Traumatic brain injuries in children: a hospital-based study in Nigeria

The most frequent computed tomography finding was intracerebral haemorrhage. Mean duration of hospitalization was 18 days (median 11 days). Eleven patients died; mortality correlating well with severity and the presence of intracerebral haematoma. Conclusion: Head injuries in children are due to motor vehicle and motor vehicle-related accidents. Hence; rational priorities for prevention of head injuries in children should include prevention of vehicular; especially pedestrian; accidents in developing countries.Background: Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Our previous studies showed a high frequency of motor vehicle accidents among neurosurgical patients. However; there is a dearth of data on head injuries in children in Nigeria. Aims: To determine the epidemiology of paediatric traumatic brain injuries. Setting and Design: This is a prospective analysis of paediatric head trauma at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital; a major referral centre for all traumatic brain injuries in Nigeria between October 2006 and September 2011. Materials and Methods: We studied the demographic; clinical and radiological data and treatment outcomes. Data was analysed using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) 16.0. Results: We managed 127 cases of paediatric head injuries; 65 boys and 62 girls representing 13 of all head injuries managed over the 5-year period. They were aged 3 months to 17 years. The mean age was 7.4 years (median 7 years) with peak incidence occurring at 6-8 years i.e. 31 (24.4) cases. Motor vehicle accidents resulted in 67.7; falls 14 and violence 7

Beta thalassaemiatriat in Western Nigeria

Background: Genes for thalassaemia; haemoglobin S; Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase which confer resistance to malaria are found in high frequencies in Nigeria; 25of the population being carriers of the sickle cell trait while another 25are hemizygous for the G6PD gene. The frequency of alpha thalassaemia is equally high among Nigerians but there is little information on beta thalassaemia in this population. A recent study however suggest a high prevalence of beta thalassaemia in the same population; hence the need for this study. Methods: Haemoglobin A2 and HbF were determined in healthy adults who have haemoglobin A genotype by elution after electrophoresis and alkaline denaturation methods respectively. Results: The mean HbA2 among the subjects was 3.3(range 2.0-5.6) while the mean HbF was 2.6(range 0.4-8.8). Twenty-six percent of the subjects had HbA2 values higher than 3.9while 86had HbF values greater than 1; twenty-four percent had elevated HbA2 and HbF. The mean HbA2 value was 2.7among those with HbF 1; 3.6among those with HbF 1-3and 3.1among those with HbF 3. Conclusion: These findings confirm that the frequency of beta thalassaemia in western Nigeria is higher than previously thought and that many of the individuals studied may be silent carriers of the beta thalassaemia trait. Its presence may also have been masked by the high prevalence of alpha thalassaemia in the same environment. It is therefore important to consider beta thalassaemia trait as a differential diagnosis in patients who present with haemolytic anaemia in this environment