ABSTRACT Heavy metal pollution in the environment is a problem experienced all over the world. Whereas heavy metals exist naturally in the environment, heavy metal pollution is associated with anthropogenic activities. Pollution studies reveal that the aquatic ecosystems in Kenya and the fish that inhabit these ecosystems are contaminated with heavy metals. Literature also reveals that exposure to levels of heavy metals above the recommended doses may possibly cause various adverse heal...
Introduction Dry eye (keratoconjunctivitis sicca, tear instability) is a disorder of the tear film due to tear deficiency or excessive evaporation and is associated with symptoms of discomfort and ocular irritation such as feeling hot, dry, gritty or sandy, burning, smarting sensation, itching, watering or tearing.1,2 Dry eye is one of the commonest afflictions affecting humans, especially the aged. It has been observed that over half of the adult population and a large number of tee...
ABSTRACT Nzoia River Drainage Basin is a major sugar production region in Kenya. Various pesticides are applied in this area to control weeds and boost sugar productivity. However, use of herbicides for weed control leads to increased chemical loads in the environment whose effects could be disastrous to the biotic component. The use of pesticide adapted microorganisms in the degradation and detoxification of many toxic xenobiotics, especially pesticides, is an efficient tool for the de...
ABSTRACT The truncated ecosystems of the Tana River County are highly vulnerable to climate change and variability due to their low adaptive capacities and high dependence on climate sensitive resources. Inadequacy of long term climate information is a serious constraint for long-term planning for enhanced food security and minimization of the adverse impacts of climate change and variability. This study was motivated by the need to downscale climate information using modelling procedur...
ABSTRACT Increase in maternal employment over the past 25 years has led to an increase in reliance on child care for young children from birth to 5 years of age. Non parental child care is now the norm for young children on a regular basis, with at least 44% of infants in child day care for more than 30 hours a week. Economic deprivation has led mothers especially in low income residential areas in Naivasha to return to work soon after delivery and since they do not have enough money to...
Abstract Contraceptive use in Nigeria at 15 percent is low, despite a high human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence of 3.4 percent and fertility rate of 5.7 percent. We assessed the levels of spousal communication on family planning and contraception (FPC) and HIV/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS), the influence of demographic characteristics on this communication and association between this communication and the respondents’ health behaviors. We used a cross-se...
ABSTRACT Nutrition plays a critical role in promoting the health of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Nutritional problems strongly predict illness or death among PLWHA. However, the knowledge, attitude and practices relating to adequate nutrition by this group of people have not been adequately explored in Nigeria. This study was therefore carried out to determine the knowledge, attitude and nutritional practices among PLWHA who were attending Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) clinics in...
SUMMARY Objective: We recently described early rigid retrograde endoscopic realignment of the disrupted urethra under caudal anaesthesia in the outpatient setting. This retrospective study was performed to evaluate our medium-term results. Patients and methods: A retrospective review of patients who had early rigid retrograde endoscopic realignment of traumatic urethral disruptions in our institution over a 5-year period was done and the relevant data extracted and analyzed. Results:...
ABSTRACT The increasing use of electric generators in small scale businesses is predicated on the erratic and inadequate power supply in Nigeria. Electric generators produce noise at levels capable of inducing hearing impairment. Hitherto, few studies have assessed the auditory status of generator users in Nigeria. This study was designed to compare the work environment noise levels and auditory status of generator users in two areas where generators are used in Ibadan. A comparative cr...
Abstract Objective To deterrnine the extent to which ihe cornrnunity-directed approach used in onchocerciasis control inAfrica could effectively and efficiently provide integrated delivery of other health interventions. Methods Athree-year experirnental study was undertaken in 35 health districts frorn 2005 to 2007 inseven research sites inCarneroon, Nigeria and Uganda. Four trial districts and one cornparison district were randornly selected in each site. All districts had establish...
Abstract Introduction: Nigeria’s University College Hospital’s PMTCT centre provides voluntary counselling and testing as part of routine care which was assessed in this paper. Methods: Structured face-to-face interview was carried out at exit on participants from the counselling session. Data analysis was by frequency distribution. Results: All clients were assured of confidentiality, had their HIV/ AIDS knowledge assessed and consent taken before the test, 95.45% of participant...
Introduction In the last few decades psychiatric discourse has undergone an important change in its' scope and focus. During the heady days of psychoanalytic hegemony, psychiatrists were willing to prognosticate or pontificate on just about anything, from individual neurosis through to social maladies, from medicine to literature, from the unconscious to the conscious. Nowadays, psychiatry self-consciously emphasizes its origins as 0 medical discipline, focuses its diognostic efforts...
Abstract Background A pilot programme of Cohort Event Monitoring (CEM) was conducted across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria on patients treated for uncomplicated malaria with artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT). The emergence and spread of malaria parasites resistant to commonly available antimalarial drugs necessitated a shift in policy for malaria treatment by the Federal Government from the use of chloroquine and sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) as first-line treatm...
Abstract Background: The epidemic of HIV continues to grow in Nigeria. Personnel in the military are at increased risk of HIV infection. Although HIV-risk related sexual behavior of Nigerian police officers has been studied, little is known about the sexual behavior of their counterparts in the Navy. This study describes knowledge of AIDS, and HIV-risk sexual behavior of naval personnel in Lagos Nigeria.Methods: Four hundred and eighty personnel of the Nigerian Navy completed a 70-item ...
AbstractObjectives: Our goals were to train health professionals in Nigeria using the text, "Planning and Implementing Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control Programs: A Manual for Managers", and then evaluate the knowledge dissemination process using a pre- and post-test assessment. The manual was developed by the ACCP, WHO, TARC, PATT-T,Engender Health, TI-TPTEGO, and PAT-TO with funding from the Gates Foundation. It is an inclusive guide to implementation and maintenance of screen-a...