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The treatment of tuberculosis requires the use of First line drugs that often cause adverse drug reactions (ADR) in some patients and this is capable of affecting adherence to the treatment. Many patients do not report these ADRs even though technologies are available at their disposal. The objectives of this review are to assess the common adverse drug reactions reported during the care of patients on First line anti-TB drugs and the use of m-health in self-reporting the ADRs by patients receiving anti-TB care. A literature search was conducted using key words on PUBMED and GOOGLE SCHOLAR. The commonest ADRs many patients presented with were gastrointestinal symptoms and symptoms of drug induced hepatotoxicity. The use of m-Health as an intervention for reporting ADRs is poor in sub-Saharan Africa, however in spite of some challenges, it is seen as a veritable opportunity for patient reporting of ADRs and the improvement of outcomes of Directly Observed Therapy Short course, (DOTS) for tuberculosis management.

Background: Recognition of HIV symptoms may be associated with the stage in which HIV infected persons, present at health facilities to seek care, this study aimed at describing the initial symptoms of People living with HIV (PLWHIV) and determine socio demographic characteristics associated with late presentation at the HIV clinics in Uyo. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study carried out on PLWHIV at initial visits to either of the two HIV clinics in Uyo. Data was collected using a pre-tested interviewer administered questionnaire, while CD4 and clinical stage were obtained from the patients’ folders. Result: A total of 166 respondents were recruited over a period of four months, 67% of them were females and significantly younger than the males (p value=0.0039). The proportion of late presenters was 60%. Secondary level of education predicted late presentation compared to primary level (OR 5.6 P value= 0.004). PLWHIV whose length of time after diagnosis were between 1 to 3 months and those above 1 year were less likely to present late compared to those that presented within 1 month of diagnosis (OR 0.18, P value 0.03; OR 0.86 P value < 0.0001 respectively). Those who had no perception of illness were not likely to present late (OR 0.6; p value

BACKGROUND: Traditional eye medications (TEM) are biologically based concoctions instilled into the eye to achieve a desired ocular therapeutic effect but its use, though widely practiced, has no sound scientific evidence in the treatment of eye diseases. AIM: The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and types of traditional eye medications in use in our environment. MATERIALS AND METHOD: This was a retrospective study of new patients who presented in the eye clinic between January 2008 and December 2009. RESULT A total of 47 of the 5,416 patients (0.87%) that were seen within the study period recorded to have used TEM before presentation at the Eye clinic were used for the study. Four (4) records were discarded because of incomplete documentation. Data obtained was analysed with SPSS version 17 for windows package. Mean age was 37.7years. Prevalence of use TEM was0.87%. The most common form of TEM was herbal concoction/roots (32.2%). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of TEM use is low but significant enough for definite steps to be taken by relevant authorities and eye care givers in educating the public. Primary eye care in the state should be upgraded and greater emphasis than it is now should be placed on the eye care during the training of nurses and community health extension workers.

Background: Fetal malnutrition has been reported to result in developmental adaptations, which may lead to chronic diseases later on in life. Maternal body composition, nutritional stores, diet, and ability to deliver nutrients through the placenta determine nutrient availability for the fetus. Thus, this study aimed to determine and compare the dietary intake among pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in rural and urban primary health centres in the Uyo senatorial district of Akwa Ibom State., Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in 6 primary health care (3 urban and 3 rural) facilities in Uyo senatorial district, Akwa Ibom, selected by a multi-staged sampling technique. An interviewer-administered semistructured questionnaire was used to obtain information on weekly food frequency and 24-hour dietary recall. Descriptive statistics were used, and a chi-square test was performed to examine the relationship between outcome variables. Statistical significance was set at a p-value of 0.05., Results: The major findings from this study indicated that urban respondents had a significantly higher intake of highly processed carbohydrates, fruits, and vegetables compared to rural respondents (p=0.025 and 0.001, respectively). Overall, highly processed carbohydrates were the most consumed food group in both locations, with 42.2% consuming them over 5 times a week. The average iron and protein intakes were below the recommended nutrient intakes (RNI) in pregnancy at 72.4% and 69.1%, respectively, whereas carbohydrate and calcium intakes exceeded the RNI at 122.5% and 125.7%, respectively. Only protein intake was significantly different across the two locations, with urban respondents having higher intake (53.1g) compared to rural respondents (40.5g), p=0.013., Conclusion: Based on the above findings, it is recommended that adequate nutrition education be taught during antenatal clinics. Micronutrition supplementation, especially iron supplementation, should also be emphasized during the antenatal period., Competing Interests: The Authors declare that no competing interest exists, (Copyright © 2024 by West African Journal of Medicine.)

Domestic violence (DV) is a 'pandemic' with an estimated 30% of women experiencing violence by their intimate partner. This study aimed to determine and compare the prevalence, forms, risk factors, coping strategies, and consequences of DV among WCBA in rural and urban areas in Akwa Ibom State (AKS). The study, conducted in 2022, was a comparative cross-sectional study that used a mixed method of data collection. Four communities were chosen via multistage sampling, three in rural and one in urban areas. A total of 1,054 respondents participated in the survey. An interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire and FGD guide were used for data collection. The response rate was 99%. Both descriptive and inferential data analysis were used to answer the research questions. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. The results showed that DV was prevalent in urban and rural areas in the 12 months that preceded the study (36.4 and 36. 2%). Physical, verbal and sexual abuse were more prevalent in urban areas than rural areas (41.6% vs 38.7%,65.7% vs 63.4% and 39.5% vs 25.6% respectively) p = 0.001. Moreover, the odds of emotional abuse also increased eightfold in urban than in rural areas while FGD showed physical violence as prevalent and the most harmful effect of DV was noted in rural areas than urban. It was concluded that the prevalence of DV among WCBA in both rural and urban areas in AKS was high with verbal violence being the highest. Various forms and risk factors of DV were more prevalent in urban than rural areas., Competing Interests: The Authors declare that no competing interest exists, (Copyright © 2024 by West African Journal of Medicine.)

Context: Hypertension is a global cause of significant morbidity, ranking top as a cause of increased disability-adjusted life years. Patients who do not take their prescribed medication show almost a fourfold increase in the risk of dying from stroke by the second year after being prescribed treatment and a nearly threefold increased risk in the 10 th year when compared to patients who take their prescribed medication. Medication adherence is a key factor in the control of high blood pressure., Objective: The objective of the study was to assess the antihypertensive medication adherence rate of patients attending the outpatient clinics at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) and to explore factors that affect their adherence to the medications., Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study of adult hypertensive patients attending the outpatient clinics at UUTH, from May to July 2018, who had been placed on antihypertensive medication(s) for at least 6 months. A standardized Morisky Medication Adherence 8 Questionnaire for assessing medication adherence was modified and used for the data collection. The questionnaires were administered by trained interviewers. Data were analyzed using SPSS 20.0., Results: A total of 379 hypertensive patients took part in the study; 85.2% were adherent to antihypertensive medication(s), but only 14.2% showed good adherence. Four of the five dimensions considered in the Morisky Assessment greatly affected antihypertensive medication adherence. The mean age of the study participants was 60.8 ± 1.8 years, and 75% were male., Conclusion: Good adherence to antihypertensive medication was quite low in this study population, and it was affected by all dimensions of the Morisky Assessment; health-care providers should pay more attention to their patient's drug adherence, educate them on medication adherence, and get them involved in their care., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2020 Nigerian Medical Journal.)

Introduction: Public awareness of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) has increased over time, and the perception that ENDS offer a safer alternative to cigarettes may lead some pregnant women to use them to reduce cigarette smoking during pregnancy. No previous studies have used metabolite levels in hair to measure nicotine exposure for ENDS users during pregnancy. We aimed to measure and compare levels of nicotine, cotinine, and tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) in hair samples from pregnant women who were current ENDS users, current smokers, and current non-smokers. We also aimed to estimate the association between ENDS use/smoking and smallness for gestational age (SGA)., Methods: We used hair specimens from pregnant women who were dual users (ENDS and cigarettes), smokers, and non-smokers from a prospective cohort study to estimate exposure to nicotine, cotinine, and TSNAs. The exposure biomarkers and self-reports of smoking and ENDS use were used in log-binomial regression models to estimate risk ratios (RRs) for SGA among offspring., Results: Nicotine concentrations for pregnant dual users were not significantly different from those for smokers (11.0 and 10.6 ng/mg hair, respectively; p=0.58). Similarly, levels of cotinine, and TSNAs for pregnant dual users were not lower than those for smokers. The RR for SGA was similar for dual users and smokers relative to nonsmokers, (RR=3.5, 95% CI: 0.8-14.8) and (RR=3.3, 95% CI: 0.9-11.6), respectively. Using self-reports confirmed by hair nicotine, the RR values for dual ENDS users and smokers were 8.3 (95% CI: 1.0-69.1) and 7.3 (95% CI:1.0-59.0), respectively., Conclusions: We did not observe lower levels of nicotine, cotinine, and TSNAs for current dual users compared to smokers during pregnancy. The risk of SGA for offspring of pregnant dual users was similar to that for offspring of pregnant smokers. Future studies are needed to further estimate the magnitude of the association between ENDS use and smallness for gestational age., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests, financial or otherwise, related to the current work. U. Ekanem reports grants from Arkansas Department of Health, personal fees from University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, grants from National Institutes of Health (NIH) - National Center for Research Resources and National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, during the conduct of the study. The rest of the authors have also completed and submitted an ICMJE form for disclosure of potential conflicts of interest.

Introduction: The 2016 US Surgeon General's Report suggests that the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) is a fetal risk factor. However, no previous study has estimated their effect on adverse pregnancy outcomes. We assessed the prevalence of current ENDS use in pregnant women and explored the effect on birth weight and smallness-for-gestational-age (SGA), correcting for misclassification from nondisclosure of smoking status., Methods: We conducted a cohort study with 248 pregnant women using questionnaire data and biomarkers (salivary cotinine, exhaled carbon monoxide, and hair nicotine). We evaluated the association between birth weight and the risk of SGA by applying multivariate linear and log-binomial regression to reproductive outcome data for 232 participants. Participants who did not disclose their smoking status were excluded from the referent group. Sensitivity analysis corrected for misclassification of smoking/ENDS use status., Results: The prevalence of current ENDS use among pregnant women was 6.8% (95% CI: 4.4-10.2%); most of these (75%) were concurrent smokers. Using self-reports, the estimated risk ratio of SGA for ENDS users was nearly two times the risk in the unexposed (RR=1.9, 95% CI: 0.6-5.5), and over three times that for ENDS-only users versus the unexposed (RR=3.1, 95% CI: 0.8-11.7). Excluding from the referent group smokers who did not disclose their smoking status, the risk of SGA for ENDS-only use was 5 times the risk in the unexposed (RR=5.1, 95% CI: 1.1- 22.2), and almost four times for all types of ENDS users (RR=3.8, 95% CI: 1.3-11.2). SGA risk ratios for ENDS users, corrected for misclassification due to self-report, were 6.5-8.5 times that of the unexposed., Conclusions: Our data suggest that ENDS use is associated with an increased risk of SGA., Competing Interests: Authors have completed and submitted the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest and none was reported.

Objectives: As of October 2015, evidence needed to make a recommendation about the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) for smoking cessation was limited. We used the 2014 Arkansas Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System with additional state-specific questions to determine the prevalence of ENDS use, the impact of ENDS use on smoking cessation, and beliefs about ENDS use in Arkansas. Our objectives were to determine if (1) ENDS use was associated with lower odds of quitting smoking, (2) ENDS users believed that ENDS use was not harmful to their health, and (3) ENDS users believed that switching to ENDS reduced their tobacco-related health risks., Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 4465 respondents to the Arkansas Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and used weighted analyses to account for the complex survey design. We used a subset of records formed by (1) formers smokers who quitted smoking in the last 5 years and (2) current smokers to assess the odds of quitting., Results: In 2014, 6.1% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.0%-7.4%) of Arkansas adults were currently using ENDS. Of the 1083 participants who were current smokers or had quit smoking within the past 5 years, 515 (54.1%) had used ENDS. Of the 515 ENDS users, 404 (80.3%) had continued smoking. ENDS use was significantly associated with reduced odds of quitting smoking (weighted odds ratio = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.34-0.83). Although 2437 of 3808 participants (62.5%) believed that it was harmful for nonsmokers to start using ENDS and 1793 of 3658 participants (47.0%) believed that switching to ENDS did not reduce tobacco-related health risks, only 80 of 165 (41.3%) and 50 of 168 (33.9%) ENDS users shared these same respective beliefs., Conclusions: Most smokers who indicated smoking in the past 5 years and who tried ENDS did not stop smoking. ENDS use was inversely associated with smoking cessation. Tobacco cessation programs should tell cigarette smokers that ENDS use may not help them quit smoking.

Objective: To study mortality from nonmalignant diseases in subjects with high exposure to transmissible agents present in animals used for food, and in their raw or inadequately cooked products., Methods: Mortality was compared in a cohort of meat handlers in slaughtering and processing plants with that of the U.S. general population., Results: Excess mortality was observed for conditions known to be associated with infections-these include, septicemia, chronic nephritis, diseases of the kidney and ureter, diseases of the pancreas, cirrhosis of the liver, acute and subacute endocarditis, acute rheumatic fever, functional diseases of the heart, aortic aneurysm, intracranial and intraspinous abscess, and meningitis. Excess mortality was also observed for ischemic heart disease and diabetes, conditions without an established infectious etiology, but which have been linked with infections., Conclusions: If transmissible agents present in food animals and their raw products cause long-term diseases and mortality in humans, this study importantly points to the likely diseases, many of which are already known to be associated with infections. The excess mortality observed for ischemic heart disease and diabetes is consistent with existing evidence linking these conditions with infections, and gives rise to the novel hypothesis that microbial agents present in food animals and their products may be candidates for an infective role in the occurrence of these conditions, and therefore needs further investigation.

Introduction: Overweight and obesity are global public health problems because of their effect on individuals, families and communities. The objective of this study was to describe the profile of overweight and obesity amongst adult out patients in Uyo in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria., Method: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study done between October 2011 and March 2012. Using a systematic sampling technique, 584 subjects aged 18-65 years were recruited; data were collected with a structured questionnaire. Subjects were measured for height, weight, waist and hip circumferences. Body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip ratio (WHR) were calculated. Subjects with a BMI of 25.0 kg/m2 - 29.9 kg/m2 were regarded as being overweight whilst a BMI of > 30.0 kg/m2 was regarded as obese. Subjects with a WHR of > 0.90 for men or > 0.85 for women were regarded as having abnormal WHR., Results: Of the 584 subjects, 196 (36.6%) were men and 388 (66.4%) women. The mean age for men and women was 43.3 ± 17.8 years and 50.2 ± 13.6 years, respectively. The prevalence of overweight amongst men was 39.8% versus 31.7% for women; obesity in men was 28.0% versus 52.0% in women. Overweight and obesity were more prevalent in subjects aged 25-54 years and amongst married subjects. There was a significant relationship between obesity and television viewing (p = 0.003). Hypertension (p = 0.008) and osteoarthropathies (p = 0.043) were more prevalent amongst the obese than the non-obese subjects., Conclusion: Overweight and obesity are now common in our environment. There is therefore a need for more public education about the health consequences of big body size.

The study determined awareness, use and the main source of information about preventive health examinations among 387 childbearing women attending three health facilities in Uyo, Nigeria. Respondents were consenting women aged 15-49 years who had a live birth in the two months preceding the survey. Respondents were interviewed using structured questionnaires during child welfare clinic visits at each facility. Awareness about pap smears and breast self examination was 14.2% and 35.3% respectively. Testing rates were highest for blood pressure checks, HIV and blood sugar and lowest for Pap smears and mammograms. Health workers were the main informants on preventive tests. Awareness and secondary education enhanced women's uptake of screening services across levels of health care. Secondary education as a minimum and intensified awareness creation about preventive health examinations through media, school based programs, durbars and public health campaigns are vital to the health and well being of women and children.