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Background: Exclusive breast feeding (EBF) in the first six months of life is recognized as an indispensable component of survival, physical and mental development of children. Despite the enormous benefits of EBF, only 39% of infants less than 6 months of age are exclusively breastfed globally., Objectives: This study assessed EBF knowledge, practice and associated factors among nursing mothers attending health facilities in Kaduna metropolis., Methods: Descriptive and cross-sectional study carried out with the aid of a structured questionnaire at the Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital and Gwamna Awwal General Hospital in Kaduna. The participants were recruited by simple random sampling technique with the assistance of trained research assistants for four consecutive weeks in each of the hospital. Data were analysed using SPSS version 16., Results: Majority of the participants were in the age range of 21-30 years. Their main source of information on breastfeeding was from ante-natal clinics (78.3%). Most (86.6%) of the participants had a good knowledge and awareness about EBF, 69.1% of them initiated breastfeeding immediately after birth (within an hour) and 70% of the participants practiced EBF. Insufficient milk, belief that infants require extra fluid, fear of alteration in the breast figure, cultural practice and societal beliefs were identified as the most common barriers to the practice of EBF., Conclusions: Findings from this study showed that most of the participants had a very good knowledge of EBF and are practicing it., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper., (© 2023 Yakubu MI et al.)

Objective: The aim: Facial and leg telangiectasia are usual cosmetic concern for females who have different skin phototypes and ages. Until now, the various treatments for these problem have frequently failed or led to unwanted side-effects. Based on approved pre-calculated doses, the present study highlights the clinical effects and safety of treatment after using the exact laser parameters from 1064-nm Nd: YAG laser., Patients and Methods: Materials and methods: Twenty people with facial and leg telangiectasia underwent a single laser treatment, based on pre-calculated laser parameters for each case., Results: Results: All subjects showed visible improvement, with 95-100% clearance of face telangiectasia directly after the first treatment, and 50-100% clearance of the lower extremity vessels after one to three days; with minimal side-effects., Conclusion: Conclusions: Treatment of facial and leg telangiectasia by using true, exact, and mathematically pre-calculated parameters of long pulse 1064 nm Nd: YAG laser was an effective and safe procedure of clearing face and leg telangiectasia.

Background: Tobacco smoking is a major health issue worldwide. In addition to several health problems, smoking can also cause buccal cavity ulcers and buccal cavity cancer in case of chronic smoking. Tobacco smoking may also lead to deranged morphology of red blood cells (RBCs), which results in reduced oxygen carrying capacity of the blood., Aim: (a) To investigate and compare the changes in the RBC morphology of smokers and nonsmokers. (b) To investigate and compare the normal buccal flora of smokers and nonsmokers., Methodology: A total of 81 men were included in the study. Study population was divided into two groups: group 1; smokers (n = 50) and group 2; nonsmokers, which served as control (n = 31). After informed written consent from the study participants, a 5 mL of venous blood was drawn under sterile conditions for complete blood analysis and RBC morphology. Samples from buccal cavity were collected by cotton swab and cultured in sterile petri dishes to identify the bacterial growth. Data of RBC morphology and buccal microbiota were compared between smokers and nonsmokers., Results: Buccal microflora results showed heavy growth in smokers compared with nonsmokers. Mean values of RBCs, Platelets, WBCs, HGB (hemoglobin), and MCV (mean corpuscular volume) did not differ between smokers and nonsmokers. Mean red cell distribution (RDW) width significantly was lower in smokers than nonsmokers. Macrocytic RBCs was more in smokers (60%) compared with nonsmokers (4%)., Conclusions: Our results showed an increase in the percentage of macrocytic RBCs and a decrease in the red cell distribution width (RDW) in smokers compared with nonsmokers. Buccal Microflora was significantly higher in smoker group in contrast to nonsmoker group., (© 2020 The Authors. Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Aim: The objective of the current study was to assess the influence of oral multivitamins supplementation on some oxidative stress parameters (serum Vitamin A, C, E, Zinc, Malondialdehyde (MDA)) and lipid profile among Sudanese patients with type- 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)., Material and Method: Three hundred Sudanese patients with T2DM and Hundred healthy subjects (control group) were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Blood was collected after overnight fasting for 10-12 hrs. Fasting plasma glucose (FBG), lipid profiles, Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c%), Serum zinc, Malondialdehyde (MDA), Vitamins A, E, and C levels were measured using standardised laboratory techniques. Data was collected with the help of a structured questionnaire and direct interview., Results: Biochemical parameters of the study population were shown a highly significant difference (P value < 0.05), between the means of serum vitamin A, C, E, Zinc, MDA, HbA1c, triglycerides, HDL, FBG, total cholesterol and LDL. Significant differences in serum vitamin A, C, E, Zinc, MDA, triglycerides, HDL and FBG between people with diabetes who used multivitamins and diabetics who did not use it (P-value < 0.05)., Conclusion: The study observed a significant increase in serum levels of vitamin A, C & E and other biomarkers parameters in patients with T2DM who take oral multivitamins supplements; such improvement may lead to minimising the diabetic complications. Further studies are needed to explore the possible therapeutic role of multivitamins supplements for T2DM patients.

Background: Prostatic cancer is one of the most common cancers of males in a Sudanese population. The early detection is very important, as it is only curable at an early stage., Aim: The objective of this study was to investigate the expression pattern of Ki-67 in benign and malignant prostatic lesions to improve the diagnosis that may help in better management and prevention of disease., Material and Methods: Fifty-eight formalin fixed paraffin blocks from diagnosed cases of prostatic tumours with different grade, and stages were included in this study. Ki-67 expression was examined immunohistochemically by using monoclonal mouse anti-human Ki67 IS626. The results were correlated with Gleason score and tumour differentiation and stage., Results: The frequency of histological types was as follow: 11 cases of benign prostate, atic hyperplasia (19%) and 47 cases of prostatic cancer (81%). Our results stated that prostatic adenocarcinoma among Sudanese patients was of low grade which means tumours are less aggressive. Furthermore, the findings demonstrate that Ki-67 expression in prostatic carcinoma smears was correlated significantly with the degree of Gleason score (P < 0.05)., Conclusions: We found that the prostatic adenocarcinoma among Sudanese patients was less aggressive. Furthermore, Ki-67 expression was proportional to the grade of a tumour and it was a useful prognostic and diagnostic biomarker.

Objectives: To investigate the role of Human leukocyte antigen (HLA) Class II DRB1 in susceptibility to psoriasis in Iraqi patients., Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study including 40 patients with psoriasis attending the Department of Dermatology, Al-Kindy teaching hospital in Baghdad, Iraq, between September 2013-2015. Patient selection was carried out by the dermatologists. Ninety healthy individuals were included in the study. Human leukocyte antigen genotyping was carried out by the sequence specific oligonucleotide (SSO) method using Auto LiPA 48 (Innogenetics, Belgium) in the HLA typing research unit of the Al-Kindy College of Medicine, Baghdad, Iraq., Results: There is an increased frequency of HLA-DRB1*0102, *0306 in psoriatic patients with psoriasis p-values=0.001, confidence interval(CI)=2.492-37.487 and odds ratio(OR)=9.666. Human leukocyte antigen-DRB1*1101 is significantly associated with plaque-type psoriasis with p=0.0434, CI=1.04-1.69, and OR=4.2. Human leukocyte antigen-DRB1*0102 is significantly associated with other types of psoriasis with p=0.018, CI=0.0223-0.701, and OR=0.125., Conclusion: Human leukocyte antigen-DRB1*0102 and *0306 are significantly associated with psoriasis. Human leukocyte antigen-DRB1*1101 is significantly associated with plaque-type psoriasis. Human leukocyte antigen-DRB1*0102 is significantly associated with other types of psoriasis rather than plaque-type psoriasis.

Background and Objective: Bcl-2 family members can be functionally divided into anti-apoptotic and proapoptotic groups. The balance between these two groups may determine the fate of tumor cells. In hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), this balance is often tilted towards the anti-apoptotic members in tumor cells, leading to resistance to cell death and rapid proliferation., Material and Methods: In the current study, we investigated Bcl-2 and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) immunohistochemically, using specific monoclonal antibodies in liver tissues obtained from two patient groups. The first group included fifty patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV) without hepatocellular carcinoma, the other group included twenty five HCVinfected patients but with confirmed HCC. Serum Bcl-2 was assayed using enzyme immunoassay., Results: Results showed serum Bcl-2 was elevated in 82% versus 100% in HCC-free and HCC patients, respectively. Moreover, cytoplasmic staining of Bcl-2 was found in only 16% of chronic HCV patients without HCC, versus 8% in HCC patients. On the other hand, nuclear staining of PCNA was detected in 100% of HCC patients, but in none of the HCV patients without HCC., Conclusion: The results collectively suggest that in HCV-infected patients with and without HCC, apoptosis is dysregulated and proliferation activity perturbed. There may be prognostic and/or diagnostic potential in estimating Bcl-2 and PCNA proteins in these patient groups., Key Words: Bcl-2 - PCNA - Apoptosis - HCC - HCV.