Don’t Use Chloroquine, Artesunate For MALARIA TREATMENT– WHO Warns..!!

Nigerians have been advised against the use of Chloroquine and Artesunate for the treatment of malaria.

Nnenna Ezeigwe, National Coordinator, National Malaria Control Programme, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Friday in Abuja.

She, however, recommended that people should take only Artemisinin Combination Therapy, ACTs, when they test positive for malaria.

"If your test result is positive, take only Artemisinin Combination Therapy (ACTs). Do not treat malaria with chloroquine, artesunate or other monotherapies.

"The ACT with green leaf is good quality and affordable; Ask for it,'' she said.

When contacted, Adeline Osakwe, Deputy Director, Pharmacovigilance, Food and Drugs Information Centre, NAFDAC, said the use of chloroquine and artesunate in Nigeria was being gradually phased out.

"Since 2005, the use of monotherapies such as Artesunate, Chloroquine had been discouraged in favour ofAretmisinin Combination Therapy (ACT) for uncomplicated malaria.

"These ACTs include Arthemeter/Lumenfantrine, Artesunate/Amodiaquine, and other registered ones.

Ms. Osakwe said that the monotherapies are gradually being phased out by not registering new ones and not renewing those that their licenses had expired."

The World Health Organisation, WHO, had placed a global ban on the use of chloroquine and Artesunate in 2005.

Speaking on the World Malaria Day celebration, Ms. Ezeigwe advised pregnant women to register early for ante-natal care in order to receive preventive treatment against the disease.

"Expectant mothers should demand for preventive treatment, `Intermittent Preventive Treatment in Pregnancy (IPTp)' during ante-natal visits from 16 weeks of pregnancy,'' she said.

She said that the Federal Government and Roll Back Malaria partners had over the last decade committed huge resources to ensure that malaria was brought under control.

She said that the efforts had led to a reduction in malaria prevalence by more than eight per cent, adding that much more needed to be done.

Ms. Ezeigwe called on the private sector, the media, and the academia to play active roles in the fight against the Malaria.

"It is only working together that we can end the needless suffering and deaths caused by Malaria.

"Keep your environment clean and free of puddles, and always sleep inside long lasting insecticide treated nets. "Wear protective clothing against mosquitoes when necessary, and always get tested before you treat for Malaria,'' she said.

Keep staying Healthy, Informed and Entertained...!!!
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New tuberculosis drug regimen moves to clinical trial..!!

A new drug, part of the STAND trial, will test the first regimen designed to significantly shorten and simplify the treatment of drug-sensitive and drug-resistant TB.

Tuberculosis (TB) is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis may infect any part of the body, but most commonly occurs in the lungs.

Globally, tuberculosis is the second most common cause of death from infectious disease (after those due to HIV/AIDS).

A group called the TB Alliance is to undertake the first-ever drug regimen designed to treat both drug-sensitive and some forms of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (TB) to a global Phase 3 clinical trial. The Global Alliance for TB Drug Development (TB Alliance) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding faster-acting and affordable drug regimens to fight tuberculosis.

The TB Alliance operates with funding from Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, European Commission, Global Health Innovative Technology Fund, Irish Aid, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, UNITAID, United Kingdom Department for International Development, United States Agency for International Development, and the United States Food and Drug Administration.

The three new drugs being trialled are grouped together and called PaMZ (PaMZ is a three-drug regimen comprised of two candidate drugs that are not yet licensed for use against TB: PA-824 (Pa) and moxifloxacin (M), and one existing antibiotic used in TB treatment today, pyrazinamide (Z)).

Initial trials suggest that the new drug regimen could provide the breakthrough we need to accelerate progress against this deadly and dangerous disease. This is because PaMZ could potentially reduce the time required to cure drug-resistant TB from two years to just six months.

PaMZ regimen will be tested in a Phase 3 clinical trial named STAND (Shortening Treatments by Advancing Novel Drugs). If successful, the regimen would eliminate the need for injectable drugs and reduce the cost of multiple drug resistant tuberculosis therapy. The STAND trial will span some 50 study sites across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America.
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A Liverpool fan has grown his hair for 11 years after promising not to cut it until REDS won the league...LOL

Liverpool fan Ukë Krasniqi has a little bit more on the line hoping Liverpool win the league than most Reds supporters.

In 2003 Ukë Krasniqi made a self-imposed oath to himself that he wouldn't cut his hair until Liverpool next won a championship.

Whilst many may question the wisdom in such a restriction, Ukë Krasniqi, who comes from Kosovo, has stayed true to his declaration and for 11 long yeas the Reds supporter has seen his locks grow longer and longer.

Now the story has been picked up by Kosovo news outlet Republika.mk, and the Liverpool fan as given the following
quotes:

Since 2003 I started to grow my hair spontaneously… So far Liverpool have won all other titles but not the championship. No we are so close.

Even if we are declared champions earlier, I will keep my hair until May 11.

I want my hair when Steven Gerrard will lead us to the championship against Newcastle.

Keep staying Healthy, Informed and Entertained...!!!

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Doctor advises males on monthly testicular self-examination for cancer detection...!!

Males between 15 years and 34 years have been advised to perform a monthly testicular self-examination to help detect testicular cancer in its early stage.

Dr Prosper Igboeli, a gynaecologist at Fertility and IVF Centre, Karishi, FCT, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Abuja.

"The best time to perform the self-examination is during or after a bath or shower when the skin of the scrotum is relaxed.

"To perform the examination, men should examine each testicle separately by rolling it gently between the thumb and fingers, then look and feel for hard lumps or masses or changes in size, shape, or consistency of the testes,'' he said.

Igboeli described testicles as an important male reproductive organ which produces sperm located in the scrotum under the penis.

He described testicular cancer as one of the most common cancers in young men, adding that it was usually discovered by men themselves or by their spouses as a lump or enlarged swollen testicle.

He also advised that male babies should have their genitals checked by their attendants or parents for congenital abnormalities.

"The genital of male babies could be examined by specialists for "undescended'' testicle, adding that testicles may not be out but remain in the abdomen, leaving the scrotum empty.

He advised males to endeavour to have regular testicular examination in hospital to help detect any abnormality in the reproductive organ.

"Just as women are encouraged to perform monthly self-examination of their breasts, men are also encouraged to perform monthly examination of their testes to detect testicular cancer early and increase their chances of survival,'' he said.

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Woman With Lab-Grown Vagina Has 'Normal Life' 8 Years Post-Surgery, Hopes To Have Large Family..!!

Mexican woman born with an underdeveloped vagina — a condition known as Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome — recounts her now "normal life" after receiving lab-grown transplant.

A ground-breaking lab procedure has changed the lives of four women born with underdeveloped vaginas, a rare genetic condition called Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome. Now, one of the women from the study, an unnamed Mexican woman, who was 18 at the time of the surgery, has stepped forward to talk about her life eight years after receiving a lab-grown vagina. With the help of researchers from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C., and the Metropolitan Autonomous University in Mexico City, she has since then been living a "normal life."

The Mexican woman learned she had MRKH syndrome when she was 18 and soon began to learn about her options for surgery. Photo courtesy of ABC News.

"For me to be able to have the surgery, I feel very fortunate because I can have a normal life," said the Mexican woman in a translated interview, ABC News reported. "I know I'm one of the first. It is important to let other girls that have the same problem know that ... there is a treatment and you can have a normal life." In MRKH, women's external genitalia is unaffected by the disorder, which means the condition is not diagnosed until the patient is in her late teens, as in the case of the unnamed woman. The group of women were between 13 to 18 years old at the time of the surgeries, performed between June 2005 and October 2008. At the time, the Mexican woman didn't understand how a part of her body was going to be made in a lab, but once her body accepted the transplant, the difficult and painful process was worth it.

The unnamed Mexican woman hopes to have a large family some day, thanks to her lab-grown vagina. Photo courtesy of ABC News.

Eight years post-surgery, the organ works "as if it weren't made in the lab," she said. The engineered vagina provides normal function, including SEXUAL FUNCTION, allowing the women to have pain-free intercourse. The unnamed woman said she hopes to one day have children, perhaps a large family, despite her limited options.

The unnamed Mexican woman feels her lab-grown vagina works as "as if it weren't made in the lab." Photo courtesy of ABC News.

These four cases have proven vaginas can be constructed in the lab and used successfully in humans. The scaffolds in the lab were tailor-made to fit each patient. The researchers even go further to suggest that the treatment could be used to help treat women with vaginal cancer or injuries.

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Doctor Nabbed Writing JAMB for Wife...!!

Jigawa State Command of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) at the weekend said it arrested a medical doctor, Ifeanyi Eze, while writing the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) examination for his wife, Mrs. Ifeoma Eze Callista.

Sources gathered that the doctor is an indigene of Ebonyi State and works at Gumel General Hospital.

The state commandant of the NSCDC, Dr.Muhammad Gidado, while addressing newsmen said Dr Eze was caught at Lautai Science Secondary School, Gumel which was Centre No: P11704 with Script No: 45452644BC.

He said Dr. Eze who was arrested for impersonation and examination malpractice, has already been handed over to the police.

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SORROWFUL MONDAY as more than 100 people die in Abuja bomb blast...!!!

More than 100 people may have died in a bomb blast that occurred at the FCT this morning.

The incident happened under the Nyanya bridge few kilometres to Abacha Barracks in the FCT.

According to CKN Nigeria reporters at the scene,a car laced with bombs exploded under the bridge where people gathered to take buses to their various destinations.

The noise of the blast could be heard at adjoining areas of AYA,Asokoro ,Maitama, Aso Rock Villa, Nyanya,Karu etc .Nyanya/Karu park is also about ten minutes drive from the seat of power, Aso Rock villa,The National Assembly ,the Headquarters of SSS and National Intelligence Agency.

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LASSA FEVER OUTBREAK...!!!

One person has been confirmed dead and five others lying critically ill in two hospitals in Jos following the outbreak of Lassa fever in Plateau State.

There were also reports of fresh outbreak of cholera in Rikkos and Nassarawa area of Jos North LGA of the state.

Not fewer than 10 people were said to be currently under going treatment in an undisclosed hospital.

Confirming the outbreak of the disease and the death of one person , the Deputy Director, Epidemiology in the State Ministry of Health , Dr. Raymond Juryit, who spoke with our correspondent, said there were cases of suspected lassa fever in the state.

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Herbal Medicine Course to be introduced in Nigerian Universities...

Herbal medicine is often regarded as esoteric science – studied and practiced by a select few. But thanks to a new university curriculum the federal government is introducing, herbal medicine may soon become a part of mainstream science in Nigeria.

The government has concluded plans to introduce herbal medicine studies in Nigerian universities, Vanguard reports. This announcement was made at the 3rd Annual Guest Lecture organized by Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, MHWUN, in Abuja.

Speaking on the necessity of formalizing the study of herbal medicine, Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu expressed that universal health coverage cannot be achieved without the involvement of trained herbal medicine practitioners.

"If you are a herbal practitioner, you are a doctor. A herbalist is a doctor. But the first function of a doctor is to take a diagnosis. Is it Lassa fever or Ebola?  Or is it Dengue or is it malaria or typhoid? You have to get the answer before you begin to give that herb," he said. 

He also stated that to fully understand the human body and make accurate diagnoses, knowledge of subjects including anatomy, biochemistry, pharmacology, Physiology, are needed. And this is what a formal herbal medicine curriculum could provide.

The course may commence in universities as early as next year.

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Witch doctor convinces man to let hyena eat his balls for money..!!

On March 27th, the Times of Zambia reported that Chamangeni Zulu offered his sack to the salivating animal after a tip he received from a witch doctor. Let the hyena eat your testes, the doctor said, and karma will bring you much cash. Sounds legit.

Zulu has not found wealth yet after the incident; only a horrible war story to relate to the local paper.

"Around 4am, I went to a bush where I was instructed to be naked," Zulu told the Times. "A hyena came to me and started eating my toes and eventually my manhood was eaten."

Zulu was treated at a hospital after the biting, and his condition has been reported as stable. The Times also approached the alleged witch doctor, who was not available for comment. But his client is hardly calling foul. "Even though I have lost some important parts of my body," Zulu added, "I still hope to get rich."

At this point in our overpopulated world with a growing obsolescence of the male species, testicles are seemingly nothing but a gag prop.

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