Journal of Advances in Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

Objective: The development of right and left lower limbs start at the same time and subsequent serial growth occurs simultaneously however at adulthood, small but usually functionally negligible differences exist in their lengths. This study set out to find out the prevalence and degree of lower limb length inequality (LLI) amongst young adult Nigerians with grossly normal lower limbs.

Methods: Full length and segmental lengths of one hundred and three healthy young adult Nigerians of different ethnic groups were measured using the direct clinical method.

Results: The overall prevalence of LLI was 89.3% while the rate for male and female was 96.2% and 82.4% respectively. The LLI range was 0.5 - 2.5 cm with majority being less than 2.0 cm. The LLI was significantly higher in male (1.18 ± 0.83 vs 0.75±0.60 cm). Side for side, the male limb is significantly longer than that of the female. The thigh girth was significantly wider in the female while there was no difference in the leg girth between male and female. The males were found to be significantly taller than the females. Inter-ethnic comparison of the various parameters did not reveal any significance difference.

Conclusion: Anatomical lower limb inequality is very common amongst young adult Nigerians without any gross musculoskeletal but it is not obvious.

Aim: To determine the effects of chromatographic fractions of Abrus precatorius leaf extracts on the histology of the ovary and uterus.

Study Design: Abrus precatorius plant contain woods in a twinning form and belong to the Fabaceae (Leguminosae) family. It has red and black seeds. Abrus precatorius also possess a pod which is short and stout brownish in color [1]. The plant grows in bushes and farm and sometimes in hedge. Abrus precatorius are said to be taken for tuberculosis and painful swellings [2]. According to Ross [3], they can be used as laxative, expectorant and aphrodisiac medicines and are sometimes used in urticaria, eczema, stomatitis, conjunctivitis, alopecia areata, migraine, lymphomas/leukemia and dysmenorrhea. Experiment has demonstrated that the seed have the ability to retard fertility both in male and female [4]. Studies done in the past revealed that the plant Abrus precatorius can kill cells or cause cell death at the same time leading to death of tumor [5]. Extraction of the leaves of A. precatorius with methanol has shown through previous study to possess bronchodilatory effect and its use traditionally in the management of asthma [6]. Extracts obtained from the roots, has good antibacterial activity especially against Staphylococcus aureus (Prabha et al. 2015). In a study performed in Tanzania, it was confirmed that boiling the leaves of A. precatorius with water and taking it orally as three table spoonful in twice daily dosage regimen for the treatment of epilepsy is helpful [7].

Female wistar rats were treated with chromatographic fractions of A. precatorius, F1, F2, F3 and F4 (30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, 90 mg/kg, 120 mg/kg and 150 mg/kg) for thirty days. One hundred and ten Wistar rats were divided into twenty-two (22) groups of five rats each. All the rats were weighed   before and during the experiment. Group 1 (Control) received 0.5 mls, Phosphate Buffer Solution (PBS); Group 3-7. received 30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, 90 mg/kg, 120 mg/kg and 150 mg/kg of F1. Group 8-12 received 30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, 90 mg/kg, 120 mg/kg and 150 mg/k of F2. Group13-17 received 30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, 90 mg/kg, 120 mg/kg and 150 mg/kg of F3 and Group 18-22 received 30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, 90 mg/kg, 120 mg/kg and 150 mg/kg of F4 respectively. The fractions/drugs were administered orally. The rats were treated with chromatographic fractions of A. precatorius, F1, F2, F3 and F4 (30 mg/kg, 60 mg/kg, 90 mg/kg, 120 mg/kg and 150 mg/kg) for 30 days. The animals were sacrificed, dissected and the uterus and ovaries obtained for histology study. The study revealed histological evidence that the chromatographic fractions of Abrus precatorius leaf do not have any potential adverse effect on the ovary and uterus of the Wistar Albino rats.

Background: The practice of Medical Laboratory Science has witnessed advancement globally, with increasing need for laboratory input in modern healthcare delivery. This has brought about the need for advanced education and training for practitioners of Medical Laboratory Science.

Objectives: This descriptive, cross-sectional study assessed the perception and acceptance of the Doctor of Medical Laboratory Science (MLSD) degree among Medical Laboratory Scientists in Nigeria.

Methods: The study involved five hundred (500) Medical Laboratory Scientists across Nigeria, who participated based on informed consent. The survey instrument was a structured questionnaire that contained demographic information and 16 items which the respondents responded to.

Results: Out of the 500 respondents, 380(76%) were male while 120(24%) were female, with majority of them within 20 to 49 years of age. On the perception of the MLSD degree, 355(71%) of the respondents agreed that MLSD will increase employment opportunities for practitioners, 460(92%) agreed that it will offer practitioners enhanced emoluments while 490(98%) agreed that MLSD will enhance the knowledge base and clinical expertise of practitioners. Also, 400(80%) agreed that MLSD will help reduce quackery and impersonation of Medical Laboratory Scientists, 485(97%) agreed that it will enhance the prestige of the profession, 470(94%) agreed that it will enhance laboratory diagnosis and biomedical research. Data on acceptance show that 420(84%) of the respondents indicated that they would like to obtain the MLSD degree, 345(69%) will like one of their children to obtain the MLSD degree, 305(61%) do not support quasi-specialization in MLSD, 445(89%) agreed that MLSD without quasi-specialization will broaden the clinical knowledge and skills of practitioners and improve patient-care while 415(83%) believe that the MLSD without quasi-specialization will give more meaning to postgraduate specialization.

Conclusion: It is concluded that the MLSD has positive perception and acceptance among Medical Laboratory Scientists in Nigeria. Therefore, MLSD is recommended for adoption and implementation for the training of Medical Laboratory Scientists in Nigerian universities.

Background and Aims: The current pandemic known as Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) is a significant public health menace. Currently, there is no specific treatment for this disease, although some medicinal agents are under investigation. Some published articles have reported Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS CoV-2) involvement in other organs, including the liver and kidneys, which can impair the metabolism and excretion of the medications taken to treat the disease. This study evaluated the effects of 3 herbal mixtures on some biochemical parameters of the liver and kidney of laboratory animals.

Methods: Liver enzymes such as serum aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, albumin and total serum protein were quantified. Urea, creatinine and bilirubin (total and direct) were also evaluated. These parameters were determined for all three polyherbal combinations (CoV Pla-1, CoV Pla-2, CoV Pla-3).

Results: The extracts did not produce any mortality up to 5000 mg/kg per oral. Results showed that the polyherbal extracts (CoV Pla-1, CoV Pla-2 CoV Pla-3) did not cause any significant changes in ALT, AST, ALP, compared to control. The mean values of urea showed an insignificant (P>0.05) decrease across all test doses in the three extracts, compared to the control. In the current   study, the mean creatinine concentration showed slight decrease across all three extracts. Total protein was observed to be lower in CoV Pla-1 and CoV Pla-2, and increased in CoV Pla-3,    though these changes were not statistically significant. Serum albumin decreased at the low   and intermediate doses for the three polyherbal extracts in an insignificant manner compared to control.

Conclusion: The results obtained in this study indicate that the extracts did not cause  significant changes in biochemical parameters evaluated and support their use in the treatment of Covid-19.

The drug discovery and development processes are designed to guarantee that drugs are efficacious, nontoxic and of high standards of quality for human consumption. However, patient’s population with access to drugs at approval is only a fraction of the final target population. Therefore, a thorough understanding of the safety of medicines is generally only achieved after the marketing authorization of the drug, followed by pharmacovigilance or post marketing surveillance. Pharmacovigilance (PHV) is defined by WHO as “the science and activities that deals with the detection, assessment, understanding and prevention of the adverse drug reactions or any other possible drug-related interactions”. Health professionals, patients, drug manufacturers and drug regulatory authorities are therefore highly involved in the practice of PHV.

Cameroon imports 95 % of drugs and health care products. Therefore, an effective mastery of the knowledge, attitude and practice of PHV will help to elaborate the development of our pharmacovigilance systems. This paper gives an overview of pharmacovigilance in Cameroon for unlocking the drug development process focusing on the past, present and future.