Frontpage News (3257)
UN appoints Nigerian as Secretary of Global Youth Consortium against FGM
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A Nigerian and founder of Value Female Network, Dr. Costly Aderibigbe has been elected as the Executive Secretary of Global Youth Consortium against Female Genital Mutilation under the joint programme of the United Nations Population Fund and United Nations Children Fund.
The position, which is the apex seat of the consortium, was keenly contested by Aderibigbe and a Senegalese, Hyaceinthe Coly. Following her election, Coly would now act as deputy to Aderibigbe.
Male contraceptive found to be 99% effective set for human trials
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A team of researchers from Minnesota, United States, said they have successfully developed a non-hormonal male contraceptive that can be safely used to prevent pregnancies. According to the scientists, the birth control pill for men was found to be 99 per cent effective in preventing pregnancies when it was tested on mice.
Though the contraceptive was yet to be tested on humans, the team said they hope to start human clinical trials by the second half of the year. According to Sky News, the finding, which was described as a breakthrough research, was presented at the spring meeting of the American Chemical Society on Wednesday.
Patient shocked to wake up with four kidneys after transplant
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Stuart Middleton, a 46-year old, living in Scotland, United Kingdom, has expressed shock after discovering that he now carries four kidneys after undergoing two major operations.
According to him, “I was shocked and surprised when I found out. I had no idea they had left the old kidneys inside me too,” Stuart, who had thought that the failed ones would be removed, told BBC in an interview. According to the BBC, Stuart had suffered migraines and stomach pain for ten years before he discovered he had Berger’s disease.
Consuming spicy foods, alcohol increases risk of stomach ulcer, physician warns
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A General Practitioner at the Federal College of Education – Technical, Akoka, Lagos, Dr. Rotimi Adesanya, says frequent intake of spicy foods, alcohol consumption and medications such as painkillers can predispose people to ulcer.
He noted that steroids, smoking and stress are also risk factors that could make people to develop the ailment. Dr. Rotimi, however, said confirmed causes of ulcers are recurrent infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and long-term use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs known as pain killers.
Poor storage system fuelling increase in substandard medicines –PSN
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The Chairman, Lagos State Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, Gbolagade Iyiola, has faulted the manner drugs are stored in Nigeria, noting that it compromises their standards. In an interview with PUNCH HealthWise, Iyiola noted that most of the medical drugs in the market are not being handled by experts, hence, it affects their efficacies.
The PSN chairman said this while reacting to a report by the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency that over 70 per cent of medical drugs being dispensed in Nigeria are substandard.
The World Health Organisation has called for an urgent investment of resources, support, care and information into the fight against tuberculosis. WHO said COVID-19 reversed gains of 66 million people saved since 2000 from TB, lamenting that daily, over 4,100 people lose their lives to TB, and close to 30,000 become ill with the preventable and curable disease.
It said for the first time in over a decade, TB deaths increased in 2020, noting that ongoing conflicts across Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East have further exacerbated the situation for vulnerable populations.
ACPN faults NPHCDA’s report on 70% substandard drugs in Nigeria
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The Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria has faulted the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency’s report that over 70 percent of medical drugs being dispensed in Nigeria are substandard.
Speaking in an interview with PUNCH HealthWise, the National Chairman of ACPN, Pharm. Adewale Oladigbolu said there is no justification for the report.
Fully vaccinated inbound travellers would no longer be required to take a pre-departure PCR COVID-19 test, the Federal Government said on Monday. The FG said they would, however, be subjected to a rapid antigen test at the airport by the NCDC within the arrival hall of the airport free of charge.
The decision was coming after the complaints by many travellers over the cost placed on the PCR test. The Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Chairman, Presidential Steering Committee on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha disclosed this at the National briefing of the Committee in Abuja.
Israel has opened a 66-bed field hospital in Mostyska, western Ukraine, to care for up to 150 patients at a time. The hospital, which is to be run by 65 doctors and nurses from across Israel, is located on the grounds of an elementary school and is expected to remain there for the next month.
According to the Times of Israel, the military hospital is called “Kochav Meir” (“Shining Star”), after former Israeli Prime Minister, Golda Meir, who was born in Ukraine and was the founder of the Foreign Ministry’s Agency for International Development Cooperation aid programme, which is leading the field hospital project.
Preconception care, early detection key to managing Down syndrome
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A Consultant Family Physician at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Dr. Olujimi Sodipo, has recommended preconception care for all women to help prevent and manage Down syndrome cases.
According to him, preconception care will help to identify behavioural and social risks to the woman’s health or pregnancy outcome through prevention and management. Speaking with PUNCH HealthWise, Dr. Sodipo said the most important thing to be done is to prevent the situation by ensuring that there is early detection.
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Long training duration, poor pay, causing anaesthesiologists’ dearth – Expert
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An anaesthesiologist at the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital, Edo State, Dr. Julian Ojebo, has attributed the dearth of anaesthesiologists in Nigeria to long training duration and poor remuneration. He noted that many secondary and tertiary medical facilities in the country either had few of the specialists or none at all.
Ojebo described anaesthesiologists as specialists who administer anaesthetic (a drug that causes temporary loss of bodily sensation) for all surgical interventions and procedures, noting that they were needed in virtually all areas of medicine.
The National Primary Healthcare Development Agency has said over 70 per cent of medical drugs being dispensed in Nigeria are substandard. The agency added that the majority of Nigerians did not have access to health services.
The NPHCDA disclosed this on its website ahead of the Primary Healthcare Summit tagged: ‘Re-imaging Primary Health Care in Nigeria’. According to the agency, the country is faced with a number of healthcare challenges.
Integrate, don’t hide children with Down syndrome, expert urges parents
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The National President, Down Syndrome Foundation Nigeria, Rose Mordi, has cautioned parents against hiding children with Down syndrome and advised them to instead, encourage social integration.
She urged them to ensure that they get the right care early in life, stressing that it can make a big difference in helping them to live a meaningful life. Speaking with PUNCH Healthwise in commemoration of the 2022 World Down Syndrome Day, Mordi explained that the condition is a genetic disorder and not an illness as perceived by many.
The World Health Organisation says more than 480 million people suffer from oral diseases in the African Region. WHO said the oral diseases are dental caries, periodontal disease and tooth loss, noting that this happens despite the fact that most of them are preventable.
In a message to commemorate the World Oral Day on March 20, the WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, said the burden of oral diseases reflects significant inequalities, with marginalised populations disproportionately impacted.
