Frontpage News (3249)
The Minister of Health, Osagie Ehanire, on Wednesday, said Nigeria should take delivery of COVID-19 vaccine by January 2021. He said a committee set up for that purpose was already working to decide the kind of vaccine that would be suitable for Nigeria.
Ehanire disclosed this in an interview with State House correspondents after the weekly meeting of the Federal Executive Council presided over by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo. He said Nigeria had signed up with the World Health Organisation and the GAVI Alliance for access to vaccines immediately they are available.
WHO launches labour-monitoring tool to reduce complications during childbirth
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The World Health Organisation has launched a new Labour Care Guide to reduce complications during labour and help every woman have a positive childbirth experience. According to WHO, over one third of maternal deaths, half of stillbirths and a quarter of neonatal deaths result from complications during labour and child delivery.
The global body on Tuesday said the majority of these deaths occur in low-resource settings and are preventable through timely interventions, adding that knowing when to wait — and when to take life-saving action — is critical.
The Lagos State Government has said it is supporting people living with HIV/AIDS in the state with equipment, training and grants to make them economically independent in view of the hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Lagos State Aids Control, Dr Monsurat Adeleke, said the state would continue to give priority to the needs of people living with HIV/AIDS. A statement on Wednesday said Adeleke spoke during the presentation of sewing machines to some beneficiaries at the agency’s head office.
Lagos experiencing sharp increase in COVID-19 cases requiring oxygen -Commissioner
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Lagos Commissioner for Health, Prof. Akin Abayomi, says since October, the state has been experiencing a very sharp increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, with many of the patients requiring oxygen and intensive care.
According to the commissioner, Lagos now has over 25,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases with over 300 deaths, lamenting that the positivity rate in the state has suddenly risen to 12.2 percent, compared to 3.5 percent that it was in September.
If your hair is falling off, scientists are saying it may be due to your deficiency in Vitamin D. A research that sought to evaluate the role that vitamin D and the vitamin D receptor play in the hair cycle had assessed how this can be clinically applied to the treatment of hair disorders.
Another study found that women 18 to 45 years old who experienced alopecia or other types of hair loss had low levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D is a group of fat-soluble secosteroids responsible for increasing intestinal absorption of calcium, magnesium, and phosphate, and many other biological effects. In humans, the most important compounds in this group are vitamin D₃ and vitamin D₂.
A study published by the National Centre for Biotechnology Information shows that the transmission of bacteria is more likely to occur from wet skin than from dry skin. The researchers say proper drying of hands after washing should be an integral part of the hand hygiene process in health care.
Speaking in the same vein, a public health physician and Director, Policy and Advocacy at the Nigeria Health Watch, Dr. Ifeanyi Nsofor, says germs spread more easily on wet surfaces than on dry ones.
No fewer than 50 doctors have left the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH) in Cross River State for greener pastures abroad due to frustration from incessant kidnappings, poor infrastructure, electricity, remuneration and other challenges.
In the last two years, over 18 doctors have been kidnapped and each time that happened, the state branch of the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) would embark on strike, thereby paralysing activities at the UCTH.
Vitamin D could ward off COVID-19 infections, Oxford, Princeton researchers say
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Experts from Oxford to Princeton have signed an open letter to global governments arguing vitamin D could ward off coronavirus infections, disease and even deaths.
The letter, sent to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and health secretary Matt Hancock on Monday, called for healthy adults to up their daily vitamin D intake to at least 2,000 international units, or 50 micrograms, amid the pandemic.
New Variant Of COVID-19 May Incapacitate Current Vaccines, Experts Warn
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Medical experts have warned that the emergence of a new variant of COVID-19, which is 70 per cent more contagious, could affect effectiveness of current vaccines. The fresh disease has shown face in United Kingdom and a couple of other nations.
To avert putting the entire national immunisation programme in jeopardy, they advised the Federal Government to prioritise local production of the therapy. This comes as President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, charged the Federal Government to ensure thorough product review before consumption.
The World Health Organization in Europe said Tuesday it would convene its members to discuss how to handle a new variant of the novel coronavirus discovered in the UK.
Hans Kluge, WHO’s regional director for Europe said on Twitter that the organisation was closely monitoring the spread of the new variant and would “convene member states to discuss strategies for testing, reducing transmission & communicating risks,” without specifying a timeframe.
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Excruciating back pain, hidden symptom of COVID-19 many people don’t know -Survivor
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Hollywood celebrity and famous talk show host, Ellen Degeneres, who tested positive for COVID-19 recently, says there are some unusual symptoms of COVID-19, such as excruciating back pain, that many people are not are aware.She based the assertion on her experience and recovery from the viral infection.
Degeneres, 62, had, on December 10, announced that she had tested positive for COVID-19. Sharing her experience in a new video posted on Twitter @TheEllenShow, she said, “One thing that they don’t tell you is that you get, somehow, excruciating back pain. “Didn’t know that was a symptom, but I talked to some other people —back pain. Who knew? How come? Back pain. Bad.”
100m Nigerians to receive COVID-19 vaccine by March -NCDC
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The Nigerian Centre for Disease Control says over 100 million Nigerians would have received the COVID-19 vaccine by March 2021. This was stated by the NCDC Director-General, Chikwe Ihekweazu, while speaking on Channels TV Sunrise Daily programme on Thursday.
Ihekweazu expressed confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine saying Nigeria has been able to eliminate polio and fight smallpox through vaccines. He said, “No medical intervention, not one, has saved more lives since the beginning of mankind than vaccination.
National Coordinator of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Sani Aliyu, says the COVID-19 vaccine will be administered to Nigerians free of charge by the time vaccination begins. He disclosed this during an interview on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily, on Wednesday.
The PTF coordinator said approval has been given by the presidency to that effect, noting that the COVID-19 vaccine will be available in Nigeria on the platform of the GAVI arrangement.
‘Why a single drug compounding error can kill hundreds of patients’
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The Deputy Director of Pharmacy Department, National Orthopaedic Hospital, Igbobi, Lagos, Kingsley Ekwunife says pharmacists involved in drug compounding must continue to be diligent, noting that any error from them can result in deaths of many patients.
Ekwunife said where a doctor can be excused for making a prescription mistake, an industrial pharmacist cannot be pardoned for committing an error in drug production or compounding.
