The prevalence of both hypertension and obesity seems to be increasing in rural communities in Nigeria and thus, the available prevalence documented in previous studies for rural communities may no longer represent the current trend. Awareness of the participants about these major cardiovascular risk factors is still very low. Higher BMI was associated with higher values of both systolic and diastolic BP.

Fixed drug eruption (FDE) causes cosmetic embarrassment in Nigerian patients, particularly when the characteristic hyperpigmented patches affect the face and lips. Drugs that have been implicated in the etiology of FDE, and the sites of lesions, may vary from country to country. Antimalarials, such as Fansidar, Fancimef, Maloxine, Amalar, and Metakelfin, were the most common offending agents, accounting for 38% of FDEs, followed by trimethoprim + sulfamethoxazole (co-trimoxazole) (28%), dipyrones (10%), Butazolidin (6%), thiacetazone (6%), metronidazole (4%), paracetamol (3%), and naproxen (3%). Lesions induced by the combination of sulfadoxine and pyrimethamine (in antimalarials) mainly involved the face and lips. In most cases, patients took these sulfa-containing antimalarials in combination with numerous other drugs, particularly analgesics. Unlike chloroquine-induced pruritus, which affects most Africans, the association between antimalarials and FDE has not been well documented in our region. Co-trimoxazole was associated more often than antimalarials with FDEs involving the mucocutaneous junctions of the genitalia and lips. Males with genital lesions on the glans penis represented 11 (48%) of those with co-trimoxazole hypersensitivity. The trunk and limbs were affected mainly by pyrazoles and Butazolidin, respectively; however, solitary lesions on the trunk were usually due to co-trimoxazole, whereas solitary lesions on the limbs were associated with Butazolidin.

IntroductionThyrotoxicosis is an endocrine disorder with prominent cardiovascular manifestations. Thyroid hormone acts through genomic and non-genomic mechanisms to regulate cardiac function. Echocardiography is a useful, non-invasive, easily accessible, and affordable tool for studying the structural and physiological function of the heart.AimWe studied thyrotoxicosis patients in a Nigerian Teaching Hospital and employed trans-thoracic echocardiography to find out if there were abnormalities in the hearts of these patients.MethodsFifty adult thyrotoxicosis patients diagnosed with clinical and thyroid function tests in the medical out-patient unit of the hospital were recruited and we performed transthoracic echocardiography with a Sonos 2000 HP machine.ResultsWe documented the presence of abnormalities in the following proportion of thyrotoxicosis patients: left ventricular enhanced systolic function in 30%, enhanced diastolic function in 34%, diastolic dysfunction in 34%, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction in10%, heart failure with reduced ejection fraction in 6%, and left ventricular hypertrophy in 34%.ConclusionEchocardiography was useful in the stratification of cardiac function abnormalities and is indispensable as a guide in the choice of therapeutic options in patients with thyrocardiac disease. The finding of left ventricular enhanced systolic and diastolic functions signify early echocardiographic detectable cardiac abnormalities in thyrotoxicosis, and the clinical management includes the use of anti-thyroid drugs and β-adrenoceptor blockade. Diastolic dysfunction in thyrotoxicosis patients asymptomatic for cardiac disease should be treated with anti-thyroid drugs, and β-adrenoceptor blockade. The judicious application of clinical therapeutics will guide the use of anti-thyroid drugs, diuretics, digoxin, angiotensin inhibitors, and β-adrenoceptor blockade in the successful management of thyrotoxicosis patients with heart failure and reduced, preserved, or increased ejection fraction: parameters which are derived from echocardiography.

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This research aimed to evaluate the prevalence of ventricular septal defect (VSD) and to determine the age and gender distribution of this defect and its common associated congenital cardiac anomalies among patients referred for echocardiographic examination at the echocardiography laboratory of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria. Echocardiogram reports from the 10-year period February 1991-September 2001 were analysed. There were 2486 echocardiogram scans with an additional 334 repeat scans; 593 subjects had congenital anomalies, of which 165 (28%; 98 males and 67 females) had VSDs. The highest prevalence of VSDs (118; 70%) was in children age 0-9 years although VSDs were found in adults aged up to 50 years and above. Persistent ductus arteriosus and atrial septal defect were the commonest associated congenital anomalies. The study has shown that VSD is a relatively common congenital heart disease and that many patients present with VSD in adult life. There is a need for thorough scrutiny to be made for other cardiac anomalies in all patients with VSD, as well as for corrective surgery to be made affordable to those affected by this defect and other associated anomalies.

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In mouse, the administration of chemical protectors before an irradiation induces a more rapid bone marrow regeneration and an increased lymphoid rebound. In the thymus, the late atrophy is reduced. Separately administrated, the protectors decrease greatly the thymocytes number but have no effect on the marrow population.