Age at menarche and its association with overweight/obesity among adolescents in Kano

Background: There was a dramatic decline of adolescents' menarcheal age worldwide; Africa is witnessing a secular trend of this reducing menarcheal age among its black adolescents. A transition of overweight/obesity among adolescent is believed to be associated with reduced menarcheal age. Materials and Methods: It was a descriptive cross-sectional study that was conducted among female adolescent girls from January to December, 2016. Ethical approval was obtained from the management concerned. All consenting adolescents were recruited for the survey. Information was recorded on a structured, pretested questionnaire. Their respective weight and height were also measured. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated using the formula: BMI = weight (kg)/height (m2). The data obtained were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 18.0 (SPSS Inc., SPSS Statistics for Windows, Chicago, IL, USA). Fishers' exact test was used, and the P ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Two hundred and nineteen female adolescents participated in the survey. The mean age ± SD at menarche was 12.83 ± 1.312 years. The median and modal ages were both 13 years. There was no statistically significant association between the mean age at menarche and the ethnic groups (P(Fishers') = 0.150). However, mean age at menarche was statistically associated with their BMI (P(Fishers') = 0.00). Obesity was associated with reduced menarcheal age. Conclusion: The median and mean ages at menarche were 13.0 and 12.8 years respectively, which were in accordance with secular trend of reduced menarcheal age among black adolescents. Our study also showed an inverse association between the age at menarche and overweight or obesity among adolescents

Cancer of the cervix in unscreened West African women

Background: Cancer of the cervix remains an important health problem amongst women worldwide. Widespread comprehensive cervical cancer control programs have resulted in a marked reduction in the incidence and mortality in most developed countries. Developing countries bear over 80 of the global burden; with only 5 of the global resources for the control of cancer. Majority of the cases in these countries present late and are incurable at the time of diagnosis. Aim: To review the presentation and histopathological types of cervical cancer cases seen in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital Kano; over a sixteen-year period (1995-2010). Materials and Methods: Case records of histopathologically diagnosed cases of cancer of the cervix were retrieved. Demographic data; stage of the tumor at presentation; and histopathologic type were extracted. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: Six hundred and sixty gynecological cancers were seen during the study period; with cancer of the cervix accounting for 58.5 (386/660) cases. Among these cases with cancer of the cervix 71.1 (275/386) were grand multiparous and majority 89.7 346/386 presented with advanced disease. Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) accounted for 86.3 (333/386) of the cancers; adenocarcinoma contributed 12.4;(48/386) and others contributed 1.3(5/386). Conclusion: Cancer of the cervix is the commonest gynecological cancer at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital; Kano; Nigeria. SCC is the commonest histological type