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This study sought to investigate the effect of subcontracting on the Performance of Manufacturing Multinational Firms (MNFs) in Nigeria. The study employed a survey research design, through the administration of structured questionnaire to a sample of 397 management staff of the three selected firms. The validity of the instrument was tested using content validity index (CVI) through the assessment of five academics and five top staff of MNFs service firms and it was rated on a two-point scale (relevant and not relevant) which gave a value of .8819. A pilot study was conducted through test re-test method to ascertain the extent of consistency of the research instrument; the result gave a Cronbach alpha of 0.82 which indicated that the instrument is reliable. The findings revealed that, performance elements (cost reduction, production enhancement, market expansion and risk sharing) have both individual and combine effect on subcontracting, with tvalue of 7.02 (0.0000), 9.88 (0.0000), 5.86 and 5.42 (0.0000) respectively. While the F-value of (63.29*0.000), (96.96*0.000), (34.52*0.000) and (29.49*0.000) respectively, suggests that the model is reliable for decision and policymaking. It further indicated that subcontracting has a positive and significant effect on MNFs performance It is therefore recommended that, MNFs should continuously improve and adopt subcontracting policy towards sustainable performance and the government through the ministry of trade, commerce and industry should encourage both poly and geo centric orientations in subcontracting practices of MNFs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy [BPH] is associated with voiding dysfunctions. Urodynamic study is the gold standard for diagnosis of voiding dysfunctions but is invasive. Bladder wall thickness (BWT), post-void urine residue (PVR), and bladder emptying efficiency (BEE) are noninvasive predictors of voiding dysfunction., Objective: To study the relationship among BWT, PVR, and BEE in BPH., Subjects and Methods: A hospital-based cross-sectional prospective study of new BPH patients at Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi. The participants had abdominal ultrasonography measurement of anterior BWT (at bladder volume ≥200 mls), prostate volume (PV), and PVR using Prosound SSD3500 (Aloka Co Ltd, Tokyo, Japan) with an abdominal probe frequency of 3.5 MHz. Then the BEE was calculated. The anterior BWT was divided into two groups: <5 mm and ≥5 mm. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. Pearson's correlation was used to assess correlation and the differences between the means of the two groups of BWT were compared by Mann-Whitney test. A P- Value <0.05 was considered significant., Results: Seventy seven men with a mean age of 66.66 ± 10.74 years were included in the study. Sixty one percent had symptoms lasting >12 months. The average anterior BWT, PBV, PVR, BEE, PV, and PSA were 4.55 ± 1.02 mm, 260.98 ± 57.44 mls, 58.36 ± 52.94 mls, 77.98 ± 17.37%, 66.31 ± 46.38 mls, and 8.04 ± 5.97 ng/ml, respectively. There was a significant positive correlation between BWT and duration of symptoms (P = 0.044) and a significant negative correlation between BWT and BEE (P = 0.005). An insignificant positive correlation was found between BWT and PVR (P = 0.255). Fifty four (70.1%) had BWT <5 mm and 29.9% had BWT ≥5 mm. The mean IPSS (P = 0.000), PV (P = 0.032) and PVR (P = 0.020) were significantly higher in the ≥5 mm group. The ≥5 mm group also had a significantly lower BEE (P = 0.002)., Conclusion: Voiding dysfunction was more severe in patients with BWT of 5 mm or more. There was a positive, but insignificant, correlation between anterior BWT and PVR and a significant negative correlation between BWT and BEE., Competing Interests: None

Background: Intravesical prostatic protrusion (IPP) is a noninvasive test that can predict bladder outlet obstruction in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH)., Objective: The objective of this study was to determinethe correlation between IPP and International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) in patients with BPH., Patients and Methods: A cross-sectional prospective study of new patients with symptomatic BPH who presented to the urology clinics of NAUTH, Nnewi. Ethical approval and informed consent were obtained. Participants had abdominal ultrasonography measurements of IPP from midline sagittal image of the prostate (at bladder volume ≥100 mL) using Prosound SSD3500 with abdominal probe frequency of 3.5 MHz. IPP was divided into three grades (grade I: 0-4.9mm, grade II: 5.0-9.9 mm, and grade III: ≥10.0 mm). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20. The data were subjected to analysis of variance, and Pearson's correlation was used to assess correlation where necessary. P value < 0.05 was considered significant., Results: In all, 101 men with a mean age of 67.09 ± 10.93 years were included in the study. The average IPSS, storage symptoms IPSS (IPSS- S ), voiding symptoms IPSS (IPSS- V ), Quality of Life (QoL) index, and IPP were 17.05 ± 7.62, 7.81 ± 5.17, 9.24 ± 3.16, 4.75 ± 1.59, and 13.50 ± 7.47 mm, respectively. There were significant differences between the mean IPSS (P = 0.000), mean IPSS- S (P = 0.000), and mean IPSS- V (P = 0.002) among the three grades of IPP. There were significant positive correlations between IPP and IPSS (P = 0.000), IPSS- S (P = 0.000), IPSS- V (P = 0.000), and IPSS QoL index (P = 0.000)., Conclusion: There were significant positive correlations between IPP and IPSS, IPSS- S , IPSS- V , and IPSS QoL index., Competing Interests: None