Workplace assault and its' impact to service delivery amongst dental professionals at Tertiary Hospitals in Northern Nigeria

Objective: The growing global public health concern of workplace assaults has necessitated that workers' health and safety be given same priority as patient's safety. The study assessed the prevalence of workplace assault and its' impact on service delivery among dental professionals at tertiary hospitals in Northern Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 60 dental professionals working in tertiary hospitals actively involved in undergraduate and postgraduate trainings for dental workforce in Northern Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling technique was used in selection of respondents and participation was voluntary. Data was collected using structured self-administered questionnaire. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 23.0 and p-value ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Ethical approval was received. Results: Sixty percent dentists and 40.0% dental auxiliaries participated in the study. Assault prevalence was 38.3% observed more among dental professionals (44.0%) in their first year in practice. Types of assaults experienced were; non-physical 19 (82.6%) with loud shouting and threats as most frequent, physical 3 (13.0%) with bullying and mobbing most frequent, and combination was 1 (4.4%). Patients (60.9%) and relatives (52.2%) were major culprits, and long appointment (65.2%) and treatment cost (60.9%) were main reasons for assault. Respondents (39.1%) expressed impact on their productivity and 69.6% respondents were ill-prepared to handle it. Conclusion: The prevalence of workplace assaults on dental professionals was fairly high and those in their first year in practice suffer more assault than others. Assault preventive programs should however specifically target this group in consideration with the unique nature and varied needs of each healthcare institutions

Insulin resistance in apparently healthy adult nigerians: association with magnesium status

Magnesium plays a critical role in glucose metabolism and evidences suggest that magnesium deficiency is associated with decreased insulin sensitivity. However, it is likely that these relationships are affected by genetic and environmental factors that can differ among different populations. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of insulin resistance and its association with magnesium status among apparently healthy adult Nigerians. Fasting plasma levels of magnesium, glucose and insulin were determined in 120 apparently healthy adults. Insulin resistance was calculated as HOMA-IR. Prevalence of insulin resistance was estimated and the association between plasma magnesium levels and HOMA-IR was determined. About 19.2% of the study subjects were classified as having insulin resistance. Prevalence was higher among males compared to females (21.0% vs. 17.0%) and among obese compared to normal weight subjects (26.1% vs. 14.9%). Subjects with hypomagnesemia had higher prevalence of insulin resistance compared with subjects who had normal plasma magnesium levels (50.0% vs. 14.4%). Insulin resistance was inversely associated with plasma magnesium level independent of age, gender and BMI. Insulin resistance is relatively common among apparently healthy individuals in this study. Magnesium deficiency was found to be a significant predictor of insulin resistance. We recommend further studies that will investigate whether optimization of magnesium status in general population or among individuals at risk of developing type 2 diabetes will be a useful approach in lowering insulin resistance and prevent or delay onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus in our setting

Serum adiponectin levels in pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus in Zaria, north west Nigeria: a cross sectional study

Background: Adiponectin is an adipocytokine that is exclusively produced by adipocytes with potent insulin-sensitizing property. It has been proposed to be involved in the pathogenesis of gestational diabetes mellitus, but its role is not clear; Findings from studies done across different ethnic groups are often inconsistent. Objectives: The aim of the study was to compare maternal serum adiponectin levels between Nigerian pregnant women with and without gestational diabetes mellitus. Materials And Methods: A cross sectional analytical study including one hundred and sixty nine pregnant women, 85 with gestational diabetes mellitus and 84 with normal gestation, who were evaluated between 24-28 weeks gestation. Diagnosis of gestational diabetes mellitus was made according to the WHO diagnostic criteria. Maternal serum level of adiponectin was measured and compared between pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus and the controls. Results: Mean maternal serum adiponectin level was significantly lower in pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus than in the controls (8.1 ± 1.6 vs. 10.1 ± 2.4 µg/ml, p< 0.05). When 2 2 subjects in the study groups were further categorized in to BMI < 25kg/m and BMI 25 kg/m , maternal serum adiponectin level remained significantly lower in the normal weight pregnant women with gestational diabetes compared to their BMI-matched controls (8.4 ± 1.7 vs. 11.4 ± 2.1 2µg/ml, p< 0.05). Among the overweight pregnant women (BMI 25 kg/m) on the other hand, there was no difference in maternal serum adiponectin level between pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus and the normal controls (7.8 ± 1.5 vs. 8.0 ± 1.1µg/ml, p> 0.05). Conclusion: It is concluded that normal weight Nigerian pregnant women with gestational diabetes mellitus in this study have lower serum adiponectin level compared to the normal weight pregnant women with normal gestation