Female Genital Mutilation in Nigeria: A Proposed Ecological Framework

Gradaute Theoretical Propsa

Comparative Analysis of Naira/US Dollar Exchange Rate Volatility using GARCH Variant Modeling

This paper employed This paper employed the GARCH variance models to examine the return volatilities of official bank, interbank and Bureau de change. Using the monthly exchange rate of Naira/USD from January 2004 to September 2020 (2004:1-2020:9), it was observed that the returns were not normally distributed and were stationary at level. The power statistics of Ljung-Box Q and Ljung-Box Q2 transformed, using the powers 0.25, 0.5 and 0.75 for conditional heteroscedasticity and lags of 6, 12 and 20 to indicate conditional heteroscedascity in all returns. The study also found exchange rate volatility in official, interbank and Bureau de change, observing that exchange rate returns were persistent. However, Bureau de change return was relatively more persistent while official exchange rate return was the least persistent. Also, it can be said that leverage effect exists in all the three exchange rate returns; while asymmetric model was the best model to estimate the exchange rate, IGARCH was not a suitable model to estimate the exchange rate return in Nigeria. There is also a need to incorporate the impact of news when developing an exchange rate policy by the monetary authority in Nigeria.&nbsp

A Comparative Study of the Effect of Family Types on Social Adjustment of Adolescent in Aba, Abia State

The aim of the study was to compare the influence of family type on adolescent social behavior in Aba Metropolis of Abia State, Nigeria. The study was guided by three specific objectives, two research questions and two null hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significance. A survey research design was adopted for the study, 600 adolescents were purposively selected from 17 Secondary school in Aba Metropolis and used for the study. The instrument for data collection was a structured questionnaire tagged Single Parent and Adolescent Social Adjustment Questionnaire (SPASAQ). The instrument had four sections A – D and 32 items. The instrument was validated by three experts and the reliability coefficient of 0.80 was high enough to guarantee the instrument reliable for use in the study. Data obtained was analysed using descriptive statistics, frequency and Mean while the hypotheses were tested using t-test. Findings revealed that single parenting had negative influence on parent-adolescent relationship and sibling-sibling relationship. The result of the hypotheses showed that there is a significant difference between family type and parent-adolescent relationship and adolescent-teacher relationship. Based on the findings of the study, the researchers recommend that irrespective of the family type, parents should build healthy relationship with their adolescents to curb anti-social behaviour. Keywords: Family type; Adolescents; Social Adjustment; parent-adolescent relationshi

Spatial heterogeneity of low-birthweight deliveries on the Kenyan coast

Background Understanding spatial variations in health outcomes is a fundamental component in the design of effective, efficient public health strategies. Here we analyse the spatial heterogeneity of low birthweight (LBW) hospital deliveries from a demographic surveillance site on the Kenyan coast. Methods A secondary data analysis on singleton livebirths that occurred between 2011 and 2021 within the rural areas of the Kilifi Health and demographic surveillance system (KHDSS) was undertaken. Individual-level data was aggregated at enumeration zone (EZ) and sub-location level to estimate the incidence of LBW adjusted for accessibility index using the Gravity model. Finally, spatial variations in LBW were assessed using Martin Kulldorf’s spatial scan statistic under Discrete Poisson distribution. Results Access adjusted LBW incidence was estimated as 87 per 1,000 person years in the under 1 population (95% CI: 80, 97) at the sub-location level similar to EZ. The adjusted incidence ranged from 35 to 159 per 1,000 person years in the under 1 population at sub-location level. There were six significant clusters identified at sub-location level and 17 at EZ level using the spatial scan statistic. Conclusions LBW is a significant health risk on the Kenya coast, possibly under-estimated from previous health information systems, and the risk of LBW is not homogenously distributed across areas served by the County hospital

A long-term observational study of paediatric snakebite in Kilifi County, south-east Kenya

Introduction Estimates suggest that one-third of snakebite cases in sub-Saharan Africa affect children. Despite children being at a greater risk of disability and death, there are limited published data. This study has determined the: population-incidence and mortality rate of hospital-attended paediatric snakebite; clinical syndromes of snakebite envenoming; and predictors of severe local tissue damage. Methods All children presenting to Kilifi County Hospital, Kenya with snakebite were identified through the Kilifi Health and Demographic Surveillance System (KHDSS). Cases were prospectively registered, admitted for at least 24-hours, and managed on a paediatric high dependency unit (HDU). Households within the KHDSS study area have been included in 4-monthly surveillance and verbal autopsy, enabling calculation of population-incidence and mortality. Predictors of severe local tissue damage were identified using a multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results Between 2003 and 2021, there were 19,606 admissions to the paediatric HDU, of which 584 were due to snakebite. Amongst young children (≤5-years age) the population-incidence of hospital-attended snakebite was 11.3/100,000 person-years; for children aged 6–12 years this was 29.1/100,000 person-years. Incidence remained consistent over the study period despite the population size increasing (98,967 person-years in 2006; and 153,453 person-years in 2021). Most cases had local envenoming alone, but there were five snakebite associated deaths. Low haemoglobin; raised white blood cell count; low serum sodium; high systolic blood pressure; and an upper limb bite-site were independently associated with the development of severe local tissue damage. Conclusion There is a substantial burden of disease due to paediatric snakebite, and the annual number of cases has increased in-line with population growth. The mortality rate was low, which may reflect the species causing snakebite in this region. The identification of independent predictors of severe local tissue damage can help to inform future research to better understand the pathophysiology of this important complication

Impact of intermittent presumptive treatment for malaria in pregnancy on hospital birth outcomes on the Kenyan coast

Background. Intermittent preventive treatment (IPTp) for pregnant women with sulfadoxine–pyrimethamine (SP) is widely implemented for the prevention of malaria in pregnancy and adverse birth outcomes. The efficacy of SP is declining, and there are concerns that IPTp may have reduced impact in areas of high resistance. We sought to determine the protection afforded by SP as part of IPTp against adverse birth outcomes in an area with high levels of SP resistance on the Kenyan coast. Methods. A secondary analysis of surveillance data on deliveries at the Kilifi County Hospital between 2015 and 2021 was undertaken in an area of low malaria transmission and high parasite mutations associated with SP resistance. A multivariable logistic regression model was developed to estimate the effect of SP doses on the risk of low birthweight (LBW) deliveries and stillbirths. Results. Among 27 786 deliveries, 3 or more doses of IPTp-SP were associated with a 27% reduction in the risk of LBW (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 0.73; 95% confidence interval [CI], .64–.83; P < .001) compared with no dose. A dose-response association was observed with increasing doses of SP from the second trimester linked to increasing protection against LBW deliveries. Three or more doses of IPTp-SP were also associated with a 21% reduction in stillbirth deliveries (aOR, 0.79; 95% CI, .65–.97; P = .044) compared with women who did not take any dose of IPTp-SP. Conclusions. The continued significant association of SP on LBW deliveries suggests that the intervention may have a non-malaria impact on pregnancy outcomes

Numerical modelling of self-potential in subsurface reservoirs

We report a new, open-source, MATLAB-based 3D code for numerically simulating the self-potential (SP) in subsurface reservoirs. The code works as a post-processor, using outputs from existing reservoir flow and transport simulators at a selected timestep to calculate the SP throughout the reservoir model. The material properties required to calculate the SP are user defined and may be constant or vary in each cell. The code solves the equations governing flow and transport of electrical charge and global charge conservation using a control-volume-finite-difference scheme. Electrical currents associated with the SP may spread beyond the reservoir model domain, and the code allows for the domain to be extended vertically and laterally to account for this. Here, we present the governing equations and the numerical method used and demonstrate application of the code using an example in which we predict the SP signals associated with oil production from a subsurface reservoir supported by water injection

Effects of Englerina drummondii Balle ex Polhill and Wiens leaves extract on selected female rat organs’ weights

Background: Herbal medicine are patronized by several people across the globe This herbal medicine is routinely use and are more accessible and available. This study aimed to investigate the effects of Englerina drummondii Balle ex Polhill and Wiens leaves on rat organs (thyroid gland, kidneys, ovary and fallopian tubes) weights in female rats. Methods: 20 female rats were selected randomly into 4 groups with 5 rats per group. Group 1 received 5 ml/kg of water, group 2 received extract 100 mg/kg, group 3 received extract 200 mg/kg, and group 4 received extract 400 mg/kg. Administration of extract was done for 28 days. Results: The study revealed significance decreased in the weight of the left ovary organ when extract of medium dose (200 mg/kg) and high dose (400 mg/kg) was administered, as compared to control. The result also shows decrease in the organs weight of the thyroid gland, left kidney, right and left fallopian tubes extract of low, medium and high dose were administered. The right kidney shows increase when low dose extract was given but decrease when both low and medium dose of extract was given. However, this decrease is not significance and could be due to dose or time dependent. Statistical analysis was done using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) version 23 and p&lt;0.05 was significant. Conclusions: There was significance decreased in the weight of the left ovary organ when extract of medium dose (200 mg/kg) and high dose (400 mg/kg) was administered. Also, there is decrease in other organs weight when low, medium and high dose was given but not significance

WorldFAIR (D7.2) Population health resource library and training package

This project, WorldFAIR – Global Cooperation on FAIR Data Policy and Practice, is funded by the European Commission's WIDERA coordination and support programme under the Grant Agreement no. 101058393. The project consists of 14 work packages, of which work package 7 (WP07) focusses on Population Health. WP07 is led by London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine working under the INSPIRE network. The work builds on the delivery of the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) common data model (CDM) which includes funding by Wellcome (formerly Wellcome Trust) and IDRC Canada. The objective of WP07 is to develop a suite of methods and standards to provide the framework for the Go-FAIR principles for population health data. These standards form the basis of an AI-Ready description of data suitable for use by population health scientists, and understandable across domain and institutional boundaries. The first deliverable (D7.1) identified the Implementation Guide that could be used for population health data, and how it can be developed. This deliverable (D7.2) provides a step-by-step guide as to how to achieve the standards. The deliverable is aimed at population health scientists in low-resource settings, who know their own data and want to make those data FAIR. Population health uses many different tools to collect and manage data. One set of tools includes the Observational Medical Outcomes Partnership (OMOP) Common Data Model (CDM) and an OHDSI data analysis workbench that runs on top of it. The OMOP common data model has been used to harmonise and share data, and previous work has shown the tools needed to make OMOP data FAIR. Beyond the data themselves, the results from the analyses conducted on OMOP data can be used as indicators for the success of development goals, including the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). At each stage the tools, data, models and activities need to be described in a way that can be understood by other scientists and by computer search algorithms. This deliverable provides an introduction to the processes involved in making population health data FAIR in a pipeline that spans data collection through data analysis into an SDMX indicators database, and gives seven tutorials on what is needed at each step in this pipeline. It outlines the need to describe the study and the study context, how to use DDI Codebook and DDI Lifecycle with study data and how to use repositories like GitHub to make the metadata available. The next tutorials describe the extract-transform-load (ETL) process for putting the data into an OMOP CDM and the role of JSON-LD in preparing the data for machine searching in Schema.org in line with DDI-CDI. Together these tutorials give an overview of the steps in the OMOP processes which are a pipeline for the data, and how these steps can be performed and documented. Finally the tutorials show how predictive and causal analysis can be conducted and documented using the OMOP CDM and the OHDSI data analysis workbench and how the results can be integrated into an SDMX data cube, which would align with UN standards for SDG indicators. The deliverable does not provide detailed training for each step, but rather introduces the topic and clarifies the practical knowledge and skills that are needed to make this type of health data more FAIR

Variant of TYR and Autoimmunity Susceptibility Loci in Generalized Vitiligo.

BACKGROUND Generalized vitiligo is an autoimmune disease characterized by melanocyte loss, which results in patchy depigmentation of skin and hair, and is associated with an elevated risk of other autoimmune diseases. METHODS To identify generalized vitiligo susceptibility loci, we conducted a genomewide association study. We genotyped 579,146 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 1514 patients with generalized vitiligo who were of European-derived white (CEU) ancestry and compared the genotypes with publicly available control genotypes from 2813 CEU persons. We then tested 50 SNPs in two replication sets, one comprising 677 independent CEU patients and 1106 CEU controls and the other comprising 183 CEU simplex trios with generalized vitiligo and 332 CEU multiplex families. RESULTS We detected significant associations between generalized vitiligo and SNPs at several loci previously associated with other autoimmune diseases. These included genes encoding major-histocompatibility-complex class I molecules (P=9.05×10−23) and class II molecules (P=4.50×10−34), PTPN22 (P=1.31×10−7), LPP (P=1.01×10−11), IL2RA (P=2.78×10−9), UBASH3A (P=1.26×10−9), and C1QTNF6 (P=2.21×10−16). We also detected associations between generalized vitiligo and SNPs in two additional immune-related loci, RERE (P=7.07×10−15) and GZMB (P=3.44×10−8), and in a locus containing TYR (P=1.60×10−18), encoding tyrosinase. CONCLUSIONS We observed associations between generalized vitiligo and markers implicating multiple genes, some associated with other autoimmune diseases and one (TYR) that may mediate target-cell specificity and indicate a mutually exclusive relationship between susceptibility to vitiligo and susceptibility to melanoma