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The parents of all the subjects were of low socioeconomic status.Trading was taking place during school hours for financial gains of the family. As many as 42.9% of the subjects had completed primary education: 89 (60.5%) had completely dropped out of school for varying periods. Nine girls (6.1%) had been sexually abused and 46 children (32.7%) had at sometime lost their earnings to robbers. Majority (79.6%) aspired to higher education if given the opportunity. Conclusion: Many parents in the low socioeconomic groups still keep their children out of school to work and help boost the family income. It is recommended that legislation be made against children trading during school hours.

BACKGROUND: Vertical transmission of HIV-1 is responsible for a high level of infant mortality necessitating early infant diagnosis. Serologic tests are not useful because of persistence of maternal antibodies in infants. Amplification of the integrated viral genome by PCR is the preferred method of diagnosis of HIV infection in these children. OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of HIV among a cohort of HIV-exposed babies. METHODS: HIV-exposed infants were recruited for DNA PCR (early infant diagnosis). Babies were enrolled from six weeks of age. Relevant data were collected with the aid of a proforma. Mothers were given pre-test counselling. Heel or finger prick samples of blood on Whatman filter paper were used for DNA PCR testing. RESULTS: Data on the initial 304 babies enrolled for DNA PCR were analyzed. Seven (3.6%) of 192 mother-baby pairs who had received requisite prophylactic anti-retrovirals (PARV) were PCR-positive. In 23 (8.7%) PCR-positive babies, their mothers received PARV but the babies had no post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), while two (12.5%) of 16 babies who had received PARV without their mothers turned out PCR-positive. Thirty-nine (53.4%) of 73 mother-baby pairs who had no PARV were infected. Exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) rate was 35.5%. In these babies five (18.5%) were infected, while 288 (75%) of babies were exclusive formula fed (EFF), out of which 11 (4.8%) were infected. Forty-seven (15.5%) of the babies were mixed-fed, and 32 (68.0%) of them were infected. CONCLUSION: Prophylactic ARV in mothers and babies gave a marked reduction in Mother-to-Child-Transmission (MTCT) rate. Feeding BMS conferred a superior protection against (MTCT) than EBF. WAJM 2009; 29(1): 3-7.

Background:Lunch packs play a significant role in the nutritional status and academic performance of school children. Available data show a high prevalence of malnutrition among school-age children.Aims:The aim of this study is to document the nutritional contents of lunch packs of primary school children in Nnewi, Anambra state, Nigeria.Subjects and Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1018 primary 1-6 pupils selected by stratified systematic random sampling from six primary schools, two each of private, – mission, – and government (public) – owned schools in Nnewi metropolis with the aid of the semi-structured questionnaire. Lunch packs of the pupils were examined.Results:Majority of the pupils (77.8% [792/1018]) had lunch packs although about half of pupils in public schools had no lunch pack. Only 12.4% (98/792) and 19.2% (152/792) of pupils with lunch packs had balanced meals and fruits/vegetables in their lunch packs, respectively. The odds of not coming to school with packed lunch was about 13 and 12 times higher for mothers with no formal education or only primary education, respectively, compared with those with tertiary education. Type of school had a strong influence on possession and contents of lunch pack (χ2 = 2.88, P < 0.001, phi coefficient = 0.72). Pupils in private (97.5% [198/203]) and mission (94.4% [388/411]) schools were more likely to have a lunch pack compared with public schools (51.0% [206/404]). However, pupils in private schools were most likely to have a balanced meal (32.5% [66/203] vs. 5.8% [24/411] in mission and 2.0% [8/404] in public schools) and fruits/vegetables (48.3% [98/203] vs. 10.2% [42/411] in mission and 3.0% [12/404] in public schools) in their lunch packs. Mothers’ educational status and parents’ occupation were significantly associated with lunch pack contents.Conclusion:Majority of the lunch packs of primary school pupils contain poor quality food especially in public schools. Mother's educational status and parent's occupation are important determinants of the nutritional contents of lunch packs.