ABSTRACT
Hepcidin is the major controller of systemic iron homeostasis and the role of the kidney in regulating hepcidin level is vital in the whole process of iron and hepcidin relationship. This study was aimed at evaluating serum Hepcidin level among Chronic Kidney Disease subjects accessing Healthcare in BMSH Port Harcourt Metropolis. The study was conducted in Port Harcourt at Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital among 55 CKD subjects and 33 normal individuals making up the control group. Subjects were selected randomly and 5mls of blood was collected in plain bottle using venipuncture technique for laboratory assessment of hepcidin. Hepcidin was assayed using competitive ELISA method. T-test was used to compare the mean difference oh hepcidin between both groups. Result showed that there was a significant difference in hepcidin level between CKD and control groups; 52.00±36.00ng/ml for CKD group and 16.00±13.00ng/ml for control group, p<0.05. This study has shown that CKD has a significant impact in hepcidin level blood and consequently on iron regulation
ABSTRACT
Background: The haemostatic changes that result in thrombophilia during the pregnant state have been linked to pregnancy loss. Objective: Assessment of Protein S, and Protein C assays in pregnancy loss victims in Abia State, South East, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study involving women in their reproductive years. Study population was stratified into 3 groups and the Protein C and Protein S concentrations measured and compared among the three groups. Results: A total of 130 apparently healthy Nigerian women of child-bearing age were enrolled in the study. The study groups consisted of 70 women who had just lost a pregnancy, 30 women with normally progressing pregnancy and 30 nonpregnant women. The protein C concentration for the pregnancy-loss subjects was significantly lower than that of the normal pregnancy at p ? 0.01 while that of Protein S showed non-significance (p > 0.05). Conclusion: Protein C deficiency is associated with increase in pregnancy loss.