Cervical cancer remains the commonest gynaecological cancer among women in the developing countries. The records of all the histologically confirmed cervical cancer patients managed in Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, over a 5 year period were analysed for the clinical presentation and histological pattern of the malignancy. A total of 75 cases of cervical cancer were managed over the period giving an incidence of 65.2% of all gynaecological cancers and 13.4% of all gynaecological admissions. The majority of the patients were grandmultiparous women (81.3%) with a mean parity of 6.8. The modal age range was 60-69 years (38.7%) and the majority (94.7%) of the patients belonged to the low socioeconomic class. Squamous cell carcinoma of varying differentiation (89.3%) was the commonest histological type seen and adenocarcinoma accounted for only 8.0%. The common clinical features were post-menopausal bleeding (84.0%), vaginal discharge (72.0%), contact bleeding (63.9%) and abdominal pain (56.2%). Most (89.3%) of the patients presented late, in advanced stages of the disease, and almost all (97.3%) were referred for radiotherapy. The incidence of cervical cancer is high in our environment. Community sensitisation and provision of free cervical screening is recommended for early detection and treatment.

BackgroundToxoplasmosis is caused by infection with a ubiquitous intracellular protozoan parasite, Toxoplasma gondii. With the advent of the HIV pandemic in Nigeria, toxoplasmic encephalitis has become one of the more frequent opportunistic infections and the most commonly implicated cause of focal brain lesions complicating the course of AIDS.ObjectivesThis study was conducted to compare the pattern of seroprevalence of T. gondii (Toxo-IgG) antibodies among HIV-infected persons presenting with neurological complications and those without.Materials and methodsPlasma specimens collected from 380 subjects were tested for Toxo- IgG antibodies by enzyme immunoassay technique and CD4 estimation by flow cytometry. Close-ended questionnaires were applied to all respondents to collect relevant data, with ethical approval from the hospital ethical committee. Plasma was obtained from two study groups comprising 300 HIV-positive respondents without neurological presentations, and 80 HIV-positive respondents with neurological complications.ResultsSeroprevalence of Toxo-IgG antibodies was 58% in the HIV-positive study group without neurological complications (of these, 79.2% were males and 38.5% were females) and 40% in the study group with neurological complications (46.2% of these were males and 28.6% were females). The overall seroprevalence of Toxo-IgG antibodies among the HIV-positive respondents (with and without neurological complications) was 54.2% (206 of 380). Seroprevalence of Toxo-IgG antibodies was lowest among the educated subjects (19% of the respondents with tertiary education) and among females in both study groups. A higher proportion of the subjects with neurological complications had CD4 cell count <100 cells/μL compared with respondents without neurological defects (39% vs 22.7%; P = 0.000), but the seroprevalence of Toxo-IgG antibodies was higher in subjects without neurological complications (45% vs 31.3%; P = 0.000).ConclusionToxoplasmosis, though an important opportunistic infection in our environment, may not account for the majority of neurological complications observed in patients with HIV infection in our center.

Objective To determine the accuracy of a semi‐quantitative interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) vaginal secretion rapid test (Chorioquick) for detecting chorioamnionitis in women with premature rupture of membranes (PROM). Methods A prospective cohort study in five tertiary hospitals in Nigeria involved women with confirmed PROM at term and preterm PROM with or without suspected chorioamnionitis from August 1, 2017, to October 31, 2018. Cervicovaginal fluid samples were tested for chorioamnionitis using the Chorioquick test. Samples were repeated at decision to deliver. The test was considered positive if at least the indicator ‘IL‐6 low’ of the three Chorioquick biomarkers (low, medium, high) was positive, or negative if none of the biomarkers were positive. Chorioamnionitis was histologically confirmed post‐delivery using three tissue samples. Primary outcome measures were sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy. Results Of 73 women, on histological confirmation, 39 were true positive and 29 were true negative (for chorioamnionitis) to the Chorioquick test at repeat assessment. Overall, the Chorioquick test had a sensitivity of 97.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 85.3–99.9), specificity 87.9% (70.9–96.0), and accuracy 93.2% (79.5–99.1). Sub‐group analysis of women <37 weeks of pregnancy showed a sensitivity of 100.0% (95% CI 83.4–100.0), specificity of 91.3% (70.5–98.5), and accuracy of 95.8% (82.5–99.5). Triple positive samples were 100.0% specific in all gestations. Conclusion Chorioquick showed favorable utility for detecting chorioamnionitis in PROM and could be a reliable, non‐invasive rapid tool in a real‐world clinical setting.

We report a challenging case of a huge gangrenous prolapsed cervical leiomyoma in a multiparous HIV positive lady. A 37-year-old para 3 lady presented with a progressively increasing irreducible mass protruding out per vaginam, 3 months duration of heavy menses, and symptoms of a urinary tract infection. We performed a vaginal myomectomy and she did well postoperatively. A prolapsed gangrenous cervical leiomyoma is a rare condition with only a few cases reported in the literature. Vaginal myomectomy for this condition can be performed in experienced hands without difficulties.

Chronic schistosomiasis of the urinary tract can present with symptoms unrelated to the disease. A 33-year-old man from Edo State Nigeria presented with recurrent left flank pain. Laboratory investigations did not reveal any cause. Radiological investigation revealed a stricture of the left ureter and hydronephrosis of the left kidney. Management included surgical excision and antischistosomiasis chemotherapy. Histopathological examination of specimen of the ureter obtained after surgical exploration revealed Schistosoma heamatobium ova in the wall of the ureter.