Ms. Saivish is a biomedical researcher in the Laboratory of Virology of the Federal University of Goiás-Jataí Regional. Her area of interest is the development of viral diagnostic methods for emergent arboviruses and hantavirus.

Introduction psychoactive substance use (PSU) is a patterned use of a drug in which the user consumes the substance in amounts or methods which are harmful to themselves or others. Psychoactive substance use takes a considerable toll on financial status, academic achievement and health status of addicts. In Nigeria, PSU is on the increase, one of the most disturbing health-related problems and a leading cause of premature death among school aged population worldwide. We therefore, determined the knowledge of health effects and determinants of psychoactive substance use among secondary school students in Sokoto Metropolis, Nigeria. Methods we conducted a cross-sectional study among 430 secondary school students that were selected using multistage sampling in Sokoto, Northwestern, Nigeria from April to May 2019. We collected data using a semi-structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire. We calculated proportions and adjusted odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) in a binary logistic regression model. Results knowledge of health effects of PSU was good in 38.1% of the respondents with a mean score of 19.6 ± 10.0. The overall prevalence of PSU was high among current users (16.3%), male participants (78.6%) and those aged 17-years or more (68.6%). Independent predictors of current use of psychoactive substances were poor knowledge of health effects (aOR: 4.1, 95% CI: 1.7-10.0) and father´s use of psychoactive substances (aOR: 10.3, 95% CI= 1.9-57.1). Conclusion knowledge of health effects of psychoactive substances was generally poor among the participants with an associated high prevalence among current users. Poor knowledge of its health effects determines the use of psychoactive substances. We conducted awareness campaigns and health talk on health effects of PSU to secondary school students in the State. The Federal Ministry of Education should ensure that PSU-related topics are incorporated in the secondary school curriculum.

Introduction: Cerebro-Spinal Meningitis (CSM) is an acute illness affecting surrounding layers of the brain and spinal cord, mostly caused by bacterial infection. The disease is responsible for the occurrence of epidemic meningitis in the African Meningitic belt. For many years, this region has experienced a large serogroup A epidemic every 7-10 years. A sharp decrease in the number of reported cases was demonstrated in countries where Men Afrivac has been introduced. However, serogroup replacement with serotype C was noted in the region, which has posed a serious threat to eliminating CSM epidemics. We describe the characteristics of cerebrospinal meningitis cases in the 2017 outbreak in Sokoto state, Nigeria. Methodology: We obtained CSM data from the state epidemiology unit from 7th February to 24th May 2017. We extracted data on demographic characteristics, clinical features, case management and outcome of cases. We used Microsoft Excel and SPSS to analyze the data for proportions, cross-tabulations and chi-square test to find associations between variables. Results: A total of 4969 CSM cases were recorded, with 283 deaths (case fatality rate: 5.7%). The cumulative attack rate was 96.4/ 100,000 populations. The highest proportion of cases was among ≥ the 15-year age group 2063(41.5%), and males were more affected, 2843(57.2%). Of the total 4969 suspected CSM cases, specimens were collected for only 225 (4.4%) cases, of which 58 (25.8%) were positive. Most 48 (82.8%) of the positive specimen were of NmC serotype. Only age was found to predict outcome (aOR: 1.52; 95% CI= 1.18 – 1.97). Conclusion: Sokoto State outbreak of Cerebro-spinal meningitis in 2017 was huge and largely caused by NmC. Those aged less than 15 years might be at higher risk of dying from CSM and we therefore recommend that specific preventive interventions such as vaccination and awareness creation should target this age group.