A Consultant Paediatric Haematologist and Oncologist at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, Prof. Edamisan Temiye, has cautioned mothers against treating their newborns having jaundice with antibiotics.

According to him, neonatal jaundice can’t be treated with antibiotics, warning that mismanaging the condition could lead to brain damage in newborns. The paediatrician said instead of giving the baby antibiotics, the baby should be taken to the hospital for appropriate treatment.” 

Diabetic care specialists have warned persons living with diabetes against going to patent medicine stores and chemist shops to take care of their diabetic wounds, noting that doing so increases their risk of ending up with limb amputation.

According to the specialists, asking patent medicine store staff and chemists – who are unqualified to care for diabetic wounds on the leg can cause the wounds to deteriorate and result in further complications that could lead to the amputation of the leg.

The President of the Nigerian Society for Virology, Prof. Clement Mboto, has alerted to the possibility of Nigerians contracting both COVID-19 and Lassa fever at the same time. 

The virologist who is a professor of medical microbiology at the University of Calabar, noted that Nigerians are now at risk of getting infected at the same time with the two viral diseases because the nation is presently battling the outbreaks of the two health conditions.

The World Health Organisation has urged parents to do more to ensure water safety, warning that children under the age of five are at most risk of drowning. The WHO disclosed this in a statement released on Monday in commemoration of World Drowning Prevention Day.

The world’s health body noted that drowning is one of the leading causes of death globally for children and young people between the ages of one to 24. WHO also noted that drowning is the third leading cause of injury-related deaths overall, noting that it claims more than 236,000 lives each year.

A Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Dr. Olufemi Samuel, has said that women who gave birth through caesarean section can safely get pregnant six months after delivery.

Samuel, who is also the Executive Secretary of the Ondo State branch of the Nigerian Medical Association, dismissed the notion that women who gave birth through CS must wait for two years before conceiving again, noting that such an assumption has no scientific backing.

A Neurosurgeon at Evercare Hospital, Lekki, Dr. Edward Jolayemi, has said chronic use of cell phones for at least 10 years may increase the risk of brain tumours. A statement by a neurosurgeon with experience in a diverse range of brain and spine pathologies said The World Health Organisation recommended limiting cell phone use and promoting the use of a hands-free headset, saying the cause of brain tumours was largely unknown.

He was also speaking in relation to World Brain Tumour day which was celebrated to raise awareness about brain tumours and dispel related misconceptions. It was titled, ‘Together we are stronger.’

A gynaecologist, Dr. Abayomi Shonubi, on Friday advised women, particularly those of child-bearing age, against indiscriminate use of contraceptives to avoid developing amenorrhea. Shonubi, the Medical Director, G-Spring Hospital and Fertility Centre, gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos.

The gynaecologist said that amenorrhea could occur as a side effect of medication or an indication of a medical problem. Shonubi, who defined amenorrhea as the absence of a menstrual period when a woman was still in her reproductive years, however, said there are two types of amenorrhea.

Some medical practitioners have raised the alarm about the excessive intake of herbal concoctions by Nigerians, noting that it could lead to various kidney complications, and, in the long run, death.

Herbal concoctions are prepared from a mixture of plants’ roots, barks and leaves, which are either soaked in water or alcohol. It is believed herbal concoctions are most commonly taken by indigent people as a remedy for all kinds of ailments.

A health expert at the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos, Dr. Olalekan Bonire, has cautioned Nigerians against urinating in swimming pools. Urinating in the swimming pool, he said, may not only be a bad habit but could be an act that put the health of others at risk.

According to Dr. Bonire, urinating in the swimming pool could cause harmful effects on the lungs and eyes of those using the pool. The surgical resident at the NOHI stated that if chlorine, a disinfectant agent added to pool water mixes with uric acid produced from the urine or sweat of swimmers, it could cause a chemical reaction that can lead to the production of harmful compounds.

An Associate Professor and Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Ituku/Ozalla, Enugu State, Dr. Uche Agu, has debunked the claim that women who have fibroid and go for surgery won’t get pregnant.

Dr. Agu said some people have erroneously assumed that when a fibroid is operated upon the woman will never be pregnant. The maternal health expert, however, stressed that surgery is the best treatment option for women who have fibroid and want to achieve pregnancy.