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ObjectivesTo determine the frequency and predictors of sleep abnormalities among patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) in Nigeria.Material and methodsA multi-centre, hospital-based, cross-sectional study, involving 250 knee OA patients. Consenting patients 18 years and above, who satisfied the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria for knee OA were recruited from five Nigerian tertiary centres over 3 months. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect demographic and relevant clinical information. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was used to assess sleep quality with scores ≥ 5 indicating poor sleep. Other variables assessed were pain, depression, functional class and family functioning. Data were summarized using appropriate measures of central tendency and dispersion. Multiple logistic regression analysis was done to identify predictors of poor sleep. Analysis was done using SPSS version 21.0 with p < 0.05 considered significant. Study approval was obtained from the ethical committees of each of the study sites.ResultsParticipants included 209 females (83.6%) with mean age 59.9 ±10.6 years. One hundred and forty-one participants (56.4%) had PSQI scores ≥ 5 (poor sleep). This was significantly associated with depression (p < 0.001), level of education (p = 0.001), higher pain scores (p < 0.001), body mass index (p = 0.040), medial knee OA (p = 0.032) and patello-femoral OA (p = 0.002). Higher level of education, worse depression scores and higher WOMAC pain scores were the best predictors of poor sleep quality.ConclusionSleep quality was poor in over half of our knee OA patients and best predicted by depression, pain and level of education. Regular sleep quality assessment for knee OA patients is recommended.

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Biomass use in small unit combustion systems such as for space heating or cooking could lead to ineffective mixing and potential problems arising from emissions of gaseous and particulate pollutants. We therefore conducted a study to measure pollution levels in public kitchens using biomass fuel for cooking and to ascertain their air quality indices. Markers of indoor air quality such as CO, SO2, H2S, PM2.5 and PM10 were measured in eleven (11) public kitchens of selected secondary schools over a period of four months by a set of active sampling devices. It is revealed that the mean average of CO, SO2, H2S, PM2.5 and PM10 sampled in the indoor microenvironments of the selected kitchens are 46.29 ppm, 0.36 ppm, 0.28 ppm, 74 µg/m3 and 138 µg/m3, respectively. The AQI assessed for CO for the kitchens was 36.36% very hazardous, 54.54 % hazardous and 9.09% very unhealthy while 63.64% and 36.36 % of very unhealthy and unhealthy categories, respectively for SO2. This shows that the indoor air pollution levels in selected kitchen are elevated and results in potential negative health consequences.

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Background: Knowledge of prevention and removing the barriers of stigma and discrimination is a critical public health issue for HIV/AIDS prevention strategies in Nigeria. Objective: This paper is aimed at accessing the knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention, causes and effects of stigma and discrimination towards people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), among the final year dental students. Methodology: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study among final year dental students in accredited dental schools in Nigeria, 2016. At the time of conducting this study there were 8 accredited dental schools in Nigeria. Simple random sampling technique was used to pick four schools from the existing eight. All data obtained was analysed using IBM SPSS version 21.0. Results: Out of the 70 questionnaires administered 60 were filled and returned giving a response rate of 85.7%. Half (50.0%) of the respondents exhibited a good level of knowledge of HIV prevention. About two-thirds (66.7%) of the respondents exhibited good level of knowledge of HIV discrimination and stigma. The main cause of stigma against PLWHA was lack of knowledge about HIV (86.7%). The main effect of stigma on PLWHA as stated by 83.3% is that they hide their HIV status. Conclusion: The study showed that most final year dental students have good knowledge of HIV prevention; causes; and effects of stigma and discriminations among people living with HIV/AIDS. However, they need more training on how occupational HIV exposure should be handled in the clinic.