Evaluation of Primary School Health Environment in Ido/Osi Local Government Area, Ekiti State, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: School environment entails the sum total of the physical, biological, social, and emotional environment within which members of the school community operate. It is essential to make the school environment healthy to promote and protect the health of school pupils as well as their safety. This study aimed at finding the level of implementation of a Healthy School Environment (HSE) in Ido/Osi Local Government Area (LGA) of Ekiti State. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional descriptive study carried out among 48 private and 19 public primary schools using a standardised checklist and direct observation. RESULTS: The teacher-to-pupil ratio was 1:16 in public schools and 1:10 in private schools. The leading source of water in 47.8% of the schools was well water. Most, 97%, of the schools practiced open dumping of refuse. Private schools had more school buildings with strong walls and good roofs with doors and windows which provided adequate ventilation compared to the public schools (p- 0.001). No school was located close to an industrial area, however, none had a safety patrol team. Only 34.3% of schools had a fence and 31.3% had terrains prone to flooding. Only 3% of the schools, all private schools, attained the minimum acceptable score on the school environment. CONCLUSION: The status of school environment was poor in the study location and school ownership did not make any much impact as there was no difference in the situations of school environment between public and private schools.

CONTEXTE: L'environnement scolaire est l'ensemble des conditions physiques, biologiques, sociales et émotionnelles dans lesquelles évoluent les membres de la communauté scolaire. Il est essentiel de rendre l'environnement scolaire sain afin de promouvoir et de protéger la santé des élèves ainsi que leur sécurité. Cette étude visait à déterminer le niveau de mise en œuvre de l'environnement scolaire sain (HSE) dans la zone de gouvernement local (LGA) d'Ido/Osi de l'État d'Ekiti. MÉTHODOLOGIE: Une étude descriptive transversale a été menée dans 48 écoles primaires privées et 19 écoles primaires publiques à l'aide d'une liste de contrôle standardisée et d'une observation directe. RÉSULTATS: Le ratio enseignant/élèves était de 1:16 dans les écoles publiques et de 1:10 dans les écoles privées. La principale source d'eau dans 47,8 % des écoles était l'eau de puits. La plupart des écoles (97%) pratiquaient le dépôt d'ordures à l'air libre. Les écoles privées avaient plus de bâtiments scolaires avec des murs solides et de bons toits avec des portes et des fenêtres qui fournissaient une ventilation adéquate par rapport aux écoles publiques (p- 0.001). Aucune école n'était située à proximité d'une zone industrielle, mais aucune ne disposait d'une équipe de patrouille de sécurité. Seules 34,3 % des écoles disposaient d'une clôture et 31,3 % étaient situées sur des terrains inondables. Seules 3 % des écoles, toutes privées, ont atteint le score minimum acceptable en matière d'environnement scolaire. CONCLUSION: L'état de l'environnement scolaire était médiocre dans la région étudiée et la propriété de l'école n'avait pas beaucoup d'impact car il n'y avait pas de différence dans la situation de l'environnement scolaire entre les écoles publiques et les écoles privées. Mots-clés: État d'Ekiti, Environnement sain, Gouvernement Local, Nigeria, École Primaire, Environnement Scolaire.

Relationship between Serum Uric Acid and Hypertension among Secondary School Adolescents in Ekiti State, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: With the seemingly increasing trend of childhood hypertension, high serum uric acid (SUA) levels might be an indicator of essential hypertension among adolescents. OBJECTIVE: To determine the SUA levels of hypertensive students and randomly selected controls and find the association, if any, between SUA level and blood pressure (BP) among secondary school students in Ido-Osi Local Government Area (LGA). METHODOLOGY: The study was a nested case-control study conducted among selected secondary school students in IdoOsi LGA from June 2017 to March 2018. Of the 573 students screened for hypertension, SUA was assayed from 31 hypertensive students and an equal number of age- and sexmatched controls. Serum uric acid greater than 5.5 mg/ dL was taken as high. Statistical analysis included chi-square and Pearson correlation. RESULTS: There was a positive correlation between SUA level and both systolic BP (p < 0.013) and diastolic BP (p < 0.017). The mean (SD) serum uric acid level of the hypertensive students [5.39 (2.08) mg/ dL] was higher than that of the controls [4.24 (1.81) mg/ dL] (p = 0.023). Hypertensive students with hyperuricaemia had a higher mean (SD) systolic BP than those with low uric acid: 138.67 (14.81) versus 128.68 (10.04); p =0.037. CONCLUSION: The mean serum uric acid level of students with hypertension was higher than that of the non-hypertensive students and high SUA levels appear to more prominently affect systolic than diastolic blood pressures among the cohort of hypertensive students.

CONTEXTE: Compte tenu de la tendance apparemment croissante de l'hypertension chez les enfants, des taux élevés d'acide urique sérique (AUS) pourraient être un indicateur d'hypertension essentielle chez les adolescents. OBJECTIF: Déterminer les niveaux d'acide urique sérique des élèves hypertendus et des témoins choisis au hasard et trouver l'association, le cas échéant, entre le niveau d'acide urique sérique et la tension artérielle chez les élèves du secondaire dans la zone de gouvernement local (LGA) d'Ido-Osi. MÉTHODOLOGIE: L'étude était une étude cas-témoins imbriquée menée auprès d'élèves du secondaire sélectionnés dans la zone de gouvernement local d'Ido-Osi de juin 2017 à mars 2018. Sur les 573 élèves dépistés pour l'hypertension, le SUA a été dosé chez 31 élèves hypertendus et un nombre égal de témoins appariés selon l'âge et le sexe. Un taux d'acide urique sérique supérieur à 5,5 mg/ dL a été considéré comme élevé. L'analyse statistique a porté sur le chi-carré et la corrélation de Pearson. RÉSULTATS: Il y avait une corrélation positive entre le niveau de SUA et la tension systolique (p < 0,013) et la tension diastolique (p< 0,017). Le niveau moyen (SD) d'acide urique sérique des étudiants hypertendus [5,39 (2,08) mg/ dL] était plus élevé que celui des témoins [4,24 (1,81) mg/ dL] (p = 0,023). Les étudiants hypertendus présentant une hyperuricémie avaient une TA systolique moyenne (SD) plus élevée que ceux ayant un faible taux d'acide urique : 138,67 (14,81) contre 128,68 (10,04); p =0,037. CONCLUSION: Le taux moyen d'acide urique sérique des étudiants hypertendus était plus élevé que celui des étudiants non hypertendus et les taux élevés d'acide urique sérique semblent affecter davantage la pression artérielle systolique que la pression artérielle diastolique dans la cohorte d'étudiants hypertendus. Mots-clés: Adolescents, hypertension, relation, acide urique sérique.

An assessment of school-based health instruction among primary schools in Ido/Osi local government area Southwest, Nigeria.

Background: School Health Instruction (SHI) comprises of series of formal, well-planned, and organized learning whereby information concerning knowledge, habits, attitudes, practices, and conducts are given pertaining to the health of an individual or members of the school community. A well-structured and implemented SHI forms the basis for a healthy health promotion. Aim: The study aimed at assessing the implementation of SHI among primary schools in a Local Government Area, Southwest, Nigeria. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out among 67 private and public schools in a Local Government Area of Ekiti State using a standardized checklist and direct observation. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 25. Results: The ratio of teachers to pupils was 1:16 in public schools and 1:10 in private schools. More public-school teachers (93.8%) compared to private school teachers (28.9) had education-related qualifications (P < 0.0001). All public schools adhered to the recommended three periods per week on health education while the frequency of adherence varied in private schools. About half of the private school teachers and 60.4% of the public school teachers have had in-service training on general health and health promotion. Direct teaching by a subject teacher was carried out by 11.9% of the schools while 49.3% had supplemental teaching aids. The scope of health education was uniform among all the schools. Only 46.3% of the schools attained the recommended minimum acceptable score on SHI. Conclusion: School health instruction was poorly implemented in the study location. There is a need to scale up SHI and monitor its implementation in the study location. These efforts should be supported by all stakeholders and backed with adequate oversight function by regulatory authorities, provision of in-service training, and teaching aids for teachers.

Intestinal Ischaemia-Reperfusion Injury and Semen Characteristics in West African Dwarf Bucks.

Increasing production of goats takes their reproductive potential and fertility, into consideration. Gastrointestinal obstructive lesions can set up an intestinal ischaemia-reperfusion. Testicular torsion is an established cause of testicular damage and infertility and is a form of ischaemia-reperfusion injury. This study investigates the effect of intestinal ischaemia-reperfusion (IIR) injury on semen characteristics in WAD bucks. Six healthy adult male WAD goats were divided into two groups of three, a control and IIR group, one hour ischaemia and two hours of reperfusion were achieved in the intestinal ischaemia-reperfusion (IIR) group after all goats underwent a laparotomy. Semen collection was done using the electro-ejaculator method pre-operatively and weekly for four weeks post-operatively. The semen concentration, percentage of normal sperm cells, abnormal sperm cells and percentage abnormality were evaluated. In control animals, there was an increase in semen concentration postoperatively followed by a decrease whereas in IIR animals, a decrease was observed postoperatively till the 4th week. Total normal sperm cells decreased postoperatively and then increased to preoperative levels whereas a decrease was seen in IIR animals till the 3rd postoperative week. Abnormalities in sperm cells, normal head without tail, normal tail without head, bent mid-piece, curved mid-piece and rudimentary tail were all increased by the 4th week in IIR group though the total number of abnormal cells was observed to have decreased. The main effect of intestinal ischaemic-reperfusion injury on the semen characteristics of WAD goats is an increase in abnormalities with an adequate quantity of semen. Many of the abnormalities involved midpiece and tail abnormalities which are very vital to propulsion and may cause an inability of the sperm cells to fertilize. This hitherto silent phenomenon in farm animals may be the reason for iatrogenic causes of infertility.

Some reproductive indices of the Nigerian local bitches in Ibadan, Nigeria.

Some reproductive parameters of the Nigerian local bitches were studied at the kennel of the Department of Veterinary Surgery and Reproduction, University of Ibadan using 6 bitches and 1 stud aged between 2 and 3 years, weighing 10 to 12kg. The bitches were mated naturally by the stud at the second day of cytological oestrus and allowed to carry the pregnancy to term. The bitches and puppies were weighed weekly and observed till weaning.  Mean gestation length was 63.5 + 0.3 day. Mean litter size was 7.0 + 2.0 puppies.  Litter sex ratio was 1.25 females to 1 male puppy.  Mean birth weights were 308.3 + 15.3 and 286.3 +11.8 grammes for male and female puppies respectively, while the respective weaning live weights were 1.5 + 0.2 and 1.8 + 0.1kg. Litter size affected the birth weight; the mean birth weight of puppies with the litter size 10 was significantly lighter than those with litter sizes 7, 6 and 4 puppies. Mean age at testicular descent was 6.1 + 0.6 days while eyes of puppies were opened at mean age 15.4 + 0.2 days. Mean duration between whelping and first oestrus was 3.9 + 0.07 months. The neonatal mortality rate was 35.3%, more female puppies (26.4%) than male puppies (5.9%) died during the first week of life. These high mortalities might be due to cold and maternal negligence. With these basic data, the reproductive potential of the Nigerian local bitch can be harnessed.

Effects of honey, glutamine and their combination on canine small bowel epithelial cell proliferation following massive resection.

The effects of honey, glutamine and honey/glutamine combination on the healing and adaptive process of the bowel following massive small bowel resection were studied in some Nigerian nondescript breeds of dogs. 24 dogs (3-4 months old) of mixed sexes with mean body weight of 4.42±0.70 kg were studied. They were randomized into four treatment groups following 70% small bowel resection. Group A dogs were placed on glutamine treatment, Group B on oral glutamine/honey and group C on honey and group D normal saline (control). Their body weights were evaluated for 15 days and the pre- and post-treatment gut biopsy samples were obtained and processed for morphometric evaluation. All groups exhibited signs of small bowel adaptation (Glutamine/honey>glutamine > honey > control) at the end of the experiment (4 weeks). Glutamine/honey combination, glutamine and honey had gradual increase in body weight from days 3-15 of weight evaluation. The control group, however, had a remarkable drop in body weight compared with other groups. Oral glutamine/honey combination showed the best overall effect based on body weight gain, intestinal mucosal growth and adaptation, evidenced by increased in residual bowel Villi height (27.71µm), Villi weight (14.51µm), Crypt depth (11.25µm), and Villi density (3.40µm). Glutamine showed a better result than honey with a significant increase in villi height (38.08µm), width (8.48µm) and crypt depth (40µm). Histologically, an improved villi branching was observed with glutamine/honey combination. Our results showed that honey/glutamine combination had comparative therapeutic advantage over glutamine or honey and may be a preferred treatment for short bowel syndrome patients.

Erythrocytic parameters as indicators for differentiating between the pregnant and pseudopregnant bitches in Nigeria.

The erythrocytic parameters during pregnancy and pseudopregnancy in bitches were studied and compared in 8 bitches aged 2 -3 years and weighing 10-12 kg. Blood samples were collected from the bitches before mating, during the three trimesters of pregnancy and the post partum period. The packed cell volume (PCV %), haemoglobin concentration (Hb gm/dl), red blood cell count(x10(6)/µl) were determined using standard methods. The mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) were then calculated. Six of the bitches were pregnant and 2 were pseudopregnant. The results showed that in pregnant bitches, the PCV decreased significantly from the premating values of 51.37+0.94% to 34.00+8.04% during the third trimester of pregnancy (P<0.05). There was also a significant decrease in Hb values (P<0.05) from the premating period (16.30 ± 0.20gm/dl) to the third trimester of pregnancy (11.25±1.80gm/dl). The values of Red blood cells (RBCx10(6)/µl) during the premating period (12.70+3.15) were not significantly different from the values during the first second and third trimesters (11.13+3.87, 10.38+4.54 and 12.24+3.15, respectively). The trend of decrease in PCV and Hb values were not observed in the bitches with pseudopregnancy. This shows that these erythrocytic parameters can be used to detect and differentiate between pregnancy and pseudopregnancy in bitches as early as the first 20 days post mating.

Localization of IgE in adenoids and tonsils: an immunoperoxidase study.

An immunoperoxidase technique was applied to the localization of IgE in formaldehyde-solution-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue. The content and distribution of IgE in tonsil and adenoid tissues from ten patients with histories of inhalant allergies and elevated serum levels of total and allergen-specific IgE were investigated. Compared with tissues from five nonatopic subjects, the tissues from atopic individuals were observed to harbor a much larger population of IgE-formating plasma cells. The profusion of IgE plasma cells in nasopharyngeal lymphoid tissue, observed in this study, furnishes strong anatomic evidence for a pathogenetic role of IgE in inhalant allergies. For cellular and tissue localization of IgE, the immunoperoxidase technique offers clear advantages over previously used immunoflorescence procedures.

Hyperoxia enhances expression of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase and increases protein S-glutathiolation in rat lung.

By participating in glutathione (GSH) synthesis, gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) influences the GSH redox cycle, which is a major contributor in protecting against reactive oxygen metabolites. This study determined the effect of prolonged exposure of neonatal rats to > 98% oxygen on expression of GGT and on GSH metabolism. Lungs of neonatal rats chronically exposed to hyperoxia had increased expression of GGT mRNA, resulting in significantly higher GGT protein levels and enzyme activity than in lungs of animals raised in room air. Hyperoxia also upregulated glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, but Na-K-ATPase activity was not changed. GGT mRNA, protein level, and enzyme activity returned to control levels after recovery in room air for 3 days. Levels of GSH, glutathione disulfide, and protein-bound GSH (S-glutathiolated protein) rose with hyperoxia and fell during recovery. S-glutathiolation is likely a mechanism for protection and a regulatory modification of protein sulfhydryl groups. Hyperoxia-induced upregulation of GGT and the concomitant increase in protein S-glutathiolation appear to be additional components fundamental in protecting the lung against oxidative injury.