Hyperthermia is a high-risk event in ELBW infants and methods of cooling a high and prolonged temperature must be reviewed.

This study shows that mucocutaneous lesions are common in children with HIV/AIDS and could be an early indicator of immune suppression. It is important to recognize them early in order to enhance early case detection and treatment.

BackgroundHome-based management of malaria involves prompt delivery of effective malaria treatment at the community by untrained caregiver. The aim of this study was to document home-based treatment of suspected malaria by non-medical caregivers and to identify its health impact on malaria outcome (severe malaria prevalence, parasite load and mortality) in children (6–59 months).MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional study carried out from June 2012–July 2013. Data was obtained by researcher-administered questionnaire and malaria was confirmed in each child by microscopy. Analysis was by Statistical Package for Scientific Solutions version 16.ResultsOf the 290 caregivers (31.2 ± 6.1 years)/child (21.3 ± 14.4 months) pairs recruited, 222 (76.6%) caregivers managed malaria at home before presenting their children to hospital. Majority (99.0%) practiced inappropriate home-based malaria treatment. While only 35 (15.8%) caregivers used the recommended artemisinin-based combination therapy, most others used paracetamol either solely or in combination with anti-malarial monotherapy [153 (69.0%)]. There was no significant difference in mean [±] parasites count (2055.71 ± 1655.06/µL) of children who received home-based treatment and those who did not (2405.27 ± 1905.77/µL) (t = 1.02, p = 0.31). Prevalence of severe malaria in this study was 111 (38.3%), which was statistically significantly higher in children who received home-based malaria treatment [90.0%] (χ2 = 18.4, OR 4.2, p = 0.00). The mortality rate was 62 per 1000 and all the children that died received home-based treatment (p < 0.001). While low socio-economic class was the significant predictor of prevalence of severe malaria (β = 0.90, OR 2.5, p = 0.00), late presentation significantly predicted mortality (β = 1.87, OR 6.5, p = 0.02).ConclusionsThe expected benefits of home-based management of malaria in under-fives were undermined by inappropriate treatment practices by the caregivers leading to high incidence of severe malaria and mortality.

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Behavioral modification in children with chronic neurological disorders should be an integral part of the control program for intestinal helminthiasis.

Millennium development goal target on infant mortality (MDG4) by 2015 would not be realised in some low-resource countries. This was in part due to unsustainable high-tech ideas that have been poorly executed. Prudent but high impact techniques could have been synthesised in these countries. A collaborative outreach was initiated to devise frugal measures that could reduce neonatal deaths in Nigeria. Prevailing issues of concern that could militate against neonatal survival within care centres were identified and remedies were proffered. These included application of (i) recycled incubator technology (RIT) as a measure of providing affordable incubator sufficiency, (ii) facility-based research groups, (iii) elective training courses for clinicians/nurses, (iv) independent local artisans on spare parts production, (v) power-banking and apnoea-monitoring schemes, and (v) 1/2 yearly failure-preventive maintenance and auditing system. Through a retrospective data analyses 4 outreach centres and one “control” were assessed. Average neonatal mortality of centres reduced from 254/1000 to 114/1000 whilst control remained at 250/1000. There was higher relative influx of incubator-dependent-neonates at outreach centres. It was found that 43% of mortality occurred within 48 hours of presentation (d48) and up to 92% of d48 were of very-low birth parameters. The RIT and associated concerns remedies have demonstrated the vital signs of efficiency that would have guaranteed MDG4 neonatal component in Nigeria.

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Background: Researchers in medicine and related fields in Nigeria have usually made recourse to the instrument developed by Olusanya et al and Oyedeji in the past three-and-a half decades for determination of socioeconomic status (SES). Beside the question of their age, however, these instruments were purposive and might no longer be suitable because of the changes in the parameters on which they were based.Objective: To develop a robust but generic scheme that takes into consideration the changes in the nation’s socioeconomic space in the succeeding three and a half decades.Methods: A detailed and comprehensive review of the extant schemes was undertaken with a view to identifying their inherent weaknesses. The latter were then factored into the design of a new scheme taking into consideration the emergent restructuring of career positions in the civil/public service as well as the place of private and informal sectors of the economy. The new scheme was validated at the University of Beninand Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospitals.Results: The new scheme had a remarkably high Inter-rater reliability (r = 0.947, p<0.001), raterre- rater reliability (r = 0.984, p <0.001) and % agreement (with modified Oyedeji’s tool as standard) of 67% (K coefficient = 0.47, r = 0.71, p<0.001)Conclusion/Recommendation: The new scheme could be a viable tool for the assessment of SES of families and individuals, which not only takes into consideration current realities of the nation’s economy, but also is readily adaptable to meet foreseeable changes.