Time-to-survival from COVID-19 disease and its associated factors in Osun State, Nigeria.

Introduction This study focused on estimating the probability of survival and the specific time to survival from COVID-19 among patients who had COVID-19 in Osun state, Nigeria. Also, we examined some factors associated with the time to survival among COVID-19 patients in Osun state, Nigeria. Methods The retrospective data of 2596 records of COVID-19 patients in Osun state were analysed in this study. The outcome variable was the "COVID-19 treatment outcome (survived=1, dead=0)". The time date used in the survival analysis was treatment duration (in days). The explanatory variables were demographic characteristics, type of health facility, vaccination status, symptoms, and mode of admission. The descriptive statistics was computed and presented. Kaplan Meier was used to estimate the median time to survival. Bivariate analysis and multivariate analysis were done using the Log-Rank test and Cox regression, respectively. P values were set at P<0.05. Results The mean age was observed to be 40 (SD=17.51) years, ranging from mostly, 2 months to 98 years old. More (56.1%) of the participants were males. Most (99.5%) of them were Nigerians. Only 1.4% were vaccinated. The survival rate from COVID-19 was 98.1% in Osun State. The median time for survival was 14 (IQR= 14- 16) days. COVID-19 reduces as the number of days for being on treatment increases. Unvaccinated (HR=0.93, 95%CI: 0.43-2.03) and those whose vaccination status was unknown (HR=0.52, 95%CI: 0.37-0.74) were less likely to survive COVID-19 diseases. Conclusion The Survival rate was high, the observed median time to survival was 14 days, and the probability of survival reduces as the number of days of being on treatment for COVID-19 increases. Also, gender, vaccination, type of care, and ethnicity were associated with survival time. Similarly, unvaccinated and inpatients were less likely to rapidly survive COVID-19. This study recommends that the COVID-19 vaccine should be encouraged among patients who have the COVID-19 virus. Also, home care may be further explored to assess its effectiveness in caring for COVID-19 patients. In the same vein, COVID-19 data capturing, and databases need strengthening in Nigeria.

Multidrug Resistance of Acinetobacter Baumannii in Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital, Osogbo, Nigeria.

Acinetobacter baumannii is a ubiquitous pathogen that has emerged as a major cause of healthcare-associated infections at Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital. Isolates were assayed according to standard protocol. The isolates were subjected to molecular techniques to detect blaOXA, blaTEM, blaCTX-M, and blaSHV genes in strains of the A. baumannii isolates. The prevalence of A. baumannii was 8.5% and was most prevalent among patients in the age group 51-60 (36%); the male patients (63.6%) were more infected than their female counterparts. Patients (72.7%) in the intensive care unit (ICU) were most infected with this organism. The isolates showed 100% resistance to both amikacin and ciprofloxacin and 90.9% to both ceftriaxone and ceftazidime, while resistance to the other antibiotics used in this study were: piperacillin (81.8%), imipenem (72.7%), gentamycin (72.2%), and meropenem (63.6%). None of the isolates was, however, resistant to colistin. PCR results showed that blaOXA, blaTEM, and blaCTX-M genes were positive in some isolates, while blaSHV was not detected in any of the isolates. This study has revealed that the strains of A. baumannii isolated are multiple drug resistant. Regular monitoring, judicious prescription, and early detection of resistance to these antibiotics are, therefore, necessary to check further dissemination of the organism.

Detection of bacteriuria among human immunodeficiency virus seropositive individuals in Osogbo, south-western Nigeria.

Human immunodeficiency virus-positive individuals are at increased risk of both asymptomatic and symptomatic urinary tract infections. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) in HIV-positive individuals, its associated factors including any correlation with the CD4 count of the patient, and the antibiotic susceptibility pattern of the isolated organisms. Midstream urine and blood samples were collected from 242 consenting HIV-positive patients who were attending routine follow-up clinic during the six-month period of the study. Microscopy, culture, and antibiotic susceptibility testing of the samples were carried out following standard protocols, and CD4 counts were also determined. Fifty one (21.1%) of the 242 individuals had significant bacteriuria. The predominant organism was Klebsiella spp. (35%) followed by Escherichia coli (31%). Prevalence of bacteriuria was higher in the women. Low CD4 counts and young age were significantly associated with the presence of bacteriuria. ASB prevalence is high in this population and related to the CD4 count level.

Prevalence of tet genes mediating tetracycline resistance in Escherichia coli clinical isolates in Osun State, Nigeria.

The occurrence of tetracycline resistance determinants in 203 Escherichia coli isolates recovered from clinical samples at three different hospitals in Nigeria between June 2009 and May 2010 was investigated. The isolates were subjected to standard procedures. Antibiotic susceptibility to a panel of eight antibiotics was also performed, and resistance genes were detected with the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. One hundred and six E. coli isolates (52.2%) were obtained at LAUTECH Teaching Hospital Osogbo, 85 (41.9%) from OAUTHC Ile Ife and 12 (5.9%) from Osun State Hospital Asubiaro Osogbo. Result of the disk diffusion antibiotic susceptibility test showed 96.1% isolates to be resistant to ampicillin, 77.8% to tetracycline, 37.9% to cotrimoxazole, 38.4% to nalidixic acid, 20.7% to ofloxacin, 17.7% to ceftriaxone, 11.8% to gentamycin, and 2% to nitrofurantoin. One hundred and sixty two (79.9%) isolates had minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of tetracycline ≥ 128 µg/ml. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detected tetA gene in 89 (43.8%) isolates, tetB gene in 65 (32.0%), and both tetA and tetB genes in 9 (4.4%) isolates. The study demonstrated a relatively high level of gene mediated antibiotic resistance to tetracycline and other antibiotics in E. coli clinical isolates in Southwest region of Nigeria.

Plasmid-mediated fluoroquinolone-resistance QnrA and QnrB genes among Escherichia coli from cattle in Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria.

OBJECTIVE: This is to investigate the implication of fluoroquinolone usage in veterinary practice and the food chain system. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Five hundred isolates of commensal E coli were recovered from the faeces of apparently healthy cattle in Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria. The susceptibility of the bacteria was tested using standard laboratory procedures. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was carried out to detect the presence of qnrA and qnrB genes, which were selected on the basis of their fluoroquinolone-resistant patterns. RESULTS: The agar disc diffusion technique revealed that the representative isolates showed multiple fluoroquinolone-resistance and this formed the basis for their selection for PCR amplification. The PCR revealed that ten of the 17 quinolone-resistant representative isolates showed distinct bands which are specific for the qnrB gene; in addition, only one strain of the 20 representative isolates of commensal E coli carried plasmids on which the qnrA gene was detected. CONCLUSION: This study has confirmed that plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance is a possible mechanism among the fluoroquinolone-resistant commensal E coli isolated from faeces of apparently healthy cattle in the study location.

Widal agglutination titres in the diagnosis of typhoid fever.

BACKGROUND: Typhoid fever has continued to pose considerable health problems world-wide. This problem is made worse by misdiagnosis through the use of a single pretreatment Widal agglutination test in may developing countries. OBJECTIVE: This is to enable us establish the appropriate titres suitable for a reliable diagnosis of typhoid fever in our environment. METHODS: A total of 300 subjects were recruited into the study comprising 260 apparently healthy individuals aged 12 years and above and 40 patients with typhoid fever confirmed by isolation of S. typhi from blood and/or stool. The Widal slide agglutination test method was first used to screen subjects. Serum samples showing agglutination were then serially diluted with 0.85% saline from 1/40 to 1/1280 and subjected to tube dilution. RESULTS: Thirty-six (13.8%) of the healthy subjects had S. typhi 'O' agglutinin and 48(18.5%) had 'H' agglutinin in their serum while 37(92.5%) of patients with culture-confirmed typhoid fever had 'O' agglutinin and 38(95.0%) had 'H' agglutinin. At a cut-off titre of 'O' agglutinin = 80, the diagnostic sensitivity and specificity were 90% and 87.3%, and for 'H' agglutinin = 80, the sensitivity and specificity are 90% and 88.5% respectively. The predictive value of a positive test at 'O' = 80 is 52.2% and of a negative test is 98.3% while the positive predictive value of 'H' = 80 is 54.6% and negative predictive value is 98.3%. CONCLUSION: Because of the difficulties in isolating S. typhi from blood, stool or other body fluids in developing countries, a diagnostic Widal agglutination titre of 'O' and 'H' agglutinins = 80 will be considered useful in the diagnosis of typhoid fever in our environment.

Prevalence and transmission pattern of Plasmodium falciparum infection in Osogbo metropolis, southwest, Nigeria.

Plasmodium falciparum malaria is an endemic disease especially in tropical areas with heavy rainfall that spread round the year. We therefore sought to investigate the prevalence pattern and clinical presentation of falciparum malaria in Oso degrees c were assessed and screened for plasmodium falciparum infection by clinical assessment and microscopy using both thick and thin blood smears over a period of 12 months- August 2004 and July 2005. The prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum infection was found to be 52.8% with 341/646 of the patients been positive for Plasmodium falciparum parasite based on microscopy. Three hundred and five (47.2%) were aparasitaemic of which 162 (25.1%) had bronchopneumonia, 99 (15.3%) had upper respiratory tract infection, 32 (5.0%) had gastroenteritis and 12 (1.9%) had Otitis media. Between August and November 2004, 250 patients were screened and 160 (57.6%) of these patients were positive, while 180 patients were screened between December 2004 and March 2005 and 51 (28.3%) were positive. Between April 2005 and July 2005, 216 patients were screened and 130 (60.2%) of the patients were positive. When compared, the differences in the percentage of patients with positive microscopy in December to March with April to July and August to November were found to be significant (P < 0.0001), whereas the percentage difference in patients with positive microscopy in August to November and April to July was not significant (P = 0.442). The result of this study clearly shows that there are two distinct peaks of malaria transmission pattern in consonance with the rainfall pattern in the area.

Clinical and microbiological profiles of ear infections in Osogbo, Nigeria.

Despite the fact that discharging ears (DE) are one of the most common presentations to ear, nose and throat (ENT) clinics in the tropics, few reports have documented the aetiologic agents involved. The pathogenesis is therefore not fully understood and treatment remains controversial. We present in this report the microbiological characteristics of DE over a 3-year-period at the ENT clinic of Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital, Osogbo, Southwest Nigeria.

Rabies and antirabies immunization in South Western Nigeria: knowledge, attitude and practice.

Factors responsible for the continued endemicity of rabies in Nigeria were determined by carrying out a knowledge, attitude and practice study among residents of Osun State. Structured questionnaires were administered to 679 individuals comprising students, traders and civil servants. Only 33.4% of the respondents knew rabies could be prevented by vaccination, while 38.7% believed that the infection could be treated with herbs. Of the 387 victims of dog bite, 240 (62%) never sought prophylactic postexposure treatment. Of the 10 people who received postexposure treatment, only one received the appropriate treatment consisting of washing, disinfection of wounds, tetanus toxoid and complete antirabies immunization.