Randomised comparative trial of the efficacy of paracetamol syrup and dispersible tablets for the treatment of fever in children

ObjectiveFever is the most common reason for the presentation of children in the outpatient department. Paracetamol is marketed in different formulations for ease of administration to the paediatric population. These include syrups, dispersible tablets and rectal inserts. Dispersible tablets disintegrate rapidly in liquid and are subsequently taken orally, providing another oral formulation. We determined if there is a difference in the antipyretic efficacy of the syrup and the dispersible formulation of paracetamol, thereby prompting the development of the latter (another oral formulation) for use in children.MethodsA randomised, controlled, double-blind intervention of a single dose of both formulations was given to febrile children, and their temperatures were documented twice in 30-minute intervals. Temperature changes were compared statistically.ResultsThe mean temperatures at recruitment were 38.2 ± 0.5°C and 38.3 ± 0.6°C for the dispersible and syrup group, respectively. There was no significant difference between the temperature changes at T2 (30 minutes) and T3 (60 minutes) between the two study arms. However, the temperature was significantly different at T1 (baseline), T2 and T3 within the dispersible and syrup groups.ConclusionThe decreasing trend in temperature was similar in both groups. Both preparations produced statistically similar antipyretic effects with no reported adverse drug reaction.     

A cross-sectional study of the knowledge and attitude of medical laboratory personnel regarding continuing professional development

Background:

Continuing professional development (CPD) in Medical Laboratory Scientists (MLS) is aimed at equipping laboratory professionals with the necessary skills to enhance practice. The laboratory scientists are usually the first contact between the patient and health care system in aspects of diagnosis and monitory of diseases. As such, it becomes imperative to assess the knowledge of laboratory personnel regarding CPD.

Materials and Methods:

Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to 200 laboratory personnel''s attending the maiden CPD workshop organized by the Association of MLS in Jos the Plateau state capital.

Results:

One hundred and thirty-five (82 males and 53 females) of the 200 administered questionnaires were returned. Only 32 of them (23.7%) attended CPD program in the last 1 year with 10 (7.5%) engaging in online CPD. Five (3.7%) of the respondents had the privilege to attend an international CPD. Majority (95.2%) of the respondents identified CPD as an essential component of professional career development. Lack of sponsorship was identified as a major setback in CPD efficiency by 93.8% of respondents. About 58 (46.4%) noted that poor attendance in CPD workshops was due to unavailability of policy guideline for CPD. One hundred and twenty (95.2%) of respondents had an aim of improving their skills after attending CPD workshops.

Conclusion:

The overall attitude of Nigerian MLS toward attending CPD workshop is poor; however, the knowledge regarding the importance of CPD is adequate. There exists a gap between sponsorship for CPD by various institutions and MLS.     

Bronchial anomalies in VACTERL association

VACTERL association is an acronym made of associated defects including vertebral anomalies, anal atresia, cardiac, tracheal-esophageal fistula, and renal/radial limb anomalies. Tracheal bronchus is a condition characterized by ectopic location of the right upper lobe bronchus at the mid to distal trachea. This condition is associated with congenital anomalies and has been reported in one previous case of VACTERL. We report another infant with VACTERL presenting with respiratory complications due to presence of tracheal bronchus. She also had a narrowed segment of her right main stem bronchus.     

Gender effect on eating habits of Nigerian school children

It is important to investigate children''s eating habits based on different eating behaviors such as satiety responsiveness (SR), slowness in eating (SE), food fussiness (FF), food responsiveness (FR), enjoyment of food (EF), desire to drink (DD), emotional under-eating (EUE), and emotional over-eating (EOE). The main objective of this research was to investigate whether gender affects the eating habits of Nigerian school children.A cross-sectional survey was conducted between March and June 2019. A total of 120 parents of school children participated in the study. The Child Eating Behavior Questionnaire (CEBQ) was used to collect data. The CEBQ is composed of 35 items and eight subscales.Based on the analysis of parents’ reports, DD was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 7.086, P < .001; EOE was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 5.184, P < .001; EF was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 2.183, P < .001; FF was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 9.441, P < .001; and SR was higher in boys than girls, t (118) = 7.323, P < .001. However, EUE was lower in boys than girls, t (118) = −4.339, P < .001; FR was lower in boys than girls, t(118) = −3.112, P < .001; SE was lower in boys than girls, t(118) = −3.832, P < .001; thus, gender had a significant influence on eating habits of the school children.Gender significantly affects the eating habits of Nigerian school children. Thus, gender is an important factor to be considered when aiming to improve the eating habits of Nigerian school children.     

Antidepressants in pregnancy: a systematic review

Part of three systematic reviews on the effects of psychotropic medication exposure in pregnancy, this paper critically reviews the literature on adverse effects of antidepressant use during pregnancy, and derives recommendations for clinical practice. Electronic databases were searched for original research studies examining the effects of gestational exposure to antidepressants on pregnancy, neonatal and longer-term developmental outcomes. Most results were derived from cohort (prospective and retrospective) and casecontrol studies. There were no randomized controlled trials. Congenital malformations: 35 studies identified, 12 demonstrated a significant association between antidepressant use in early pregnancy and congenital malformations. Pregnancy outcomes: 35 articles identified, outcomes measured rates of spontaneous abortion (4 out of 7 studies reporting elevated risk), preterm birth (15 out of 19 reporting elevated risk) and abnormal birth weight (8 out of 23 reporting elevated risk). Neonatal outcomes: 17 controlled studies including one meta-analysis were identified concerning neonatal adaptation. 15 studies showed an association between gestational exposure to antidepressants and neonatal adaptation difficulties. Three studies examined an association between selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) exposure and persistent pulmonary hypertension in the neonate with conflicting results. Longer-term developmental outcomes: 6 of 7 studies comparing developmental outcomes of children exposed to antidepressants in utero with non- exposed children reported no significant differences. Most of these medications remain relatively safe in pregnancy, but some significant areas of concern exist, particularly some evidence of higher risk of preterm birth, neonatal adaptation difficulties and congenital cardiac malformations (with paroxetine). The impact of these findings on the risk-benefit analysis when treating pregnant women with antidepressants is discussed.     

Improving knowledge and perception of HIV/AIDS among English language speaking children in rural areas through educational digital storytelling

Background/Objective:Previous research efforts have shown the need for improvement of knowledge and perception of HIV/AIDS among English Language speaking children in rural areas. Hence, the study at hand was designed to investigate the effect of using educational digital storytelling intervention to satisfy this need of English Language children in rural areas in Nigeria.Method:The study adopted a randomized control design involving a pretest, post-test, and follow-up measures. Eight-four children (n = 84) took part in the study. The HIV Knowledge Questionnaire (HIV-KQ-18) and the Perceived Risk of HIV Scale (PRHS) were used for data collection. Data were analyzed using t test statistics.Result:The educational digital storytelling intervention in appreciably improved knowledge and perception of English language children in rural areas who participated in the intervention concerning HIV/AIDS compared with their peers in the no-intervention control group. The improvement in knowledge and perception gained was also maintained throughout the follow-up evaluation period.Conclusion:The present study showed that the use of educational digital storytelling could improve knowledge and perception of HIV/AIDS among English Language speaking children in rural areas. Educational digital storytelling intervention effectively improved knowledge and perception of HIV/AIDS among children in rural areas. In return, we recommend that rural sociologists, counselors, language and communication experts, child educators, and other professionals involved in public health especially, as it concerns children be skilled in the use and application of educational digital storytelling intervention procedures to facilitate the move towards adopting the method in their professional practices.     

Epidemiology and pattern of paediatric injuries in a developing country: an analysis of 170 injuries

BackgroundPaediatric injuries have significant physical, psychological and socioeconomic consequences. This study aimed to determine the epidemiology and pattern of paediatric injuries presenting at a teaching hospital in Enugu South-East Nigeria.MethodsA retrospective study of injured patients less than 18 years who presented to the Accident and Emergency department of University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Ituku/Ozalla, in Enugu Nigeria, was conducted from 1st January to 31st December 2015. Analysis of data was done using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 22.0.ResultsA total of 1191 children presented to the hospital within the study period and 120 injured paediatric patients (10.1%) with 170 injuries were attended to in the A & E. Adolescents (12 – 17 years) accounted for 34.2% of injuries and males (70%) were more affected than the females. Road traffic crashes and falls were the most common causes of paediatric injuries. There was a significant correlation between age of the children and the aetiology of the injuries (X2 = 28.08, p = 0.001). Bruises/lacerations/abrasions (27.6%) and fractures (27.1%) were the most common types of injuries sustained. The injury severity score (ISS) of the patients ranged from 1–25 with a mean of 6.4 + 2.8. Roadside/street (35%), school (23.3%) and home (21.7%) were the main locations where injuries occurred. Mean injury-arrival interval was 1.2 + 0.7 days. Majority (67.5%) of children had full recovery and the mortality rate was 5.8%.ConclusionRoad traffic crashes and falls were the most common cause of paediatric injuries. Soft tissue trauma and fractures were the predominant types of injuries. Roadside, school and home were the leading locations of childhood injuries. Prevention of road traffic crashes and falls, prompt treatment of injuries, and rehabilitation of injured children will reduce the negative impact of paediatric injuries.     

Knowledge of Kidney Donation Among Care Givers in Two Tertiary Hospitals in Southwest Nigeria

One of the major challenges of kidney transplantation is shortage of kidney donors. Care givers (CGs) are potential kidney donors, but the majority of them are unwilling to donate due to inadequate knowledge on kidney donation. This study evaluated the knowledge of kidney donation and its determinants among CGs in two tertiary hospitals in Southwest Nigeria. This was a cross‐sectional study that was carried out in the Kidney Care Centre (KCC), Ondo and Babcock University Teaching Hospital (BUTH), Ilishan‐Remo using a self‐administered pretested questionnaire that assessed knowledge of kidney donation and its determinants. Pvalue of <0.05 was taken as significant. A total of 244 respondents participated in the study. The majority were below 40 years, married, and female. The proportion of respondents with adequate knowledge of kidney donation was 63.4%. More respondents from BUTH compared to KCC had adequate knowledge of kidney donation (80% vs. 46.7%, P ≤ 0.001). Similarly, the mean knowledge score was higher in respondents from BUTH (P ≤ 0.001). Factors that determined knowledge of kidney donation were female gender (AOR: 3.43, 95% CI: 1.25–9.40, P = 0.02) and social class (AOR: 1.22, 95% CI: 0.50–2.95, P ≤ 0.001). There was positive correlation between knowledge of kidney donation among the respondents from both hospitals and their willingness to donate kidneys (r = 0.439, P ≤ 0.001). Knowledge of kidney donation was better among BUTH's respondents. Gender and social class were predictors of knowledge of kidney donation. Improving knowledge of kidney donation may improve willingness to donate among the public.