RESUMO
Background: Nomadic pastoralists lack access to basic sanitary and health-care facilities mainly because their mode of life makes them a hard to reach group. In the Nigerian context, there is dearth of knowledge about the interplay between their lifestyle and health indices.Therefore, this study is aimed at determining the association between the prevalence of parasitic infestation among nomadic Fulani children in Ladduga grazing reserve, Kaduna, Northwestern Nigeria. Aim: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and pattern of parasitic infestation among nomadic Fulani children in Ladduga grazing reserve, Kaduna, Northwestern Nigeria. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted using questionnaires, physical examination, automated hemocytometry, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay-based serum ferritin assay, and formol-ether concentration-based stool tests on 337 children (515 years) at Ladduga grazing reserve, Northwestern Nigeria. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: The prevalence of parasitic infestation was 14.4% (49/337). The predominant parasites found were hookworm species, i.e., Necator americanus and Ancylostoma duodenale (46.9%) and Schistosoma mansoni (26.6%) while Ascaris lumbricoides, Hymenolepis nana, and Enterobius vermicularis accounted for 26.6%. Anemia was found in 40.4% (137/340) of the children with a statistically significant difference between younger (59 years) and older children (1015 years; P < 0.05). Of those with parasites in the stools, 53% of children had anemia. Iron deficiency anemia was found in only 8.1% (4/49) of children. Conclusion: The prevalence of anemia was high in the studied population, but iron deficiency was not a major cause despite hookworm infestation, thus necessitating the need for further studies to identify other causes of anemia among this group
Assuntos
Criança , Nigéria , Doenças Parasitárias , MigrantesRESUMO
Background: Stroke is a major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide and primary prevention, through adequate knowledge of its risk factors and attendant risk factor control/modification, remains the best solution. This study assessed knowledge of stroke risk factors among individuals diagnosed with two of the most common modifiable risk factors of stroke namely hypertension and diabetes. Methods: A consecutive sample of 200 clients diagnosed with hypertension and/or diabetes was recruited into this cross-sectional survey from a university teaching hospital in northern Nigeria between January and March 2011. Clinical, socio-demographic, and knowledge of stroke risk factors data were obtained through face-to-face interview using researcher-developed questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were utilized to identify level of knowledge and its associations with socio-demographic and clinical characteristics of the participants. Results: Mean (SD) age of the participants was 49.69 (16.27) years, with more female participants (55.5%) and those diagnosed with hypertension (40.5%). Majority (85%) of the participants knew at least one risk factor and the most commonly known risk factor was hypertension (80%) while family history of stroke (0.5%) and transient ischaemic attack (0.5%) were the least known risk factors. Only diagnosis (P<0.01) and level of educational attainment (P<0.05) had significant associations with knowledge of stroke risk factors with those diagnosed with diabetes (96.3%) and those who had tertiary education (93.1%) being more knowledgeable. Regarding specific risk factors, 64.3% of those with hypertension and 56.8% of those with diabetes respectively identified their conditions as risk factors of stroke. Conclusion: Although a substantial majority of participants in the study knew at least one stroke risk factor, knowledge of some specific risk factors was poor while a little above half of the participants identified their conditions as risk factors for stroke. Effective stroke risk factor awareness and educational strategies are therefore required.