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Background: Blood pressure readings of adult Nigerians with sickle cell disease (SCD) are reported to be lower than that of the general population but similar studies in children are unavailable. Objectives: To determine the systolic blood pressure (SBP) of children with SCD and compare it with that of healthy controls. Also, to correlate the SBP of children with SCD with age, gender, height and weight. Methods: Children with SCD were recruited from the Paediatric Haematology Clinic of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Data collected included bio-demographic details, social classification, height and weight measurements and present clinical status. SBP was measured using a Doppler (VASCUTRACK 120®) and a mercury sphygmomanometer. Similar data were obtained from age and sex matched apparently healthy children. Results: One hundred and twenty three children with SCD and 62 apparently healthy controls were studied; 62% were females. The mean age of the children with SCD was 8.93±3.91years (range 1-17 years) and was similar to the controls. SBP was similar in both groups of children (90.9±12.7 versus 92.2±15.2 mmHg; p=0.53) and increased with age. In 91 (74%) children with SCD the SBP was below the 50th centile for the general population. Multiple linear regressions involving sex, age, height and weight found no independent factor to be a significant predictor of the SBP in children with SCD. Conclusion: The SBP of children with SCD is similar to that of age and sex-matched controls. The sex, age, weight and height did not significantly predict SBP in multiple linear regression.

Objectives: To determine the association between HIV infection and anthropometric measures (weight, height, midupper arm circumference and head circumference) of children aged one to five years. Method: A cross sectional descriptive study using structured questionnaire and measurement of weight, height, head and midupper arm circumference of 846 infected children and matched controls. Results: The mean weights of the controls were significantly higher than those of the infected children at all age groups (p

Against the background of the subsisting high childhood mortality indices in Nigeria, vis-a-vis the global efforts in the last 10 years to stem the tide (as articulated in the Millennium Development Goals), there has been a corresponding need to address the common causes of deaths in under- fives. In Nigeria, as is the case in many countries in DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/njp.v42i4.1 sub-Saharan Africa, pneumonia remains a common cause of under-five mortality, accounting for 17% of deaths in this age-group. Indeed, it has been estimated that globally, a child dies from pneumonia every 20 seconds. With these in mind, and indeed the laudable goal of a 66% reduction of the national under-five deaths by the year 2015, a prompt recognition and management of pneumonia (in this vulnerable paediatric population) has become imperative. This was the logic that informed the current initiative of the Paediatric Association of Nigeria, aimed at formulating diagnostic, treatment and control policies with respect to paediatric community acquired pneumonia (CAP). This document is targeted primarily at health care providers working in Nigeria in centres with limited facilities as well as those working in tertiary hospitals.

Background. Hypoglycaemia occurs in many disease states common in the tropics, and may also complicate treatment of malaria. It may contribute significantly to morbidity and mortality. Objectives. To determine the prevalence of and clinical conditions associated with hypoglycaemia. Methods. A total of 430 patients aged 1 month to 10 years were recruited consecutively from the Children's Emergency Centre of Lagos University Teaching Hospital. Clinical and demographic data were entered into a predesigned study proforma. Blood glucose was determined in the laboratory using the glucose oxidase method. Hypoglycaemia was defined as plasma glucose <2.5 mmol/L. Results. The median age of the study subjects was 24 months, with a range of 1.5 - 120 months. A total of 248 patients (57.6%) were <24 months old. The mean (standard deviation) blood glucose of all the study subjects was 5.19 (2.05) mmol/L (median 4.9 mmol/L). Twenty-four patients (5.6%) were hypoglycaemic. The predominant disease conditions in which hypoglycaemia occurred were severe malaria, multisystemic infections, marasmus, malignancies and gastroenteritis. Mortality was higher in hypoglycaemic patients than in those without hypoglycaemia (33.3% v. 5.4%, p<0.01). Conclusion. Hypoglycaemia complicates many common childhood illnesses seen in the emergency room and is associated with significant mortality. Hypoglycaemia should be suspected in severely ill children with severe malaria, multisystemic infections, marasmus, malignancies and gastroenteritis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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