Chemical composition, toxicity and antioxidant activities of essential oils of stem bark of Nigerian species of guava (Psidium guajava Linn.).

Essential oil from the stem bark of Nigerian species of Psidiumguajava of the family Myrtaceae was obtained by hydro-distillation using an all-glass Clavenger apparatus. GC and GC/MS analysis were carried out on the essential oil and was found to contain 62 compounds constituting 99.98 % of the total oil composition. The principal constituents are hydrocarbons, amines, amides and esters with 3,6-dioxa-2,4,5,7-tetraoctane,2,2,4,4,5,5,7,7-octamethyl (11.67 %) and cyclononane (10.66 %) dominating the total essential oil. Brine shrimp lethality test was carried out to determine the toxicity of the oils to living organisms (shrimps). LC50 value (µg/ml) of 1.0009 obtained showed that the essential oil of P. guajava stem bark was toxic. The antioxidant property of essential oil was investigated by measuring the decrease in absorption at 517 nm of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) in a UV/visible spectrophotometer. The oil showed better activity as a radical scavenger than α-tocopherol. The oil activity was 71.83 % at 0.2 mg/ml and the absorption is stoichiometric with respect to the number of electron taken up. Thus, the results of this study showed that the essential oil from P.guajava was not only toxic; it possessed antioxidant activity, which could exert beneficial actions against pathological alterations caused by the presence of highly reactive free radicals. The toxicity of the oil can be taken advantage of in the therapy of diseases involving cell or tumor growth.

The impact of a community mobilization project on health-related knowledge and practices in Cameroon.

The analyses presented in this paper document the impact of a community mobilization effort in Cameroon. Between 1997 and 1998, a local non-governmental organization worked with community associations, Njangi, in one urban and one rural location to promote knowledge and positive practices concerning family planning, sexually transmitted diseases, and treatment of common childhood diseases. Based on a multi-tiered structure, the project involved selecting and training two prominent and influential members of each community as "relais" or middlemen. The "relais" then trained mobilizers from participating Njangis to provide relevant information and help to mobilize their fellow members in favor of the positive attitudes and practices promoted by the project. The project was evaluated using baseline and follow-up measurement of pertinent indicators, and service statistics. Results suggest that the intervention had significant influence in the rural location with noticeable positive effects on knowledge and practices of family planning, knowledge and attitudes about HIV/AIDS and STIs, and use of health services. In the urban location, for programmatic and extraneous factors, the intervention was not effective. The paper discusses the lessons learnt from the intervention and offers pertinent suggestions for replicating the intervention in rural settings.

Gender and the stigma of onchocercal skin disease in Africa.

This paper reports results from a multicenter study of gender differences in the stigma associated with onchocercal skin disease (OSD) in five African sites: Cameroon, Ghana, Nigeria (Awka and Ibadan) and Uganda. The studies used a common protocol to compare affected and unaffected respondents, that is, men and women with onchodermatitis in highly endemic areas and respondents from communities with low endemicity or no onchocerciasis. The methods were both quantitative and qualitative, allowing for the comparison of stigma scores and people's verbal descriptions of their experiences and attitudes. Questions to the unaffected were asked after providing them with photographs and short descriptions (vignettes) depicting typical cases. We found that stigma was expressed more openly by the unaffected, who perceived OSD as something foreign or removed from themselves, whereas the affected tended to deny that they experienced stigma as a result of the condition. Gender differences in stigma scores were not significantly different for men and women, but qualitative data revealed that stigma was experienced differently by men and women, and that men and women were affected by it in distinctive ways. Men were more concerned about the impact of the disease on sexual performance and economic prospects, whereas women expressed more concern about physical appearance and life chances, especially marriage. Similar trends were found in the different sites in the responses of affected and unaffected respondents, and differences between them, despite geographical and cultural variations.

Improving the quality of service delivery in Nigeria.

This study evaluates the effect of a nurse training program in family planning counseling skills on the quality of service delivery at the clinic level, as well as its impact on client compliance with prearranged appointments. The study used a quasi-experimental design to compare certified nurses who received six weeks of family planning technical training with certified nurses who, in addition to the technical training course, received a three-day course in counseling skills. Data were collected through client exit interviews, expert observation, and inspection of medical record abstracts. Trained nurses performed better than their untrained counterparts in the quality-of-care areas investigated--interpersonal relations, information giving, counseling, and mechanisms for encouraging continuity. The likelihood that clients will attend follow-up visits was also found to improve when they were attended by trained professionals. Short-term counseling training can significantly improve the quality of care provided by family planning workers, as well as client compliance with follow-up appointments.

PIP: In 1989, researchers evaluated the impact of a 3 day course in counseling and interpersonal communication skills for family planning nurses in Ogun State, Nigeria on quality of service delivery and on client compliance with follow up appointments. They interviewed 480 clients, observed 39 nurses, and examined the medical records of 1001 clients who visited the 8 clinics. 97% of clients who spoke to a trained nurse felt the nurse earnestly listened whereas only 66% of those who spoke with an untrained nurse felt this (p.001). Further clients tended to be more comfortable with trained nurses than with untrained nurses (97% vs. 76%; p.001). Moreover trained nurses provided clear explanations to 94% of clients while untrained nurses did so to only 76% of clients (p.001). In addition, trained nurses were better at demonstrating the use of a contraceptive (p.001), repeating instructions for methods (p.05), asking if clients had more questions (p.05), and referring to booklets or leaflets about methods (p.05). They intended to schedule a follow up visit with clients who used a method for the 1st time (96% vs. 78%; p.001). In fact, clients of trained nurses were 2 times as likely to return than those of untrained nurses (84% vs. 44%; p.001). Moreover, of clients who chose to use the IUD at the 1st visit, 85% of those attended to by a trained nurse returned for follow up appointments compared to only 30% of those attended to by an untrained nurse (p.001). The corresponding percentages for those who chose an oral contraceptive were 91% and 70% p.001). The findings revealed that the training course did indeed improve the quality of family planning service delivery and client compliance. In fact, counseling training most likely provided even greater advantages than the study suggested since untrained nurses interacted with the trained nurses socially and on the job. Moreover they were also inquisitive about what methods their trained colleagues used.

Fertility attitudes and behaviour among primary school teachers in Ibadan.

PIP: The present article examines the fertility preferences and performance among primary school teachers in Ibadan, Nigeria against the background of a negative relationship between women's status and fertility. This paper uses data obtained from a 1981 survey of fertility and family life among school teachers in Ibadan. 412 married female teachers from 41 selected schools were interviewed. Socioeconomic characteristics of the study population include a mean age of 33.3 years, Yoruba descent (92%), farming fathers (36%), originally form polygamous homes (2/3) at least professional certificate (73.8%), a marital age of 23, 16% involved in polygamous marriages, 88.5% Christians, and 11.5% Moslems. Contrary to expectations, the findings show no appreciable departure from local patterns; 70.7% of the survey population wanted at least 5 children compared to the average Yoruba woman whose ideal family consists of 6 children. The high fertility of the study population is attributable to a number of factors which include 1) low contraceptive awareness, 2) family background, 3) lack of considerable incompatibility between the teaching profession and motherhood, 4) past and present level of infant and child mortality in the Yoruba society, and 5) the generally low literacy level within the society. (author's modified)^ieng