Impact of diabetes mellitus on sexuality in a developing country setting: A case-control study in Calabar, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to identify the unmet sexual health needs of the patients with diabetes seen in a tertiary healthcare facility in Nigeria. METHODS: Case-control study design and random sampling method were utilized to recruit type 2 diabetic cases from the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar, Nigeria. Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) and International Index for Erectile Function (IIEF) were used to assess sexual function. RESULT: There were 330 subjects with the mean age of 54.9 years. Among females, the FSFI score was lower among cases compared with controls (18.8 vs. 23.1, P < 0.05). Except for sexual interest, mean scores for all other domains of sexual function were also lower among cases (P < 0.05). Among males, there was no significant difference in overall mean IIEF score comparing cases and controls (40.0 vs. 41.7, P > 0.05). However, mean scores for desire and satisfaction was lower among cases compared with controls (P < 0.05). Older age, unmarried status, presence and duration of hypertension were associated with sexual dysfunction among females. The use of supplements was associated with sexual dysfunction among males (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Sexual dysfunction is common among diabetics with variation in affected domains in both genders in the study setting. These unmet sexual health needs focus to be addressed.

Deriving an optimal threshold of waist circumference for detecting cardiometabolic risk in sub-Saharan Africa.

BACKGROUND: Waist circumference (WC) thresholds derived from western populations continue to be used in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) despite increasing evidence of ethnic variation in the association between adiposity and cardiometabolic disease and availability of data from African populations. We aimed to derive a SSA-specific optimal WC cut-point for identifying individuals at increased cardiometabolic risk. METHODS: We used individual level cross-sectional data on 24 181 participants aged ⩾15 years from 17 studies conducted between 1990 and 2014 in eight countries in SSA. Receiver operating characteristic curves were used to derive optimal WC cut-points for detecting the presence of at least two components of metabolic syndrome (MS), excluding WC. RESULTS: The optimal WC cut-point was 81.2 cm (95% CI 78.5-83.8 cm) and 81.0 cm (95% CI 79.2-82.8 cm) for men and women, respectively, with comparable accuracy in men and women. Sensitivity was higher in women (64%, 95% CI 63-65) than in men (53%, 95% CI 51-55), and increased with the prevalence of obesity. Having WC above the derived cut-point was associated with a twofold probability of having at least two components of MS (age-adjusted odds ratio 2.6, 95% CI 2.4-2.9, for men and 2.2, 95% CI 2.0-2.3, for women). CONCLUSION: The optimal WC cut-point for identifying men at increased cardiometabolic risk is lower (⩾81.2 cm) than current guidelines (⩾94.0 cm) recommend, and similar to that in women in SSA. Prospective studies are needed to confirm these cut-points based on cardiometabolic outcomes.International Journal of Obesity advance online publication, 31 October 2017; doi:10.1038/ijo.2017.240.

Obesity; overweight; and underweight among urban Nigerians

Background: Disease burden from communicable and noncommunicable diseases is a significant health challenge facing many developing nations. Among the noncommunicable diseases; is obesity; which has become a global epidemic associated with urbanization. Objective: The aim was to evaluate the prevalence of weight abnormalities; their pattern of distribution and regional differences among apparently healthy urban dwelling Nigerians. Methods: A cross-sectional community-based descriptive survey was carried out in five urban cities; each from one geo-political zone of Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedures were used to select participants using the World Health Organization STEPS instrument. Ethical approval and consents were duly and respectively obtained from the Ethics Committee in the tertiary centers and participants in each of these cities. Analysis was performed using SPSS version 20 (IBM Corp.; Amonk; NY; released 2011) with P value set at 0.05. Results: A total of 5392 participants were recruited; of which; 54.5 and 45.5 were males and females respectively. Mean (standard deviation) age and body mass index (BMI) were 40.6 (14.3) years and 25.3 (5.1) kg/m 2 . Obesity; overweight; and underweight were found in 17; 31; and 5 of participants respectively. Significantly; while underweight declined with increasing age; overweight; and obesity increased to peak in the middle age brackets. Age of ? 40 years was found to confer about twice the risk of becoming overweight. The prevalence of obesity and mean BMI were significantly higher both among the females and the participants from southern zones. Conclusion: Obesity and overweight are common in our urban dwellers with accompanying regional differences. Attainment of middle age increases the likelihood of urban dwelling Nigerians to become overweight/obese. There is therefore the need to institute measures that will check development of overweight/obesity early enough; while improving the nutritional status of the few who may still be undernourished

Prevalence of dysglycemia in Calabar: a cross-sectional observational study among residents of Calabar, Nigeria.

OBJECTIVE: Population data on dysglycemia are scarce in West Africa. This study aimed to determine the pattern of dysglycemia in Calabar city in South East Nigeria. DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional observational study. METHODS: 1134 adults in Calabar were recruited. A multistage sampling method randomly selected 4 out of 22 wards, and 50 households from each ward. All adults within each household were recruited and an oral glucose tolerance test was performed. Dysglycemia was defined as any form of glucose intolerance, including: impaired fasting glucose (blood glucose level 110-125 mg/dL), impaired glucose tolerance (blood glucose level ≥140 mg/dL 2 h after consuming 75 g of glucose), or diabetes mellitus (DM), as defined by fasting glucose level ≥126 mg/dL, or a blood glucose level ≥200 mg/dL, 2 h after a 75 g glucose load. RESULTS: Mean values of fasting plasma glucose were 95 mg/dL (95% CI 92.1 to 97.5) for men and 96 mg/dL (95% CI 93.2 to 98.6) for women. The overall prevalence of dysglycemia was 24%. The prevalence of impaired fasting glucose was 9%, the prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance 20%, and the prevalence of undiagnosed DM 7%. All values were a few percentage points higher for men than women. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of undiagnosed DM among residents of Calabar is similar to studies elsewhere in Nigeria but much higher than the previous national prevalence survey, with close to a quarter of the adults having dysglycemia and 7% having undiagnosed DM. This is a serious public health problem requiring a programme of mass education and case identification and management in all health facilities. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRS/MH/CR-HREC/020/Vol.8/43.

Obesity, overweight, and underweight among urban Nigerians.

BACKGROUND: Disease burden from communicable and noncommunicable diseases is a significant health challenge facing many developing nations. Among the noncommunicable diseases, is obesity, which has become a global epidemic associated with urbanization. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to evaluate the prevalence of weight abnormalities, their pattern of distribution and regional differences among apparently healthy urban dwelling Nigerians. METHODS: A cross-sectional community-based descriptive survey was carried out in five urban cities, each from one geo-political zone of Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedures were used to select participants using the World Health Organization STEPS instrument. Ethical approval and consents were duly and respectively obtained from the Ethics Committee in the tertiary centers and participants in each of these cities. Analysis was performed using SPSS version 20 (IBM Corp., Amonk, NY; released 2011) with P value set at < 0.05. RESULTS: A total of 5392 participants were recruited; of which, 54.5% and 45.5% were males and females respectively. Mean (standard deviation) age and body mass index (BMI) were 40.6 (14.3) years and 25.3 (5.1) kg/m 2 . Obesity, overweight, and underweight were found in 17%, 31%, and 5% of participants respectively. Significantly, while underweight declined with increasing age, overweight, and obesity increased to peak in the middle age brackets. Age of ≥ 40 years was found to confer about twice the risk of becoming overweight. The prevalence of obesity and mean BMI were significantly higher both among the females and the participants from southern zones. CONCLUSION: Obesity and overweight are common in our urban dwellers with accompanying regional differences. Attainment of middle age increases the likelihood of urban dwelling Nigerians to become overweight/obese. There is therefore the need to institute measures that will check development of overweight/obesity early enough, while improving the nutritional status of the few who may still be undernourished.