Annals of Biomedical Sciences

The Nigerian cancer health fund: one step toward universal health coverage

2024-06-21T16:07:09+00:00

The Nigeria Cancer Health Fund (CHF) is a laudable federal government intervention (alongside numerous partners) being implemented in six tertiary hospitals across the geopolitical zones of the country. It is a social service aimed at providing funding and health care services for cancer treatment to indigent breast, cervix, and prostate cancer patients in Nigeria. Despite the huge investment, the fund has been largely underutilized with only 22.6% of the 1,807 enrolled patients having their wallets credited with funds, and only 38.2% of the credited funds being utilized by the patients. The CHF has numerous prospects that can ensure universal health coverage for cancer care but not without challenges of implementation. The main challenge has been delays in crediting the wallets of the patients leading to eventual disease progression or death as over 90% are enrolled with stage II and above disease.

A major recommendation by cancer advocates is that the funds should no longer be domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Health but moved to the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) or the recently launched National Institute for Cancer Research and Treatment (NICRAT).

Awareness and practice of birth preparedness and complication readiness among antenatal clinic attendees in a tertiary Nigerian Hospital.

2024-06-21T16:25:54+00:00

Aims: The study aimed to assess the awareness and practice of BPCR among pregnant women attending Antenatal clinic of a tertiary hospital in Nigeria.
Methodology: socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge on BPCR & obstetrics danger signs, implementation of the elements of BPCR and the barriers to the implementation were sought from 379 consenting pregnant women using a proforma in a cross sectional descriptive study from May 2021 to May 2022. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21.
Results: The mean age of the women was 25.3 ± 3.6 years, married, with mostly tertiary education. Most of them reside at >5km away from the hospital. Most participants were not aware of the concept of BPCR. Majority of the participants had identified a health facility (94.7%), a skilled birth attendants (94.7%), and had saved money for delivery /emergency but no significant arrangement was made for transportation. The barriers to practice ranges from distance to the hospital, attitude of personnel, financial constraint to lack of a potential blood donor.
Conclusion: There was poor awareness on BPCR among the participants. The practice level of BPCR was generally good, yet the participants had least practice of transportation arrangement as a component of BPCR. The barriers to the implementation of BPCR were due
to distance to the hospital and maltreatment from health personnel among others.

A giant pleomorphic salivary adenoma of the parotid gland: a case report

2024-06-21T16:43:44+00:00

Pleomorphic Salivary Adenomas (PSAs) are the most common salivary gland tumours. They affect the parotid gland mostly. PSAs are benign tumours that grow in size up to several centimeters and several kilograms in weight. If left untreated or following delayed presentation for treatment, they have the capacity to undergo malignant transformation or grow to giant PSA. We present a 48-year-old Nigerian female patient residing in a rural setting that presented at the Dental and Maxillofacial Surgery department of the Federal Medical Center, Asaba with a 10-year history of a slow growing painless left facial giant swelling. The clinical provisional diagnosis was PSA. Cytopathological diagnosis by fine needle aspiration biopsy was that of a benign salivary gland tumour possibly a PSA. Parotidectomy with preservation of facial nerve was done followed by histopathologic evaluation. Definitive histopathological diagnosis was PSA. Healing of the surgical site after treatment was satisfactory and patient was under followup. Five years after surgery, no recurrence seen.

A case report of pharmacomechanical venous thrombectomy in Benin City

2024-06-21T17:01:40+00:00

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) occurs when blood coagulates in the deep veins. We report the first case of catheter-based pharmacomechanical thrombectomy in Benin-city. Although the patient had chronic DVT, she still benefitted from the procedure which resulted in salvaging the limb. The patient was 56 years of age and a female who had chronic DVT extending from the common femoral to the popliteal vein. The procedure was successfully carried out using a C-arm fluoroscopy machine (Siemens Siremobil Compact L). During the procedure, ntravenous infusion of streptokinase was administered after a successful test dose. Venograms were performed which initially showed minimal venous opacification indicative of complete blockage but later showed improved opacification post pharmacomechanical thrombectomy.

Malakoplakia in a secondary health care facility in Nigeria: a case report

2024-06-21T17:20:23+00:00

Background: Malakoplakia is a rare chronic granulomatous disease of unknown prevalence, usually of infectious origin, seen mainly in the urinary tract with just about 700 cases reported worldwide as of 2020.
Aim: We present the 1st case of malakoplakia diagnosed at a secondary health care institution in Edo State, in the Southern part of Nigeria.
Case report: Our patient is a 55-year-old woman who presented to our unit following a referral from the family medicine unit, with a 2-year history of passage of foul-smelling urine, and a nine-month history of recurrent haematuria which was terminal, painful, no clots, no dizziness nor fainting spells. No lithouria, no necroturia, no other lower urinary tract symptoms. Histology of biopsied tumors revealed typical Michaelis Gutmann bodies. A diagnosis of Malakoplakia was made and she was placed on antibiotics which resulted in good recovery with resolution of majority of symptoms.
Conclusion: Although rare, a diagnosis of malakoplakia is still seen in our environment and should be considered as a close differential of bladder tumors.