Sonographic Evaluation of Maternal Renal Echogenicity in Healthy Pregnant Women in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria.

Background: Increased renal echogenicity is a nonspecific ultrasound finding. It may be a normal variation or suggestive of various underlying conditions like renal amyloidosis, chronic kidney disease, sickle cell disease and HIV associated nephropathy (HIVAN). Objective: To study maternal renal echogenicity in normal pregnancy, and explore its relationship with maternal baseline characteristics in our subregion. Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted in the Obstetrics and Radiology Units of the two tertiary health facilities, one secondary facility and one radio-diagnostic facility, all in Bayelsa State, South-South Nigeria, between March-August 2022. The relationships between maternal renal echogenicity and age, parity and gestational age were explored using Chi-square test of proportion, while with an analysis of variance (ANOVA), the mean difference of age, weight and height between the grades of renal echogenicity was investigated. Kruskal Wallis test was deployed to examine parity in the grades of renal echogenicity. The level of significance was set at p<0.05. Results: The study participants that had Grade 0, 1 and 2 renal echogenicity were 160 (39.7%), 403 (58.3%) and 8 (2.0%), respectively. There were statistically significant relationships between maternal renal echogenicity and maternal age (χ2=36.94; p=0.001), parity (χ2=64.29; p=0.001), gestational age (χ2=16.03; p=0.003) and body mass index (BMI) (χ2 = 45.15; p - 0.001). Conclusion: Our study revealed a significant relationship between maternal renal echogenicity in normal pregnancy and maternal baseline characteristics (age, parity, gestational age and weight).

Mpox in pregnancy: Management, risks and challenges in Africa and lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Data on mpox in pregnancy are currently limited. Historically, only 65 cases in pregnancy have been reported globally since mpox was discovered in 1958. This includes 59 cases in the current outbreak. Vertical transmission was confirmed in one patient. Pregnant women are at high risk of severe disease owing to immunological and hormonal changes that increase susceptibility to infections in pregnancy. African women appear to be at higher risk of mpox infection and adverse outcomes in pregnancy for epidemiological and immunologic reasons, in addition to the background high rates of adverse feto-maternal outcomes in the region. This risk is potentially heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic due to the possibility of mpox virus exportation/importation as a result of the lifting of movement restrictions and trans-border travels between countries affected by the current outbreak. Furthermore, coinfection with mpox and COVID-19 in pregnancy is possible, and the clinical features of both conditions may overlap. Challenges of diagnosis and management of mpox in pregnancy in Africa include patients concealing their travel history from healthcare providers and absconding from/evading isolation after diagnosis, shortage of personal protective equipment and polymerase chain reaction testing facilities for diagnosis, vaccine hesitancy/resistance, and poor disease notification systems. There is a need for local, regional and global support to strengthen the capacity of African countries to address these challenges and potentially reduce the disease burden among pregnant women in the continent.

Blood reservation and utilisation practice for Caesarean section in Ilorin, Nigeria.

Most blood units routinely cross-matched for patients undergoing Caesarean section (CS) in Nigeria are not used for transfusion. Over-ordering increases blood wastage, blood bank running costs, surgery costs and waiting times. A one-year review of all CS performed in the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), Nigeria, was thus conducted to evaluate blood reservation and utilisation practice. Efficiency of blood utilisation was evaluated using a cross-match to transfusion (C/T) ratio, transfusion probability (TP) and transfusion index (TI). The overall C/T ratio, TP and blood wastage were, respectively, 3.1, 24.6%, and 68%, indicative of inefficient blood utilisation. Establishing a Maximal Surgical Blood Order Schedule (MSBOS), which estimates the units of blood required for specific CS indications, is recommended to minimise blood over-ordering. Blood grouping alone should be done for patients at low risk for transfusion. For moderate risk patients, blood type and screen without cross-matching should be done, reserving cross-matching for high-risk patients.