Hb concentration determined by the portable testing system is comparable with that determined by the haematology analyser. We recommend its use as a point-of-care device for determining Hb concentration of SCD children in resource-poor settings where haematology analysers are not available.

Background Neonatal Tetanus (NNT) is a vaccine preventable disease of public health importance. It is still being encountered in clinical practice largely in developing countries including Nigeria. NNT results from unhygienic delivery practices and some harmful traditional cord care practices. The easiest, quickest and most cost-effective preventive measure against NNT is vaccination of the pregnant women with the tetanus toxoid (TT) vaccine. The case-fatality rate from tetanus in resource-constrained settings can be close to 100% but can be reduced to 50% if access to basic medical care with adequate number of experienced staff is available. Materials and methods This retrospective study reviewed the admissions into the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) of the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado-Ekiti from January 2011 to December 2020. The folders were retrieved from the records department of the hospital; Information obtained from folders were entered into a designed proforma for the study. Results During the study period, NNT constituted 0.34% of all neonatal admissions with case fatality rate of 52.6%. Seven [36.8%] of the babies were delivered at Mission home/Traditional Birth Attendant’s place while 5 [26.3%] were delivered in private hospitals. Cord care was with hot water compress in most of these babies16 [48.5%] while only 9% of the mothers cleaned the cord with methylated spirit. Age at presentation of less than one week was significantly associated with mortality, same with presence of autonomic dysfunction. Low family socio-economic class 5 was significantly associated with poor outcome, so also maternal age above 24 years. Conclusion This study revealed that neonatal tetanus is still being seen in our clinical practice with poor outcome and the risk factors are the same as of old. Increased public health campaign, promotion of clean deliveries, safe cord care practices, affordable and accessible health care provision are recommended to combat NNT scourge.

Vitamin A supplementation program where single high-dose vitamin A supplements are provided to the qualified (infants and children) at regular intervals is operational in Nigeria as a public health initiative to control vitamin A deficiency which is prevalent in our country in accordance with the WHO recommendations. Reports of symptomatic acute hypervitaminosis A are scarce. We report a case of acute hypervitaminosis A resulting from accidental ingestion of vitamin A supplement capsules. This is to reiterate the need for caregivers to keep drugs out of the reach of children. Clinicians should also have a high index of suspicion.

Introduction: Living conditions in most rural African communities favour malaria transmission and threaten global eradication. Prevention strategies and interventions such as the use of bed nets have reduced the prevalence of malaria. This study described the various methods employed to prevent malaria and their effects on malaria parasite prevalence among children living in a rural community in Nigeria. Methodology: A community-based cross-sectional study conducted among 357 children aged 1–15 years, in a Nigerian rural community. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 25. Chi-squared test of association with a level of significance of p < 0.050 was used. Results: Only 110 (30.8%) participants owned mosquito nets. Mostly those from the high social class (45; 40.9%) used the nets, and these were mostly ‘under-five’ children. Thirty-six (10.1%) were routinely given antimalarial drugs for malaria prophylaxis. Also, 102 (28.6%), 151 (42.3%), 278 (77.9%), 99 (27.7%) and 15 (5.0%) children used insecticides, local herbs, window nets, outlet door nets and mosquito repellent creams respectively. None of the methods employed to prevent malaria had statistically significant effect on malaria parasite prevalence among participants (p > 0.050). Conclusions: Malaria prevention methods were mostly practiced by participants of the high social class while children under-five considerably used mosquito nets. This study highlights the need to address the socio-demographic imbalance regarding malaria preventive measures in the community where the study was conducted. There is also a need to regulate the use of antimalarial drugs for malaria prophylaxis in the rural community. These suggest that the current malaria prevention methods in the community be reviewed.

Background The World Health Organization prioritizes malaria surveillance for accurate tracking of progress of intervention programmes. The malaria parasite rate (PR) and spleen rate (SR) are economical surveillance tools. There has been a global decline in the burden of malaria over the last decade, but most African countries, like Nigeria, have a slow rate of decline. There is a need for adequate malaria surveillance to guide malaria control strategies and policymaking. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 363 children ages 1–15 y in rural southwest Nigeria. The participants’ PR was determined by microscopy and the SR was determined by palpation and ultrasonography. The associations between PR and SR and other covariates were assessed. Results The PR was 26.7% and the SR was 12.9%. There was no significant association between PR or SR across age groups, but low social class was significantly associated with PR (55 [33.5%], p=0.004) and SR (29 [17.3%], p=0.013). The odds of having splenomegaly doubled with malaria parasitaemia (odds ratio 2.03 [95% confidence interval 1.06 to 3.88). Conclusions The PR and SR suggest that the study area is meso-endemic. The PR in the study area was almost equal across age groups; our findings suggest there may be a need for policy review to plan malaria intervention programmes and include older children, not just children &lt;5 y of age. Routine malaria surveillance using simple tools such as the PR and SR are necessary for reviewing malaria control programmes in the community.