Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria in a young Nigerian female.

Dyschromatosis universalis hereditaria (DUH) is a clinically heterogeneous disorder that shows generalized mottled pigmentation. It occurs most commonly in Japanese persons, with sporadic reports from South Africa, India, and Iraq. Histopathology reveals a variable degree of pigmentary incontinence. Although the precise etiology of this disorder is not yet known, the clinicopathological findings implicate an inherent abnormality of melanosomes or melanin processing. We describe a case in a young Nigerian girl.

Ichthyosis hystrix Curth-Macklin type in an African girl.

Ichthyosis hystrix Curth-Macklin type is a rare autosomal dominant skin disorder characterized by extensive hyperkeratosis and palmo-plantar keratoderma. It results from heterozygous frameshift mutation in keratin 1 gene (KRT1). Histological features, showing perinuclear vacuolization and binucleated cells, are similar to those of epidermolytic hyperkeratosis except for the absence of epidermolysis. The present report describes the condition in a 16-year-old African girl where available treatment was disappointing.

Ischaemic heart disease in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, Nigeria: a 5 year review.

BACKGROUND: Socio-economic changes and rural urban migration have led to emergence of non-communicable disease including ischaemic heart disease (IHD) and many others. The actual prevalence of IHD in Nigeria is not known. The non communicable disease (NCD) survey sought to determine the prevalence of major risk factors, rather than the prevalence of the disease itself. The prevalence is generally considered low in Nigeria but the current impression about its importance stems mostly from anecdotal reports. We therefore set out to describe the prevalence as well as the spectrum of IHD at Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano. METHOD: Between July 2000 and June 2005, we reviewed the prevalence as well as the spectrum of presentation of IHD in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital. Information was obtained from the medical records of patients in the medical unit of the hospital. Age, sex, diagnosis, risk factors for IHD, other relevant clinical and laboratory data and outcome of patients for myocardial infarction (MI) were extracted from the records. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 10.0 software. RESULTS: There were 5124 medical patients admitted over the period under review, out of which 1347 had cardiovascular diseases. Forty six patients were diagnosed to have IHD giving it a prevalence of 0.9% of medical conditions and 3.4% of all cardiovascular cases. There were 33 males and 13 females (M : F = 2.5:1). Twenty two patients (47.8%) had myocardial infarction, 14 (30.4%) had ischemic cardiomyopathy and 10 (21.7%) had angina. The patients consist of 41 (89.1%) Nigerians, 3 (6.5%) Lebanese, 1 (2.2%) Indian and 1 (2.2%) Pakistani. The risk factors found were Hypertension in 37 (80.4%) of patients, diabetes in 16 (34.8%), and Dyslipidaemia in 20 (43.5%). Others were cigarette smoking and obesity. CONCLUSION: IHD is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in our population. There is need for us to be on the alert and prepare ourselves to manage these cases. Focus should be on preventive cardiology.