Objective: To describe the pattern of morbidity and mortality as seen at the Emergency Paediatric Unit of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City. Methods: A retrospective study in which records of admissions over a two-year period were obtained from the medical and ward records. Information retrieved included age, sex, diagnosis, duration of stay in the unit and outcome. Results: A total of 3,261 patients aged between 29 days and 16 years were admitted into the Children Emergency Room during the period. Of these, 1,835 (56.3%) were males while 1,426 (43.7%) were females. The total number of underfives admitted was 2,289 (70.2% of total admissions). The major causes of admission were malaria (44.4%), respiratory tract infections (17.8%) and gastroenteritis with moderate or severe dehydration (10.1%). There were 992 (30.4%) discharges while 2,126 (65.2%) were transferred tothe paediatric wards for further management. One hundred and forty-three (4.4%) patients died during the period with over 80% being children five years or less. Severe malaria accounted for the largest number of deaths (29.4%) in the unit, followed by meningitis (16.9%) and septicaemia (15.4%) with over 80% of the deaths being from infectious diseases. Conclusion: Infectious diseases are still the major causes of morbidity and mortality especially in underfives in our locality. The role of environmental sanitation, health education and good nutrition in the health of the child must be brought to the fore. The nation's immunisation schedule should include vaccines against infectious organisms like Haemophilus influenzae and Streptococcus pneumoniae which are major causes of pneumonia and meningitis in childhood. Also, a boost in the coverage of our health insurance scheme would be a step in the right direction.

Background: Human breast milk is the most healthful form of milk for human babies. Every infant deserves the best possible start in life in terms of nutrition by breastfeeding or receiving donated human milk. Breast milk is very important for the infant’s growth and well-being that the non-availability of the mother should not deprive the infant from its benefits. To enhance the availability and use of human breast milk for hospitalized babies whose mothers may not have enough milk, there is the need to embark on human milk banking.Objective: To determine the perception of mothers towards breast milk banking in Benin City, Nigeria.Subjects and Methods: The study subjects included 198 mothers who brought their babies to Well Baby/Immunization Clinic of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin City, Nigeria. A structured researcheradministered questionnaire was used to assess their biodata, awareness and perception of breast milk banking.Results: The mean age of the mothers was 29.8 ± 5.5 years with 46.5% having some form of tertiary education and 48.5% having secondary education. Only 51 (25.8%) of them had heard of breast milk banking; source of information being mainly from health workers (43.1%) and from friends (27.5%). Majority 168 (84.8%) of the mothers would not give their babies human milk donated by another nursing mother mainly because of fear of transmission of infections/diseases. Most 105 (53.0%) were also unwilling to donate breast milk to be used for other babies due to the fact that they disliked the idea (51.4%) and because of fear of not having enough for their own babies (16.1%). However, most (59.1%) strongly agreed that human milk banking would help assist mothers in need, orphans and abandoned babies.Conclusion/Recommendation: The awareness of human milk banking and its acceptance among mothers in Benin City is poor. The current findings strongly justify the need for public enlightenment on human milk banking and its benefits.Key words: Breast milk banking, mothers, Perception

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A total of 18,334 live births and 376 neonatal deaths at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital were analyzed. The neonatal mortality rate has declined significantly from 49.5/1000 in 1974 to 16.4/1000 live births in 1981. The decrease mainly resulted from the reduction of mortality of full size infants (greater than 2500 g) and deaths resulting from perinatal asphyxia. Further reduction may be anticipated if careful attention is paid to the management of breech delivery and if a more intensive care for low birth weight infants is provided.

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