Objective. To determine the awareness and knowledge of sexually transmitted infections among adolescents in Ado, South Western Nigeria. Methods. The study was a descriptive cross-sectional design. Five hundred and fifty adolescents selected from public and private secondary schools in Ado Local Government Area of Ekiti State were recruited using a multistage sampling technique. Results. Four hundred and ninety-nine (92.4%) respondents had heard about sexually transmitted infections before, the three most important sources of information being electronic media (68.7%); teachers (68.1%); and print media (44.9%). Eighty percent of the respondents knew only one STI and the two most commonly mentioned ones were HIV/AIDS (78.0%) and gonorrhea (23.0%). More than 75% of the respondents knew the modes of transmission of STIs while some of them equally had misconceptions. The most important symptoms mentioned were weight loss (77.4%), painful micturition (68.9%), and genital ulcer (54.1%). On the whole, only 6.9% of the respondents had good knowledge of STIs; the rest had fair and poor knowledge. Conclusion. Secondary school adolescents in Ado Local Government Area have only a fair knowledge of sexually transmitted diseases. STI studies should be inculcated into the school curriculum and media publicity/enlightenment campaigns about them should be intensified.

IntroductionSpontaneous bacterial peritonitis (SBP) is a common bacterial infection in patients with cirrhosis and ascites requiring prompt recognition and treatment. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence, and characteristics of SBP among in-patients with cirrhosis and ascites seen at our facility.MethodsThirty one patients with liver cirrhosis and ascites who were admitted into the Medical ward of the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria from August 2009 to July 2010 were retrospectively studied. All the patients had abdominal paracentesis done within 48 hours of admission under aseptic condition and the data obtained were analyzed.ResultsThe mean age of the studied population was 62±9 years (age range 43-78 years). Of the 21 that developed SPB, culture positive SBP was present in 66.7% (14/21) while CNNA was found in 33.3% (7/21). The prevalence of MNB was 26% (8/31) in this study. Of those with SBP, 93% had monomicrobial infection with aerobic Gram negative bacilli being responsible in 66.7% of the cases with E.coli (70%) being the predominant organism followed by Klebsiella species. Gram positive organisms accounted for 33.3% with Streptococcal species (60%) being the predominant organism followed by Staphylococcus aureus (40%). Patients with SBP had significantly lower platelet count when compared with those without SBP, p < 0.05. Also, international normalization ratio (INR) was significantly higher in those patients with SBP compared with those without SBP, p < 0.05. The poor prognostic indicators found in this study were; low ascitic protein, hepatic encephalopathy, coagulopathy, renal dysfunction (creatinine >2mg/dl) and leukocytosis (p < 0.05).ConclusionIt is therefore imperative to do diagnostic abdominal paracentesis for cell count and culture in any patient with onset of ascites or cirrhotic patients with ascites and suggestive symptoms compatible or suggestive of SBP.

Background:Palliative care is an emerging area of medicine with potential to affect positively many chronically ill patients. This study investigated the knowledge and attitude of healthcare workers in a tertiary level hospital in Nigeria where a palliative care unit is being established.Material and Methods:The study was a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study carried out among healthcare workers in Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti, south-west Nigeria. The questionnaire had sections about definition of palliative care, its philosophy, communication issues, medications, and contexts about its practice. The information obtained from the questionnaire was coded, entered, and analyzed using IBM SPSS version 19.Results:A total of 170 questionnaires were returned within the stipulated time frame with response rate of 66.7%. Majority, (135, 86%) respondents felt palliative care was about the active management of the dying while 70.5% of respondents equated palliative care to pain management. Regarding the philosophy of palliative care, 70 (57.9%) thought that it affirms life while 116 (78.4%) felt palliative care recognizes dying as a normal process. One hundred and twenty-two (78.7%) respondents were of the opinion that all dying patients would require palliative care. The patient should be told about the prognosis according to 122 (83%) respondents and not doing so could lead to lack of trust (85%). Regarding the area of opioid use in palliative care, 76% of respondents agreed that morphine improves the quality of life of patients.Conclusion:There are plausible gaps in the knowledge of the healthcare workers in the area of palliative care. Interventions are needed to improve their capacity.

Urinary tract infections (UTI) in children with sickle cell anemia (SCA) may result in long term renal dysfunction. The prevalence, potential risk factors, and clinical significance of asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) were investigated in 196 Nigerian children with SCA in stable state. These children had clinical evaluation and assessment of their mid-stream urine (MSU) for pyuria, culture, and sensitivity tests; urinalysis for proteinuria, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), hematocrit, serum creatinine and uric acid estimation. Children with confirmed ASB were compared with those without ASB. Those with confirmed ASB were monitored for 6 months for persistence of significant growth, development of symptomatic UTI, and evaluation of renal functions. The prevalence of probable and confirmed ASB in this cohort of SCA children were 12.2% and 6.6%, respectively. Confirmed ASB was more prevalent among older (P = 0.046) and female (P = 0.003) SCA children, particularly those with pyuria (odd Ratio, OR = 5.4, 95% confidence interval, CI = 2.7-11.0, P < 0.001) and proteinuria (OR = 1.4, 95% CI = 3.9-8.7, P = 0.006). Previous symptomatic UTI was not associated with ASB. Also, the mean eGFR, serum creatinine, and uric acid were not different in the group with ASB and those without ASB (P > 0.05). At the end of 6 month follow-up, two (15.4%) of the 13 children with ASB had persistence of significant growth, but none develop symptomatic UTI. Also, none of the two with persistent ASB had hypertension or deranged renal function. ASB is a significant problem in older age female SCA children, although renal functions were not different among those with and without ASB. A large scale randomized placebo-controlled trial of conventional treatment for ASB in SCA is advocated to define its long-term clinical significance.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) is one of the commonest gastrointestinal emergencies.Endoscopy done within the first 24 hours of bleeding has been shown to be the most reliable means of establishing the source of upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage. This study was carried out to determine the aetiology and management outcome of patients with UGIB presenting at our facility located in Southwest Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHOD: 67 patients who presented with UGIB and underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy between April 2010 and March 2011 at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, Southwest Nigeria were retrospectively studied, relevant data extracted and analysed. RESULTS: The demographic data of the patients showed a mean age of 41.84± 12.81 years, (ages ranged from 17 to 75 years), 40 (59.7%) were males while 27 (40.3%) were females giving a male to female ratio of 1.5:1. Clinical presentations included haematemesis and melena in 26 (38.8%), followed by haematemesis in 22 (32.8%) and melena in 19 (28.4%) of the patients. Antral mucosal erosions were the commonest cause of UGIB (49%), followed by peptic ulcer disease (25.4%), varices (11.9%) and gastric mass (1.5%). No cause for UGIB was found in 8 cases (11.9%). Endoscopy diagnostic accuracy was greater within the first 24 hours of the bleeding onset compared to those who had it done later (p<0.003). Three patients died giving a mortality rate of 4.5%. These deaths were recorded from among the variceal bleeding group giving a mortality rate of 42.9% in this group of patients. CONCLUSION: Antral mucosal erosions were the commonest cause of UGIB in our environment. NSAIDS intake was very high among the populace, especially in mucosal erosion group leading to high morbidity, absent from work and huge financial cost. It is recommended that serious awareness campaigns be mounted to educate the populace of the dangers inherent in indiscriminate use of NSAIDS in our society. As endoscopy diagnostic accuracy was greater within the first 24 hours of the bleeding onset, it is equally recommended that early endoscopy should be performed within 24 h of the onset of bleeding.