African health sciences
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African health sciences · Sep 2016
Randomized Controlled TrialEfficacy of early skin-to-skin contact on the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in term neonates: a randomized controlled trial.
Despite multiple benefits of breast milk, the rates of exclusive breastfeeding in developing countries are low. ⋯ Early SSC significantly improved the rate of exclusively breastfeeding at 6 weeks of age among healthy term neonates. An important additional effect was a decrease in the amount of pain that mothers in the SSC group experienced during episiotomy repair.
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African health sciences · Sep 2016
Randomized Controlled TrialTreadmill walking exercise modulates bone mineral status and inflammatory cytokines in obese asthmatic patients with long term intake of corticosteroids.
Obesity and asthma are an important public health problem in Saudi Arabia. An increasing body of data supports the hypothesis that obesity is a risk factor for asthma. Asthma appears to be associated with low bone mineral density (BMD) due to long-term use of corticosteroids. Studies recently showed that weight bearing exercise training can increase mineral bone density, reduce weight and improve metabolic control. ⋯ Treadmill walking exercise training is an effective treatment policy to improve bone mineral status and modulates inflammatory cytokines and blood lipids profile in obese asthmatic patients with long term intake of corticosteroids.
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African health sciences · Sep 2016
Stroke in patients with diabetes mellitus: a study from North Western Nigeria.
Stroke is one of the major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide and apart from being exceedingly harmful in diabetics, stroke is a disabling disorder. The study was undertaken to describe the clinical characteristics, outcome pattern and predictors of mortality in a cohort of diabetic patients presenting with stroke in two tertiary health facilities in North Western Nigeria. ⋯ In DM patients studied, infarctive stroke was more common, case fatality was 30.6%. Male gender, past history of TIA, abnormal respiratory pattern, hemorrhagic stroke, aspiration pneumonitis, and worsening Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) were associated with mortality. Aspiration pneumonitis and worsening GCS were independent predictors of one month mortality of stroke in diabetic patients.
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African health sciences · Sep 2016
Sero-prevalence and associated factors of Helicobacter pylori infection among adult patients with dyspepsia attending the gastroenterology unit in a tertiary hospital in Mwanza, Tanzania.
Prevalence of H.pylori infection varies greatly between populations in different countries. This study was conducted to determine the magnitude of H.pylori among adult patients with dyspepsia attending the gastroenterology unit at Bugando medical centre. ⋯ The seroprevalence of H.pylori among dyspeptic patients is high in this setting. Therefore the community in Mwanza should be educated on the use of safe drinking water in order to minimize H. pylori infections.
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African health sciences · Sep 2016
Determinants of alcohol use and khat chewing among Hawassa University students, Ethiopia: a cross sectional study.
Students' alcohol and khat use have been associated with various health related problems. However, its magnitude and associated factors among Ethiopian students are not yet well documented. ⋯ The proportion of student's khat chewing and alcohol use was significant. Hence, higher education in collaboration with other stakeholders should work on convincing students about the ill effects of these substances.