This research mainly aims to develop a generalized cure rate model, estimate the proportion of cured patients and their survival rate, and identify the risk factors associated with infectious diseases. The generalized cure rate model is based on bounded cumulative hazard function, which is a non-mixture model, and is developed using a two-parameter Weibull distribution as the baseline distribution, to estimate the cure rate using maximum likelihood method and real data with R and STATA software. The results showed that the cure rate of tuberculosis (TB) patients was 26.3%, which was higher than that of TB patients coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV; 23.1%). The non-parametric median survival time of TB patients was 51 months, while that of TB patients co-infected with HIV was 33 months. Moreover, no risk factors were associated with TB patients co-infected with HIV, while age was a significant risk factor for TB patients among the suspected risk factors considered. Furthermore, the bounded cumulative hazard function was extended to accommodate infectious diseases with co-infections by deriving an appropriate probability density function, determining the distribution, and using real data. Governments and related health authorities are also encouraged to take appropriate actions to combat infectious diseases with possible co-infections.

Objective: The effects of low doses of hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) and amiloride in a fixed-combination formulation on blood pressure (BP), serum K⁺ and diabetic control were assessed in 11 adult Nigerians with hypertension and type 2 diabetes for 12 weeks. Methods: The study included concurrent exposure to 75 mg of aspirin daily by mouth and dietary advice not to add table salt to regular meals, initiated 4 weeks prior to HCTZ therapy. Results: The addition of 12.5 mg of HCTZ resulted in a significantly lower BP, which was evident within 4 weeks. There was no significant variation in serum K⁺, Na⁺, creatinine or body weight or the need to alter the dose of hypoglycaemic agents. An initial rise in fasting blood sugar (FBS) after 4 weeks of HCTZ therapy was evident but subsequent rises were not significantly different to the initial rise in FBS observed at week 4. Conclusions: These observations are preliminary and would need longer-term follow-up and treatment of a larger number of patients for confirmation, but they do have the potential to lead to a cheaper and safer therapeutic approach to effective control of BP in diabetic Nigerians with hypertension.

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SummaryAn agreement index among more than two raters who employ ordinal classification is proposed here as an extension of the agreement index set up to consider such agreement between two raters RB outlined by (JOLAYEMI, Biom. J. 32 (1990). 87-93). The method of application is outlined using a clinical diagnosis involving seven pathologists.

AbstractsIn some categorical tables, one of the classifying variables may be at least ordinal (ran ked) arising fro m a follow-up o r any similar study. The other classifying variab le(s) may be that which separates the population into groups using variables such as gender, race or location, or a co mbination of some of them. The counts obtained this way are analyzed recognizing that one of the variables is nearly metric and must be used and interpretation becomes easier when appropriate model is fitted to the arising product multino mial. An examp le o f such an approach is provided using the data fro m Tuberculosis Management in a Teaching Hospital. We observed that the recovery rate of females was faster than their males counterpart on the assumption that those discharged through management system follows an exponential distribution.