The Role of The National Early Warning Score (NEWS) in Identifying Critically Ill Patients at Risk of Mortality in Nigeria. A Retrospective Record Review.

Background: Clinical deterioration in critically ill patients is a common phenomenon that can occur several hours before an adverse outcome. Early detection of subtle changes in vital signs, such as alterations in pulse rate and blood pressure, is crucial for preventing adverse events. However, these are not often recognized early enough to prompt quick intervention. The use of warning scores or assessment systems in the management of the critically ill in Nigeria has not been well evaluated. We assessed the association between the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) system and outcomes particularly mortality among the critically ill at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Nigeria. Methodology: This study is a retrospective study involving adults admitted to the medical and surgical wards between January 2021 and July 2021. Patient medical records were used to obtain data such as socio-demographics, and vital signs, which were used to compute the NEWS variable, diagnosis, length of stay, outcomes, and complications. Patients were classified as low, medium, and high-risk based on their NEWS scores within the first 24 hours of admission and 24 hours prior to the outcome of interest (death or discharge). Results: A total of 405 patients were included in this study. Patients with low, medium, and high-risk NEWS scores within the first 24 hours of admission, had an 11.1%, 9%, and 17% chance of death respectively. In the NEWS score high-risk group 24 hours prior to outcome (death or discharge), the risk of mortality increased to 20.6% and there was a four-fold increase in odds of death. Conclusion: Our results showed that the NEWS score predicted outcome and may suggest that the implementation of the NEWS score as a routine tool for monitoring inpatients at the Jos University Teaching Hospital could help to detect patients at risk of adverse events.

Prevalence of malaria parasitaemia in adult HIV-infected patients in Jos, North-central Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and malaria co-infection has become an important public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa. Data on HIV and malaria interaction in Nigerian adults is scanty. We determined the prevalence of malaria parasitaemia in HIV-infected adults and further investigated the role of immune status in the HIV/malaria association. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study involving 100 newly-diagnosed HIV-infected adults and 100 age and sex-matched HIV negative controls. Malaria parasitaemia was diagnosed by blood film microscopy using Giemsa staining technique and was defined as the presence of malaria parasites irrespective of species or parasite density. HIV infection was confirmed by western blot assay and CD4 T-lymphocyte count of the HIV-infected patients was quantified by flow cytometry. RESULTS: The prevalence of malaria parasitaemia was higher in HIV-infected adults (24%) than in the controls (9%) (chi2 = 8.17, p = 0.04). Participants residing in rural areas had higher prevalence of malaria parasitaemia than urban dwellers both for HIV-infected patients (34.1% Vs. 16.1%, chi2 = 4.3, p = 0.04) and controls (18.4%, Vs. 6.5%, chi2 = 3.4, p = 0.04). HIV-infected male patients tended to have malaria parasitemia more than their female counterparts (33.3% Vs. 17.2%, chi2 = 3.4, p = 0.06). Among HIV-infected patients, the prevalence of malaria parasitaemia progressively increased at lower CD4 cell counts, 10.3% for CD4 cell count of = 500, 17.5% for 200-499 and 45.2% for < 200 cells/microL (chi2 = 11.5, p = 0.003). CONCLUSION: HIV is likely to fuel malaria infection in tropical countries where both diseases are endemic. Malaria control practices should be further intensified in HIV-infected populations.

Presentation and survival in patients with hematologic malignancies in Jos, Nigeria: A retrospective cohort analysis.

BACKGROUND: Haematologic malignancies cause significant morbidity and mortality and are not uncommon in resource-limited-low income countries. However, the types, pattern of presentation and treatment outcomes vary across regions. We assessed the presentation and overall survival over an 11-year period in adult patients presenting with haematologic cancers in Jos, North Central Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective outcome study evaluated patients who presented with haematologic malignancies between 2005-2015 at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Jos. Variables of interest were abstracted through chart reviews. Descriptive statistics were used to evaluate baseline and follow-up parameters. Overall survival (OS) was assessed using Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: Sixty patients, contributing 25,994 person-days of follow-up were evaluated. The mean age was 43+17 years and 61.7% were males. Thirty-one patients (51.7%) presented with leukemia, 45.0% with lymphoma, and 3.3% with multiple myeloma. Forty-two (70.0%) presented with advanced disease, 5 (5.2%) were HIV positive and 4 (6.7%) had died at the end of follow-up. OS was 84.3% (95% CI: 58.1-94.7). Survival differed by disease group (p=0.01) and having fever at presentation (p=0.02). CONCLUSION: We found long-term OS to be impacted by disease type and status of fever at presentation. Disease-specific Strategies to improve early diagnosis and therapies are needed to ensure optimal outcomes in Nigerian patients.

Irritable bowel syndrome among patients attending General Outpatients' clinics in Jos, Nigeria.

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common disorder in the Western world. Its prevalence is yet to be fully determined in the African setting. This was a cross-sectional study of patients attending three General Outpatient clinics in Jos, Nigeria. Four hundred and eighteen randomly selected patients were interviewed using a structured questionnaire based on the Rome II diagnostic criteria for IBS. Excluded from the study were patients with established organic disease, memory problems, and pregnant women. Eighteen patients were excluded based on these criteria and 400 were analysed using Epi Info 2000 (Atlanta, Georgia, USA) statistical computer software. One hundred and thirty-two (33%) out of the 400 patients fulfilled the criteria for the diagnosis of IBS, the female to male ratio being 1.13 : 1. IBS was significantly associated with increasing age (P=0.03) and depression (P<0.001). The prevalence of IBS is high among patients attending primary care in the African setting with depression being the likely reason for seeking care.

A survey of non-communicable diseases and their risk factors among university employees: a single institutional study.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is rising globally, with its attendant morbidity and mortality, especially in developing countries. This study evaluated the prevalence of NCDs and their risk factors among members of a university community. METHODS: All employees of the university were invited to the University health clinic for screening, using the World Health Organisation's STEPwise approach to NCDs. RESULTS: A total of 883 (521; 59.0% males) employees with a mean age of 44 ± 10 years were studied. The median (IQR) number of NCD risk factors was three (two to three) per participant. The most common NCD risk factors were inadequate intake of fruit and vegetables (94.6%; 95% CI: 92.8-95.9), physical inactivity (77.8%; 95% CI: 74.9-80.5%) and dyslipidaemia (51.8%; 95% CI: 48.4-51.6%). Others included obesity (26.7%; 95% CI: 23.9-29.8%), alcohol use (24.0%; 95% CI: 21.3-27.0%) and cigarette smoking (2.9%; 95% CI: 2.0-4.3). Hypertension was the most common NCD (48.5%; 95% CI: 45.1-51.8%), followed by chronic kidney disease (13.6%; 95% CI: 11.4-16.1) and diabetes mellitus (8.0%; 95% CI: 6.4-10.1). There was no gender-specific difference in the prevalence of NCDs. CONCLUSION: This study identified that NCDs and their modifiable risk factors are highly prevalent in this community. Workplace policy to support the adoption of healthy living is needed.

Characteristics, management, and outcomes of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma in Africa: a multicountry observational study from the Africa Liver Cancer Consortium.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma is a leading cause of cancer-related death in Africa, but there is still no comprehensive description of the current status of its epidemiology in Africa. We therefore initiated an African hepatocellular carcinoma consortium aiming to describe the clinical presentation, management, and outcomes of patients with hepatocellular carcinoma in Africa. METHODS: We did a multicentre, multicountry, retrospective observational cohort study, inviting investigators from the African Network for Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases to participate in the consortium to develop hepatocellular carcinoma research databases and biospecimen repositories. Participating institutions were from Cameroon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Clinical information-demographic characteristics, cause of disease, liver-related blood tests, tumour characteristics, treatments, last follow-up date, and survival status-for patients diagnosed with hepatocellular carcinoma between Aug 1, 2006, and April 1, 2016, were extracted from medical records by participating investigators. Because patients from Egypt showed differences in characteristics compared with patients from the other countries, we divided patients into two groups for analysis; Egypt versus other African countries. We undertook a multifactorial analysis using the Cox proportional hazards model to identify factors affecting survival (assessed from the time of diagnosis to last known follow-up or death). FINDINGS: We obtained information for 2566 patients at 21 tertiary referral centres (two in Egypt, nine in Nigeria, four in Ghana, and one each in the Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Sudan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Uganda). 1251 patients were from Egypt and 1315 were from the other African countries (491 from Ghana, 363 from Nigeria, 277 from Ivory Coast, 59 from Cameroon, 51 from Sudan, 33 from Ethiopia, 21 from Tanzania, and 20 from Uganda). The median age at which hepatocellular carcinoma was diagnosed significantly later in Egypt than the other African countries (58 years [IQR 53-63] vs 46 years [36-58]; p<0·0001). Hepatitis C virus was the leading cause of hepatocellular carcinoma in Egypt (1054 [84%] of 1251 patients), and hepatitis B virus was the leading cause in the other African countries (597 [55%] of 1082 patients). Substantially fewer patients received treatment specifically for hepatocellular carcinoma in the other African countries than in Egypt (43 [3%] of 1315 vs 956 [76%] of 1251; p<0·0001). Among patients with survival information (605 [48%] of 1251 in Egypt and 583 [44%] of 1315 in other African countries), median survival was shorter in the other African countries than in Egypt (2·5 months [95% CI 2·0-3·1] vs 10·9 months [9·6-12·0]; p<0·0001). Factors independently associated with poor survival were: being from an African countries other than Egypt (hazard ratio [HR] 1·59 [95% CI 1·13-2·20]; p=0·01), hepatic encephalopathy (2·81 [1·72-4·42]; p=0·0004), diameter of the largest tumour (1·07 per cm increase [1·04-1·11]; p<0·0001), log α-fetoprotein (1·10 per unit increase [1·02-1·20]; p=0·0188), Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status 3-4 (2·92 [2·13-3·93]; p<0·0001) and no treatment (1·79 [1·44-2·22]; p<0·0001). INTERPRETATION: Characteristics of hepatocellular carcinoma differ between Egypt and other African countries. The proportion of patients receiving specific treatment in other African countries was low and their outcomes were extremely poor. Urgent efforts are needed to develop health policy strategies to decrease the burden of hepatocellular carcinoma in Africa. FUNDING: None.

Depression in patients with irritable bowel syndrome in Jos, Nigeria.

AIM: To study the brain-gut interaction and the effect of behavioral or psychiatric conditions on irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in an African population. METHODS: IBS was diagnosed using the Rome II diagnostic criteria. The entry of each patient was confirmed following detailed explanations of the questions. Four hundred and eighteen patients were studied. Subjects satisfying the Rome II criteria for IBS were physically examined and stool microscopy was done to identify the presence of "alarm factors". Depression was diagnosed using the symptom-check list adapted from the Research Diagnostic Criteria (DSM-IV) of the American Psychiatric Association. RESULTS: Seventy-five (56.8%) of the 132 IBS patients were depressed whereas only 54 (20.1%) of the 268 non-IBS patients were depressed. There was a significant relationship between IBS and depression (chi2 = 54.29, Odds ratio = 5.21, 56.8 +/- 8.4 vs 20.1 +/- 5.2, P = 0.001). Even though constipation predominant IBS patients were more likely to be depressed, no significant relationship was found between the subtype of IBS and depression (chi2 = 0.02, OR = 0.95, P = 0.68). CONCLUSION: IBS is significantly associated with major depression but not gender and bowel subtypes of the patients. Patients with IBS need to be evaluated for depression due to the highly significant relationship between the two conditions.

Hepatic histopathological findings in HIV patients at postmortem in Jos university teaching hospital, Nigeria.

Multi-organ involvement by opportunistic infections and neoplasms is the major cause of morbidity and mortality in people living with HIV/AIDS. We determined the spectrum/frequency of hepatic histopathological lesions in a prospective study of postmortem liver biopsies from 100 patients (50 females and 50 males, age range 18-55 years) who died from HIV/AIDS in Jos university teaching hospital, Nigeria. The majority of the patients, 65 (65%), had clinical tuberculosis. Granulomatous hepatitis, chronic hepatitis, non-specific reactive hepatitis (NSRH) and steatosis were the commonest hepatic histopathologic lesions occurring in 34, 20,15 and 12% of patients, respectively. Seven (7%) had normal histological features. This study shows that the liver is affected in HIV/AIDS as reported elsewhere in the world. Therefore, liver biopsy in HIV patients may be helpful in the management of these patients.

Prevalence of hepatitis B e antigen among human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis B virus co-infected patients in Jos, Nigeria.

INTRODUCTION: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) negatively impacts the natural history of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, including replication. We determined the prevalence of HBeAg in HIV/HBV co-infected patients compared to HBV mono-infected controls and further investigated the relationship between HBeAg seropositivity and the degree of HIV-induced immunosuppression in co-infected patients. METHODOLOGY: The study design was cross-sectional. One hundred HBsAg-positive HIV-infected adults and 100 age and sex matched HBsAg-positive HIV negative controls were consecutively recruited between May and November 2010. Relevant demographic and HBV-related information was obtained. HBeAg was assayed by semi-quantitative third generation ELISA. The HIV/HBV co-infected patients also had CD4+ cell and HIV viral load quantification measured using flow cytometry and polymerase chain reaction techniques respectively. RESULTS: In each group, the mean age was 34 ± 8 years and the majority (61%) was female. The prevalence of HBeAg was significantly higher among co-infected patients (n = 28; 28%) than in the controls (n = 15; 15%; p = 0.03). HBeAg seropositivity was independently associated with age < 40 years (AOR = 2.83, 95% = CI 1.29-6.17) and HIV seropositivity (AOR = 2.44, 95% C.I = 1.17-5.07). The prevalence of HBeAg was significantly higher in co-infected patients with CD4 cell count < 200 cell/µL (41.3%) compared to those with 200-499 cell/µL (18.6%) and ≥500 cell/µL (9.1%), p = 0.006. CONCLUSION: HIV/HBV co-infected patients have a significantly higher prevalence of HBeAg than HBV mono-infected individuals. HBV-infected patients should be routinely assessed for HBeAg, especially if they are co-infected with HIV.

Awareness and knowledge of human immunodeficiency virus post exposure prophylaxis among Nigerian Family Physicians.

BACKGROUND: To determine the level of awareness and knowledge of HIV postexposure prophylaxis (HIV PEP) and determinants of adequate knowledge among Family Physicians in Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey conducted among 175 Family Physicians at two national conferences. RESULTS: Majority (97.7%) of the respondents was aware of the concept of HIV PEP and 99.4% believed it was effective in preventing HIV transmission. Over two third of our respondents had been exposed to NSI; however, less than 25% of those exposed received PEP. There was high level of knowledge of the various high-risk body fluids as well as types of high-risk exposures. 93.9% of our respondents knew that HIV PEP should commence within 1 h of exposure, 83.3% knew the correct duration of HIV PEP, but only 57.0% knew the ideal PEP regimen for high-risk exposures. The total mean score for our respondents was 17.8±2.9 with 79.4% having an adequate score. Being a junior doctor and male sex were associated with adequate knowledge. CONCLUSION: This study shows that despite high levels of awareness and knowledge of HIV PEP, access to its use among family physicians in Nigeria is still sub-optimal.

Use of Electronic Health Records in sub-Saharan Africa: Progress and challenges.

BACKGROUND: The Electronic Health Record (EHR) is a key component of medical informatics that is increasingly being utilized in industrialized nations to improve healthcare. There is limited information on the use of EHR in sub-Saharan Africa. This paper reviews availability of EHRs in sub-Saharan Africa. METHODS: Searches were performed on PubMed and Google Scholar databases using the terms 'Electronic Health Records OR Electronic Medical Records OR e-Health and Africa'. References from identified publications were reviewed. Inclusion criterion was documented use of EHR in Africa. RESULTS: The search yielded 147 publications of which 21papers from 15 sub-Saharan African countries documented the use of EHR in Africa and were reviewed. About 91% reported use of Open Source healthcare software, with OpenMRS being the most widely used. Most reports were from HIV related health centers. Barriers to adoption of EHRs include high cost of procurement and maintenance, poor network infrastructure and lack of comfort among health workers with electronic medical records. CONCLUSION: There has been an increase in the use of EHRs in sub-Saharan Africa, largely driven by utilization by HIV treatment programs. Penetration is still however very low.

Association of HIV-Induced Immunosuppression and Clinical Malaria in Nigerian Adults.

Despite the growing body of evidence on the interaction between HIV and malaria in sub-Saharan Africa, there is a dearth of data on clinical malaria in HIV-infected patients in Nigeria. We determined the burden of clinical malaria in HIV-infected adult Nigerians and further investigated the association between their immunological status and the rates of clinical malaria. Ninety seven antiretroviral treatment-naïve HIV-infected adults were enrolled in a cross-sectional study from August to December, 2009. The participants had a complete clinical evaluation, thick and thin blood films for malaria parasites and CD4 cell count quantification. Clinical malaria was defined as having fever (temperature ≥ 37.5°C or history of fever within 48 hours) and a malaria parasite density above the median value obtained for subjects with co-existing fever and parasitaemia. Clinical malaria was diagnosed in 10 out of 97 patients (10.3%). Lower CD4 cell counts were associated with increasing rates of clinical malaria which was 0% at CD4 cell count of ≥ 500, 2.6% at 200-499 and 30% at <200 cells/µL (χ(2) = 18.3, p = 0.0001). This association remained significant after controlling for other factors in a multivariate analysis (AOR=22.98, 95% C.I: 2.62-20.14, p = 0.005). An inverse relationship between CD4 cell count and parasite density was demonstrated (regression co-efficient = - 0.001, p = 0.0002). More aggressive malaria control measures are highly needed in severely immunosuppressed HIV-infected patients.

Prevalence of irritable bowel syndrome: a community survey in an African population.

BACKGROUND: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) has been reported to be common in the West. Community surveys are lacking in the African setting. We determined the prevalence of IBS in a rural community setting in Nigeria. METHOD: Questionnaires were administered to consenting individuals. Subjects satisfying the Rome II criteria for IBS were invited for physical examination at a health center to identify the presence of "alarm factors." RESULTS: One hundred forty (31.6%) of the 443 evaluated individuals fulfilled the Rome II criteria for IBS, with a male-to-female ratio of 1.37:1 (P= .11). The prevalence of IBS was highest (39.3%) in the third decade, followed by 25% in the fourth decade (P= .009). Ninety-six (67%) IBS individuals had the alternating pattern of diarrhea and constipation, whereas 28 (20%) and 19 (13%) had constipation and diarrhea subtypes, respectively. CONCLUSION: IBS as diagnosed by the Rome II criteria has a high prevalence in the African rural population, as obtained elsewhere.