University of Nigeria, Nsukka

About: University of Nigeria, Nsukka is a education organization based out in Nsukka, Nigeria. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Health care. The organization has 10211 authors who have published 13685 publications receiving 138922 citations.

Do poor people use poor quality providers? Evidence from the treatment of presumptive malaria in Nigeria.

Abstract: Summary Objective To determine the differences in the quality of treatment for presumptive malaria received by different socio-economic status (SES) groups in Nigeria. Methods The study was conducted in southeast Nigeria. A household survey was used to collect data on patterns of use of different providers for treatment of adult and childhood malaria. The quality of services provided by different provider types was assessed using treatment vignettes. Quality scores for the different providers were computed based on their responses to the different points raised in the vignettes. Patterns of household treatment seeking for fever were disaggregated by SES, and then weighted by quality score to indicate the overall quality-weighted utilization by SES and the average quality of a visit by a member of each SES group. Equity ratios (poorest/least poor) provided the measure of inequity in quality-weighted utilization of different providers. Results In treatment of adult malaria, higher SES groups used more of public and private hospitals, while lower SES groups used more of traditional healers. In case of children, higher SES used more of healthcare centres and private hospitals and lower SES groups used more of pharmacy shops. The lowest quality of services was measured among laboratories, patent medicine dealers (PMDs), mixed goods shops and pharmacies, all of which are private. The highest scores were observed among the two types of public providers (public hospital and healthcare centres). The quality of treatment services utilised by consumers decreased as SES decreased. However, when the quantity normalized index was used this SES disparity almost disappeared. The resulting equity ratio was 0.96 for adults and 0.94 for children. Conclusion Everybody used poor quality malaria treatment services but the poor people used providers with poor quality malaria treatment services more than others. The major driver of disparities in use of different providers by different SES was the greater number of visits of the higher SES groups, rather than the higher quality of the providers they used. Interventions should be developed to improve quality of treatment seeking behaviour and provision practices. Objetivo: Determinar las diferencias en la calidad del tratamiento de pacientes con infeccion presuntiva de malaria pertenecientes a grupos con diferente estatus socio-economico en Nigeria. Metodos: El estudio se realizo en el sudeste de Nigeria. Se realizo una encuesta en los hogares para recolectar datos sobre patrones de uso de los diferentes proveedores del tratamiento de malaria en adultos y ninos. La calidad de los servicios prestados por diferentes proveedores se evaluo utilizando vinetas sobre el tratamiento. Los puntajes de calidad para los diferentes proveedores se computaron basandose en sus respuestas a los diferentes puntos expuestos en las vinetas. Los patrones en el tratamiento domiciliario de la fiebre estaban disgregados segun el estatus socio-economico, y despues ponderados segun el puntaje de calidad, para indicar la calidad total ponderada utilizando el estatus socio-economico y la calidad promedio de una visita por un miembro de cada grupo socio-economico. Los ratios de equidad (el mas pobre: el menos pobre) proveyeron la medida de inequidad en la utilizacion de diferentes proveedores ponderados por calidad. Resultados: En el tratamiento de la malaria en adultos, los grupos con mayor nivel socio-economico utilizaban mas los hospitales publicos y privados, mientras que los grupos con menor nivel socio-economico utilizaban mas a los sanadores tradicionales. En el caso de ninos, los grupos con mayor nivel socio-economico utilizaban mas los centros sanitarios y los hospitales privados, mientras que los grupos con menor nivel socio-economico utilizaban mas las farmacias. La menor calidad de los servicios se midio entre laboratorios, representantes de productos farmaceuticos, tiendas de productos varios y farmacias, todas ellas privadas. Los puntajes mas altos se observaron entre dos tipos de proveedores publicos (hospitales publicos y centros sanitarios). La calidad de los servicios de tratamiento utilizado por los consumidores disminuia a medida que disminuia el nivel socio-economico. Sin embargo, cuando se utilizo el indice de cantidad normalizado, la disparidad entre el estatus socio-economico practicamente desaparecia. La tasa de equidad resultante era de 0.96 para adultos y de 0.94 para ninos. Conclusion: Todos utilizaron servicios de mala calidad para el tratamiento de la malaria, pero los mas pobres utilizaban mas a menudo que los demas a proveedores con servicios de mala calidad. El principal motivo de disparidad en el uso de diferentes proveedores por los diferentes grupos socio-economicos, fue el mayor numero de visitas de los grupos con niveles socio-economicos mas altos, mas que la mejor calidad de los proveedores que utilizaban. Las intervenciones deberian desarrollarse para mejorar la calidad del comportamiento de busqueda de tratamiento y practicas de prestacion de servicios.

Barriers to climate change adaptation among farming households of southern Nigeria

Abstract: Climate change is perhaps the most serious environmental threat to the fight against hunger, malnutrition, disease and poverty in Africa, essentially because of its impact on agricultural productivity. The objective of this paper was to identify the major barriers to climate change adaptation among smallholder farmers of Southern Nigeria. The paper was based on primary data collected within the framework of the Development Partnership for Higher Education (DelPHE) Project from 360 farming households selected randomly from the region. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics and factor analysis. The result of the analysis show that majority of the farmers were men (70%), relatively educated (average of 9 years in school) and practiced mixed farming (61%). The major factors constraining farmers from adapting to climate change impacts were – (a) land constraints which manifested itself in limited availability, high costs and poor ownership systems (tenure); (b) poor climate change information and agricultural extension service delivery; (c) high cost of farm inputs and processing facilities; (d) high cost of irrigation facilities and government irresponsiveness to climate change risk management, (e) credit constraints, (f) labour constraints, and (g) income constraints. The paper concludes with a recommendation that farmers need to be supported in order for them to effectively adapt to the climate change impacts that are already affecting their production and hence reduce hunger and poverty. These supports could come from governments, non-governmental organizations and even farmers’ unions themselves.

A diminazene-resistant strain of Trypanosoma brucei brucei isolated from a dog is cross-resistant to pentamidine in experimentally infected albino rats.

Abstract: Trypanosomosis is a major cause of mortality for dogs in Nigeria and treatment with diminazene aceturate has steadily become less effective, either as a result of low quality of the locally available diminazene preparations or of drug resistance. To investigate these alternatives, samples of locally obtained drugs were analysed for diminazene aceturate content and a strain of Trypanosoma brucei brucei was isolated from a diminazene-refractory dog in Nsukka, south-eastern Nigeria, and used to infect albino rats. The quality of diminazene aceturate-based preparations was variable, with two preparations containing less than 95% of the stated active compound. Rats infected with T. brucei isolated from the dog were treated 7 and 10 days after infection either with 7 mg/kg diminazene aceturate (intraperitoneally, once) or with 4 mg/kg pentamidine isethionate (intramuscularly, 7 consecutive days). Relapse rates were 100% for both trypanocides in the groups of rat treated 10 days post-infection, and 83% and 50% of rats treated 7 days after infection relapsed to diminazene aceturate and pentamidine isethionate, respectively. Careful consideration of physiological parameters showed that pentamidine was only marginally superior to diminazene aceturate as applied in this study. It was concluded that dogs in Nigeria are infected with genuinely diminazene aceturate-resistant trypanosomes that appear to be cross-resistant to pentamidine isethionate.

A genome-wide scan for quantitative trait loci linked to obesity phenotypes among West Africans.

Abstract: A genome-wide scan for quantitative trait loci linked to obesity phenotypes among West Africans

Prevalence of chronic prostatitis symptoms in a randomly surveyed adult population of urban-community-dwelling Nigerian males.

Abstract: Chronic prostatitis is a debilitating disease of the prostate gland that is characterized by chronic pelvic pain. Unlike the developed world the prevalence of chronic prostatitis and its impact on the quality of life (QOL) of the sufferer is not known in Nigeria. This work was carried out to fill this vacuum. A random cross-sectional survey of apparently normalmen of ages 20-70 years living in Nsukka a university town in South-eastern Nigeria using the National Institute of Health Chronic Prostatitis Symptom Index (NIH-CPSI) was carried out. The self reported pain and QOL scores were used to identify subjects with chronic prostatitis symptoms and the subjects QOL status respectively. Of the 1507 men studied 12.21% had symptoms suggestive of chronic prostatitis. Subjects with chronic prostatitis symptoms (CPS) (mean relative age 40.98 plus or minus 12.51 years) had higher mean pain and voiding scores (5.65 plus or minus 1.99 and 2.61 plus or minus 2.23 respectively) compared with subjects without CPS (0.44 plus or minus 0.73 and 1.29 plus or minus 1.70 for pain and voiding scores respectively; mean relative age 41.99 plus or minus 12.99 years). A total of 39.62% of the population had pain in at least one location while 22.69% of the population had impaired QOL. Chronic prostatitis symptoms are as common in Nigeria as they are in the developed world and so are their effects on the QOL of the sufferer. (authors)