of sterile scissors. Four (4g) each of the sections were homogenized in 6 ml of sterile distilled water, which served as the original stock culture. A serial dilution up to 109 was carried out, and surface plated on nutrient agar. A total of nine (9) bacterial species were isolated and identified. Eight bacteria were identified to specie level and one to genus level. Six (6) were gram positive namely: Bacillus megatanium, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus Pumilus, Bacillus alvei, Bacillus Licheniformis and Staphylococcus saprophyticus and three gram negative bacteria namely: Serratia mercescens, Providentia stuartii and Salmonella spp. The frequency of occurrences of the isolated Bacteria indicated that Bacillus pumilius had the highest frequency of occurrence (19.35%), while Salmonella spp. had the least occurrence (3.2%). The mean viable Bacterial count from each section of the samples revealed 46.1 x107cfug-1 from the gills, 18.8 x 108cfug-1 from the intestine and 27.3 x 108cfug-1 from the skin. The isolates were found to be of medical importance

Outcome of Presumptive Versus Rapid Diagnostic Tests-Based Management of Childhood Malaria – Pneumonia Overlap in Urban Nigeria: A Pilot Quasi-Experimental Study

BACKGROUND: Symptoms of malaria and pneumonia overlap in African under-five children and the integrated management of childhood illness strategy require that such children be managed presumptively with both antibiotics and antimalarials. A 2003 WHO expert meeting recommended the evaluation of malaria rapid diagnostic test in the management of children with this overlap, but this has not been evaluated. Therefore, the objective of this study was to compare the clinical outcome of presumptive versus malaria rapid diagnostic test -based management of childhood malaria-pneumonia overlap in Nigeria. METHODS: A pilot quasi-experimental study was conducted November 2009 through February 2010 in an urban comprehensive health centre in Ogun, South-Western Nigeria. First, 50 children with malaria-pneumonia symptom overlap were consecutively enrolled and treated presumptively with antibiotics and antimalarials irrespective of malaria test result (control arm).Then, another 50 eligible children were enrolled and treated with antibiotics with/out antimalarials based on rapid diagnostic test result (intervention arm). Primary endpoint: clinical cure at day-5. The data were analyzed using Epi Info version 3.4.1. RESULTS: The intervention and control arms did not differ significantly regarding patient demographic and clinical characteristics. Clinical cure rate was slightly higher in children managed presumptively 49 (98%) than those managed rapid diagnostic test -based 47 (94%) (P = 0.31). However, rapid diagnostic test -based treated children had lower risk of receiving antimalarials compared to those treated presumptively (48% vs. 100%), (P

Reaction to Ilesanmi OS et al. The managed hypertensive: the costs of blood pressure control in a Nigerian town

Pan African Medical Journal 2013; 14: 8

Factors Associated with Meeting Current Recommendation for Physical Activity in Scottish Adults with Diabetes

It remains unclear which factors are instrumental in meeting the recommended physical activity in people with diabetes. We, therefore, aimed to determine the sociodemographic, health-related behavior and clinical factors associated with meeting the recommended levels of physical activity in Scottish adults with diabetes. The study was based on the nationally-representative cross-sectional Scottish Health Surveys (2014–2017). The study participants included a sub-sample of 1259 adults (≥16 years old) with diabetes. Physical activity was evaluated using international guidelines. Overall, 34.1% of the subjects met the recommended levels of physical activity. Independent determinants of meeting the recommended levels of physical activity include male gender (odds ratio (OR) 1.47; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.07–2.00) and being a non-smoker (OR 1.62; 95% CI 1.02–2.56). Furthermore, meeting the recommended physical activity levels decreased with age (OR 0.96; 95% CI 0.95–0.97), having a longstanding illness (OR 0.56; 95% CI 0.34–0.93) and body mass index (OR 0.94; 95% CI 0.92–0.97), but increased with higher fruit and vegetable intake (OR 1.16; 95% CI 1.07–1.25) and mental wellbeing (OR 1.04; 95% CI 1.02–1.06). Implementation of health promotion programs that target the identified determinants is needed to improve the recommended levels of physical activity among adults with diabetes.Acknowledgments: The publication of this article was funded by the Qatar National Library.Scopu

Lassa fever – full recovery without ribavarin treatment: a case report

Background: Lassa fever is a rodent-borne zoonosis that clinically manifests as an acute hemorrhagic fever. It is treated using ribavarin. Surviving Lassa fever without receiving the antiviral drug ribavarin is rare. Only few cases have been documented to date.Case Presentation: We report a case of a 59-year old female with fever who was initially thought to have acute pyelonephritis and sepsis syndrome with background malaria. Further changes in her clinical state and laboratory tests led to a suspicion of Lassa fever. However at the time her laboratory confirmatory test for Lassa fever returned, her clinical state had improved and she made full recovery without receiving ribavarin. Her close contacts showed no evidence of Lassa virus infection.Conclusion: This report adds to the literature on the natural history of Lassa fever; and that individuals may survive Lassa fever with conservative management of symptoms of the disease and its complications.Keywords: Lassa fever; viral hemorrhagic fever, survival, ribavari

From DOTS to the Stop TB Strategy: DOTS coverage and trend of tuberculosis notification in Ebonyi, southeastern Nigeria, 1998-2009

Background: Nigeria ranks fourth among the 22 high tuberculosis (TB) burden countries. The estimated incidence of all TB cases in 2009 was 311/100,000 population. Since the implementation of DOTS in Ebonyi state, southeast Nigeria, the epidemiology of TB in the region has not been documented. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the type and case notification dynamics of TB following DOTS expansion and to examine age- and sex-specific trends in TB notification rate. Methods: A retrospective trend analysis of case notification data from the Ebonyi State Ministry of Health records from 1998 to 2009 was conducted. Patients were diagnosed according to the National TB and Leprosy Control Programme guidelines. Denominators for TB notifications were derived from population census data. Results: Of the 24, 475 cases notified between 1998 and 2009, 66% were smear-positive, 31% smear-negative and 3% had extra-pulmonary tuberculosis. Overall, the proportion of new smear-positive cases notified decreased continuously from 67% to 48% in 2009 while that of smear-negative cases increased from 29% to 40% in 2009. In 2005, 13 (100%) of the local government areas were covered by DOTS. Despite initial increase in case notification with DOTS expansion, the case notification rate had a mean annual decline of 3.1% for all TB cases (falling from 123/100 000 to 77/100 000), and of 5% for smear-positive patients (falling from 80/100 000 to 32/100 000). Smear-positive notification rate in children <14 years was consistently low while 25-34-year-old persons were affected most. However, smear-positive rates among persons aged =65 years did not change. Overall, annual new smear-positive notification rates were persistently lower in females than males. Conclusion: TB notification rate shows a decreasing trend in our region with a pool of infectious cases in young-persons. Additional targeted, type and age-/sex- specific interventions for TB control are needed.Key words: Tuberculosis, Epidemiology, control, DOTS, case finding, Nigeri

Trend in case detection rate for all tuberculosis cases notified in Ebonyi, Southeastern Nigeria during 1999-2009

Unlike previous annual WHO tuberculosis reports that reported case  detection rate for only smear- positive tuberculosis cases, the 2010 reportpresented case detection rate for all tuberculosis cases notified in line with the current Stop TB strategy. To help us understand how tuberculosis control programmes performed in terms of detecting tuberculosis, there is need to document the trend in case detection rate for all tuberculosis cases notified in high burden countries. This evidence is currently lacking from Nigeria. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the trend in casedetection rate for all tuberculosis cases notified from Ebonyi state  compared to Nigeria national figures. Reports of tuberculosis cases notifiedbetween 1999 and 2009 were reviewed from the Ebonyi State Ministry of Health tuberculosis quarterly reports. Tuberculosis case detection rateswere computed according to WHO guidelines. 22, 508 patients with all  forms of tuberculosis were notified during the study. Case detection rate for all tuberculosis rose from 27% in 1999 to gradually reach a peak of 40% during 2007 to 2008 before a slight decline in 2009 to 38%. However,the national case detection rate for all tuberculosis cases in Nigeria rose from 7% in 1999 and progressively increased to reach a peak of 19% during 2008 and 2009. Since the introduction of DOTS in Ebonyi, the  programme has achieved 40% case detection rate for all tuberculosis cases -about 20% better than national figures. However, with the current low case detection rates, alternative mechanisms are needed to achieve the current global stop- TB targets in Nigeria

Containing a Lassa fever epidemic in a resource-limited setting: outbreak description and lessons learned from Abakaliki, Nigeria (January–March 2012)

SummaryObjectivesDespite the epidemic nature of Lassa fever (LF), details of outbreaks and response strategies have not been well documented in resource-poor settings. We describe the course of a LF outbreak in Ebonyi State, Nigeria, during January to March 2012.MethodsWe analyzed clinical, epidemiological, and laboratory data from surveillance records and hospital statistics during the outbreak. Fisher's exact tests were used to compare proportions and t-tests to compare differences in means.ResultsThe outbreak response consisted of effective coordination, laboratory testing, active surveillance, community mobilization, contact and suspected case evaluation, and case management. Twenty LF cases (10 confirmed and 10 suspected) were recorded during the outbreak. Nosocomial transmission to six health workers occurred through the index case. Only 1/110 contacts had an asymptomatic infection. Overall, there was high case fatality rate among all cases (6/20; 30%). Patients who received ribavirin were less likely to die than those who did not (p=0.003). The mean delay to presentation for patients who died was 11±3.5 days, while for those who survived was 6±2.6 days (p<0.001).ConclusionsThe response strategies contained the epidemic. Challenges to control efforts included poor local laboratory capacity, inadequate/poor quality of protective materials, fear among health workers, and inadequate emergency preparedness