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BackgroundHypertension is a major challenge to public health as it is frequently associated with sudden death due to the silent nature of the condition. By the time of diagnosis, some patients would have developed target-organ damage (TOD) and associated clinical conditions (ACC) due to low levels of detection, treatment and control. TOD and ACC are easy to evaluate in a primary healthcare (PHC) setting and offer valuable information for stratifying cardiovascular risks in the patient. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and correlates of TOD and established cardiovascular disease (CVD) in hypertensive Nigerian adults.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted on 2 000 healthy Yoruba adults between 18 and 64 years who lived in a rural community in south-western Nigeria. Participants diagnosed to have hypertension were examined for TOD and ACC by the presence of electrocardiographically determined left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), microalbuminuria or proteinuria, retinopathy, or history of myocardial infarction and stroke.ResultsA total of 415 hypertensive participants were examined and of these, 179 (43.1%) had evidence of TOD and 45 (10.8%) had established CVD. TOD was associated with significantly higher systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). The prevalence of LVH was 27.9%, atrial fibrillation 16.4%, microalbuminuria 12.3%, proteinuria 15.2%, hypertensive retinopathy 2.2%, stroke 6.3%, congestive heart failure (CHF) 4.6%, ischaemic heart disease 1.7%, and peripheral vascular disease 3.6%. Compared with those with normal blood pressure (BP), the multivariate adjusted odds ratios (95% confidence interval) of developing TOD was 3.61 (0.59–8.73) for those with newly diagnosed hypertension; 4.76 (1.30–13.06) for those with BP ≥ 180/110 mmHg; and 1.85 (0.74–8.59) for those with diabetes mellitus.ConclusionsThis study provides new data on TOD and its correlates in a nationally representative sample of hypertensive adults in Nigeria. In this low-resource setting, attempts should be made to detect hypertensive patients early within the community and manage them appropriately before irreversible organ damage and complications set in. The methods used in this study are simple and adaptable at the primary healthcare level for planning prevention and intervention programmes.

GDM is a common metabolic condition in Nigeria. Onset before the 24th week of pregnancy is not uncommon.

Prospective cohort study on 1280 adult patients admitted to the medical wards of a tertiary institution over 12 months. Patients were assessed for ADRs during and throughout admission; causality and preventability of ADRs were assessed. Results: Sixty-seven (5.2%) patients had ADRs, 51 (3.9%) caused hospitalisation while 17(1.3%) occurred during hospitalisation, and 42 (62.7%) of total ADRs were preventable. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, 14 (20.3%), antidiabetics, 12 (17.4%) and antibacterial, 11 (15.8%) were the most implicated drug classes. Gastrointestinal tract (37%), central nervous system (30.2%), and skin (24.7%) were the most affected organ/systems, while upper gastrointestinal bleeding and hypoglycaemia were the most observed ADRs. ADRs led to deaths in 7 (10.4%) patients, with an overall case fatality rate of 0.5%. The highest number of deaths were among patients with Stevens-Johnson syndrome 2/7 (28.6%) and hepatotoxicity 2/7 (28.6%). Risk factors, adjusted odds ratio (AOR [95% confidence interval, CI]) for ADRs leading to hospitalisation was male sex 3.11 (1.11, 8.73) while for ADRs during hospitalisation were number of drugs used before admission (AOR [95% CI] = 6.67 [1.16, 38.47]) and comorbidities (AOR [95% CI] = 3.0 [1.13, 8.01]). Patients admitted with ADRs had prolonged hospital stay (AOR [95% CI] = 3.37 [1.11, 8.71]). Conclusion: Preventable ADRs are common and important causes of hospitalisation and inpatients' morbidity and mortality among medical patients in Nigeria. Upper gastrointestinal bleeding and hypoglycaemia, resulting from nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and antidiabetic drugs were the most observed ADRs.

Untreated asymptomatic bacteriuria can lead to urinary tract infection (UTI) in pregnancy with devastating maternal and neonatal effects such as prematurity and low birth weight, higher fetal mortality rates and significant maternal morbidity. We carried out a two year (April 2007 to March 2009) cross-sectional epidemiological study to determine the prevalence of significant bacteriuria among asymptomatic antenatal clinic attendees at two antenatal clinics (ANCs) in University College Hospital and Adeoyo Maternity Hospital, both in Ibadan, Nigeria.All consenting ANC attendees without UTI were enrolled in the study. Urine specimens of 5 to 10 ml collected from each subject were examined microscopically for white blood cells, red blood cells and bacteria. The specimens were further cultured on MacConkey agar using a sterile bacteriological loop that delivered 0.002 ml of urine. Colony counts yielding bacterial growth of more than 105/ml of pure isolates were considered significant.Of the 473 subjects studied, 136 had significant bacteriuria, giving a prevalence rate of 28.8%. The highest age specific prevalence (47.8%) was found in the 25–29 year olds while only one (0.7%) was found in the teenage group. A large percentage (64.0%) of subjects with significant bacteriuria had tertiary education, compared with 4.4% who had no formal education but the association was not statistically significant (X2 = 0.47, p = 0.79). The majority (75.8%) of subjects with significant bacteriuria had no previous history of abortion, while 20 (14.7%) had one previous abortion and only three (2.1%) admitted to three previous abortions (X2 = 5.16, p = 0.16). The majority (69.8%) of those with significant bacteriuria presented at second trimester while 38 (28.0%) presented at third trimester (X2 = 6.5, p = 37).Only 22 (4.6%) of the studied subjects presented at first trimester, and 3 (13.7%) of these had significant bacteriuria.The prevalence of asymptomatic bacteriuria is high among this study population. Hence we suggest that advocacy programs be initiated to urge pregnant women to access ANC services early in pregnancy.

Background: Pre-eclampsia is a form of hypertensive disorder of pregnancy. It is a common cause of both maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality in both developed and developing countries. Objective: To evaluate the possibility of early prediction of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy using single estimation of serum protein, creatinine and uric in serum samples of healthy primigravidae with singleton pregnancy. Setting: University College Hospital, Ibadan. Subjects: Fifty nine normortensive primigravidae. Methods: Fifty nine healthy normotensive primigravidae with singleton pregnancy who booked for antenal care and delivered at the University College Hospital, Ibadan had single estimations of their serum albumin, creatinine and uric acid levels at booking before the 20th week of pregnancy. The women were followed up longitudinally throughout pregnancy. Results: Pre-eclampsia occurred in five of the patients (21.7%), two had pregnancy induced hypertension only (8.7%) while 16 remained normotensive (69.6%). The difference in the mean serum concentration of uric acid (0.162± 0.02 mmol/L) and creatinine (93.70± 10.08 µmol/L) respectively were not statistically significant (p>0.05). However, the difference in the mean serum albumin levels (4.06± 0.06 versus 3.71±0.33 gm/dl) was significantly higher in the pre-eclampsia group (p<0.05). The predictive performance of these tests was generally low whether alone or in combination. Conclusion: Single estimation of serum uric acid and creatinine levels early in pregnancy are of little value in the prediction of pre-eclampsia. A large study is recommended to properly define the value of serum albumin levels in pregnancy in the prediction of pre-eclampsia in the light of the findings of this study.

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