BACKGROUND: The gynaecologist is called upon daily to diagnose pelvic pathologies. Ultrasound is a useful, safe and widely used method of investigation of such problems.OBJECTIVE: To determine the indications and findings of pelvic ultrasound in Owerri, South Eastern Nigeria.METHOD: Two hundred and fifty consecutive women referred for pelvic ultrasound in Owerri South Eastern Nigeria were examined by abdominal and transvaginal ultrasound.RESULTS: Most 148(59.2%) of the patients were nulliparous and majority 108(43.2%) were in the 30-39year age group. Doctors referred most 164(64%) of the patients, while 74(29.6%) were self referred. The most common indication was ‘to check the womb’ in 89(35.6%) of cases followed by threatened abortion in 30(12%) of patients. The most common post ultrasound diagnosis was ‘normal uterus’ in 111(44.4%) while fibromyoma was second with 41(16.4%) of patients. On the whole abnormalities were picked up in 36.4% of patients.CONCLUSION: We conclude that pelvic ultrasound even when not originating from the doctor should be encouraged because of the significant number of abnormalities detected. These could then be treated with greater success while they are still small.
This study examined the prevalence of alcohol abuse in Calabar South, Local Government Area of Cross River State, Nigeria. Unlike earlier studies of alcohol use in Nigeria, the study focused on a segment of the population that is difficult to reach and probably at high risk of alcohol and drug abuse. In addition, the focus of this study was on both western and the traditional alcohol beverages. The sample consisted of 400 respondents aged 10-50 years resident in Calabar South. Life time consumption of alcohol was reported by 98.5% of the respondents. Beer was the most often consume alcoholic drinks in the study population by the male while wine was for female, 64% of males took beer while 36% of females took wine. the odds of taking alcoholic drink increased with age. The consumption of alcohol was described as very harmful to health by 48% of the sample Analysis of the data showed that the factors that mostly influenced alcohol drinking were its availability which stood at 52.75%, peer groups influenced 27.25%, mass media advent 7.5%, home 9.5% and school 3.0%. The study also showed that alcohol consumption had effect on the social behaviour of the people of Calabar South. Decreased work performance 77.25%, increase in violence and crime 77%, poverty 50.75%, wife and childbearing 73.75%, increase in accident rate 80.5%, children inability to continue schooling 83.5% Nigerian culture, it appears that there is a culture of alcohol implicitly institutionalized that one could easily brand it as a norm to drink alcohol across the whole social spectrum with the student population constituting a significant proportion of the risk group (Ifeagwazi,2007).
This paper aimed at highlighting the importance of Clinical Nursing Research (CNR) in the professional development of Nursing. CNR often involve patient-oriented research, epidemiologic and behavioural studies, outcomes and health services research. These are all essential in today’s political and societal health care environment with growing shifts and disconnects in patients’ care, and the need for availability of human, material and financial resources required in meeting the health care needs. These and many more require the best available evidence, which could be acquired through CNR. However to achieve the benefits of CNR for professional development, Challenges including low quality research by new and inexperienced researchers; non-availability of research findings to nurses in the practice sectors; inability to identify and work on priority areas needed to improve practice; poor collaboration among researchers and inability to integrate research into practice should be addressed. The key to building and sustaining successful programmes in CNR and evidence-based practice could involve the ground work of establishing forums and structures such as research units in health institutions where discussions and activities about the processes for research and evidence-based practice could be promoted.
A study to determine the prevalence and types of refractive errors among secondary school students in Isuikwuato Local Government Area, Abia State, Nigeria was conducted. Pre-tested questionnaires were administered by two trained interviewers. Penlight examination, Hisirschberg's test, cover test, funduscopy with a direct ophthalmoscope, without and when necessary, with dilatation were performed by one optometrist. The design of this study was a cross sectional survey involving a one-time screening of 22 secondary school students in the LGA aged 11 "and 19 grouped in four yearly intervals for common refractive errors. Vision screening was conducted and those respondents found to have refractive errors were referred for further examination using the Modified Clinical Technique (MCT) criteria for referral. Furthermore, the randomness of refractive error among secondary student was tested with comparison independent sample and T-Test. When all cases of ametropia were considered, a total of 69.6% was found. Myopia predominated (36.2%), followed by hyperopia (18.0%) astigmatism (8.5%) and anisometropia (6.9%). Hence it is onus on us especially those in the medical profession to see that the menace of this refractive problem is checked.
The purpose of this paper was to highlight points that are necessary to bridge the gaps, where they exist, in relation to the structures, process and outcome of nursing education when compared with those of other professions. As a profession, nursing is broad in scope, and nurse practitioners are expected to possess a body of knowledge and skills for dependent, independent and inter-dependent practice. In many professions, preparation usually takes place in Colleges or University settings and educational preparation is usually prolonged to include instructions in the specialized body of knowledge and techniques of the profession. However, nursing education globally is highly variable, taking place in a myriad of programmes at the hospitals, technical institutes and institutions of higher learning with no uniformity. Furthermore, regarding educational outcome, many nurses in recent years are unable to meet the entry level competencies for registered nurses/midwives prior to employment into full practice. In other Medical Professions, including Medical Doctors, Medical Laboratory Scientists and Radiologists, a period of internship is provided for mastering of skills to enhance efficient and effective practice. This should also assist newly qualified nurses to improve on their entry level competencies to promote efficiency in their practical performance. It is therefore recommended that the regulating bodies should set standards of nursing education that are globally uniform and enforce compliance with such standards including admission criteria, contents/components; teachers’ qualification/certification and teaching facilities including materials and equipments. Furthermore, the recent plans to integrate Internship Programme into the training plan of graduate nurses is a step in the right direction and should be implemented without further delay to take nursing education and practice to greater heights.
This study was carried out to evaluate the effect of consumption (ingestion) of Cannabis sativa on the gastrointestinal tract using mucus concentration, acid secretion and ulceration in animal (rats) model as indices. Three groups of six (6) rats each were used. The control group were fed on rat chow only while another group were fed on low dose of Cannabis sativa 0.5gm/100g body weight and another group were fed on high dose of Cannibis sativa 0.8mg/100g body weight for 28 days respectively and allowed free access to food and water. At the end of 28 days, the results showed that the acid secretion in the high dose group was significantly (P<0.001) higher than in low dose group while the mucus concentration in low dose and high dose group respectively were significantly lower (P<0.01) than control. The mucus concentration in high dose was significantly lower (P<0.001) than low dose group when the test groups were compared. Similarly the ulcer scores were higher in low dose group (P<0.05) and in high dose group (P<0.001) respectively when compared with control group. The ulceration in high dose group was significantly higher (P<0.001) than the low dose group. In conclusion, ingestion of Cannabis sativa causes decrease in adherent gastric mucus, increase acid secretion and increase in gastric ulceration in a dose dependent fashion. The liberal use of Cannabis sativa should therefore be discouraged.
Questionnaires were distributed to 335 randomly selected female students of Federal University of Technology Owerri in order to determine the awareness, knowledge and sources of information on emergency contraception. It was found that 29.5% of the respondents had had an induced abortion while 74.6% had used family planning .The percentage that correctly identified postinor, oral contraceptive and intra uterine contraceptive as methods of emergency contraception was 9;15.7; and 4.3 % respectively. Only 16.5% knew the correct timing of emergency contraception and the main sources of information were doctors (19%) and pharmacists (15.8%) The potential benefits of emergency contraception remain largely untapped .It is suggested that all fresh students should be given talks on family planning as part of their orientation .
The incidence of Pes planus was determined among the people of Cross River State. A total of 1000 individuals comprising 500 males and 500 females of Cross River State origin and aged 20-30 years were used to assess the prevalence of Pes planus. All volunteers involved in the study had no deformities or previous fractures of the lower extremities especially of the foot. For each volunteer, bilateral plantar prints were obtained using ink procedure method. All prints were counted, separated into sexes and the incidence of flat foot calculated for both sexes. A total of 111 individuals had flat foot comprising 44 males and 67 females. The overall incidence of Pes planus was 22.20% with a prevalence of 8.80% amongst males and 13.40% amongst females. Bilateral flat foot was more common in females (11.20%) than in males (6.00%). Unilateral flat foot was more common in males (2.80%) than in females (2.20%). Our result shows that the prevalence of flat foot is higher amongst the females than the males in Cross River State with the prevalence being 22.20%.
Newborns admitted with convulsion in the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar during the period 1st May 2004 to 30 April 2006 were studied prospectively. The aim was to determine the place of birth in relation to the cause of seizures, the current situation in terms of the aetiology, clinical spectrum and outcome. There were 55 neonates with convulsion representing 5% of admissions into the newborn unit during the period. Birth asphyxia, sepsis, and hypoglycaemia were important identifiable aetiological factors which operated either singly (45.5%) of cases) or in concert (54.5% of cases) in causing seizures. Hypocalcaemia and hyponatraemia contributed less. These results are similar to that of a previous study carried out in this centre ten years earlier . There was no statistical significant difference between home and hospital deliveries in relation to causes of seizures. Septicaemia was caused mainly by staphylococcus aureus, enterobactericae and unclassified coliforms. No neonatal meningitis was diagnosed. Surprisingly, there was a high prevalence of generalized seizures (76.4%). The mortality of 34.0% was related to onset of the seizures within 4 days of life but not the place of birth.The causes of neonatal seizures in our environment are mostly preventable. There is need to provide modern facilities for investigating newborn seizures, training and retraining of Traditional Birth Attendants, health education of expectant mothers.
Introduction: Many patients with kidney disease are asymptomatic but may have abnormalities in urine. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of urinary abnormalities (UA) in asymptomatic secondary school children in Calabar, Nigeria and its relationship with age, sex, social class, body mass index and blood pressure. Methodology: It was a descriptive cross sectional study of 407 apparently healthy secondary school children aged 10-18 years recruited by multistage sampling techniques in June-July, 2022. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to obtain their bio-data and clinical history. Subject’s height and weight were measured using a stadiometer and body mass index (BMI) calculated. Blood pressure of each subject was measured using auscultatory method. Early morning urine was obtained from each subject and urinalysis done using dipstick- combi 10. The result of urinalysis was recorded. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 22.0 and p- value ≤ 0.05 was significant. Results: Out of 407 participants, 162 (39.8%) were males and 245 (60.2%) females giving a M:F ratio 1:1.5. The mean age was 13.5 ± 1.9 years. The prevalence of urinary abnormalities was 115 (28.3%) with many having more than one abnormality. Age group 13-15years were more commonly affected. Nitrituria 75(18.4) was the most frequent urinary abnormality followed by proteinuria 38 (9.3%), leucocytes14 (3.4%) andhaematuria 5(1.2%). There was no glucosuria. Nitrituria was statistically significant among females (p=0.040). Blood pressure, overweight and obesity were not statistically significant in relation to urinary abnormalities. Conclusion: The prevalence of urinary abnormalities was high among secondary school children but commoner in females and mainly nitrituria, proteinuria, leucocytes and haematuria. We therefore recommend regular screening for urinary abnormalities among secondary school children in our environment for early detection and prevention of renal diseases
Understanding the role of poverty in the continued epidemic of TB in developing countries will provide useful information for the improvement of TB control activities in these areas. A survey of the living conditions of 274 TB patients registered for DOTS at the National Tuberculosis Control Program Centre of the Lawrence Henshaw Memorial hospital Calabar and the Endemic Disease Clinic of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar was conducted to verify the view that poverty influences the incidence and outcome of TB. Using a structured pre-tested self- or interview- administered questionnaire, data were collected from a sample of 274 subjects: males (162/59%) and females (112/41%) within the economically viable age of 15-55 years. Results showed that the number of TB patients in the study decreased with increasing number of children of .3 in the households of subjects. The average income of the 244 (89%) income earners was N6,045.00 ($46.50) a month. Of this number, 170 (70%) earned less than N5,000 ($37.00) monthly. Thirty (11%) had no reliable means of income. Unemployed persons and students constituted the highest percentage of the subjects (18% and 17% respectively). A low socio-economic status and poor housing conditions typified by overcrowding and poor ventilation characterized the TB patients in this study. TB control programs anchored by government and non-governmental agencies need to address poverty reduction as part of their intervention strategies.
To evaluate the adequacy of the use of informed consent in surgical practice from the patients’ perspective. The study was carried out in the department of Surgery, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, over a six-month period. A structured questionnaire was administered post operatively on patients, and parents/guardians of minors, who agreed to participate in the exercise. Data obtained included sociodemographic characteristics, description of surgery they had, whether surgical procedure was explained to them pre operatively or not, who gave the explanation, their level of understanding and their opinion on the process of obtaining the consent. Ninety one patients participated in the study. Male to female ratio was 3.8:1, with average age of 33.6 years (SD ± 13). Most of them (94.6%) had some level of formal education. Seventy nine patients (86.8%) knew the description of the surgical procedure. Pre operative explanation of the surgical procedure was given to 70.3% of the patients but 27.5% of these did not understand the explanation. A significant number of the patients (51.6%) were not satisfied with the explanation given. Even though all the patients had the consent form signed either by themselves or on their behalf by a close relative, 46.2% of them did not understand the content of the consent form and 67.1% did not understand the implication of what they had signed. The practice of informed consent for surgery is not adequate. Surgeons need to be further educated to improve their practice in this regard. The consent process needs to be simplified to enhance patients’ understanding and participation.
This is a case of a child that presented with signs and symptoms of acute abdomen. There were scars from previous surgical operations on his abdomen following presentation with similar signs and symptoms suggestive of acute abdomen in two different hospitals. Furthermore, on careful physical examination some features of sickle cell anaemia were present. Blood was taken for laboratory investigations prior to commencement of intravenous 5% Dextrose-water. And lo! There was dramatic relief of his symptoms with a beam of smile on his face. Haemoglobin genotype revealed HbSS.
