Ss Adebisi

The study of nutritional status and academic performance of primary school children in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria

Aim: The present study was carried out to assess the relationship between nutritional status and academic performance of primary school children in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: School children from primary 3 to 6 were enrolled for the study and they were selected from three randomly selected primary schools within Zaria in Kaduna State, Nigeria. A total of 759 pupils made up of 385 girls and 374 boys were assessed. Ethical clearance was obtained from Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria, and self-administered questionnaires were completed by the parents or guardians of the children. Body anthropometrics such as height, weight, and mid-upper arm circumference were measured using a stadiometer and a measuring tape from which the body mass index (BMI) was calculated. The nutritional status of the children was determined using the Centre for Disease Control standard for BMI percentile, while the academic performance of the children was determined by finding the mean of five subjects taken during term examination. Results: The results of the present study showed that overweight children performed better academically when compared to the other children with a mean academic score of 66.19 ± 17.00; underweight was observed to be more prevalent among the males than the females, while on the other hand, overweight was more prominent in females than males. Conclusion: The present study showed that a high percentage of the population has healthy weight, while only a small proportion was obese. This could be a result of imbalance in the food intake of the population, and from the results, it was observed that the total number of children who were overweight performed better academically than the others, which could mean that the children who were well fed and well nourished tend to do better academically than those who are not.

Comparative analysis of electrophysiological parameters of sural nerve in normal and type-2 diabetic subjects

The study was designed to evaluate sural nerve conduction of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients that were asymptomatic for neuropathy and compare their findings with age and sex matched healthy individuals. Using a standard technique, sural nerve conduction study was conducted on 100 T2DM patients with no clinical features suggestive of neuropathy and 100 healthy volunteers, matched for age and sex, serving as control. Sural nerve latency, Amplitude and Conduction Velocity (CV) were measured using Nihoen Kohden EMG Machine. On comparison of the sural nerve conduction parameters, sural nerve distal latencies were significantly lower in the control group while the sural nerve conduction velocities and amplitudes were significantly higher in the T2DM group. The study showed significant difference between the sural nerve conduction parameters in T2DM patients without clinical features suggestive of peripheral neuropathy when compared with apparently healthy individuals. Keywords: Sural nerve; Diabetic neuropathy; Electrophysiology

Comparative evaluation of body composition analysis in type-2 diabetes mellitus patients and healthy Nigerians using bioelectric impedance analysis technique

Objective: The study was aimed at evaluating the body composition of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients using bioelectric impedance analysis (BIA) technique and comparing their findings with age and sex-matched healthy volunteers. Materials and Methods: One hundred T2DM patients and 100 age and sex-matched controls were recruited in the study. Body composition was measured using BIA system (Tanita BC-554 Tanita Corporation, Tokyo, Japan), the data obtained from the body composition analyser included weight, fat %, fat mass, total body water, muscle mass, basal metabolic rate, bone mass, visceral fat (VF), body mass index and physique rating. Results: A total of 100 T2DM patients, who were matched with 100 of the healthy volunteers by age and sex, comprised 58% males and 42% females in each group. Their mean age was 49 years ± 19 years. The average duration of T2DM was 2.32 ± 0.83 years. The median fat composition was 41.1% in diabetic subjects and 30.5% in control (P = 0.0024). The median body water composition was 45.4% in diabetic subjects and 49.3% in control (P = 0.2106). The median muscle composition was 43.0% in diabetic subjects and 44.7% in control (P = 0.8859). The median physique rate was 4 in diabetic subjects and 2 in control (P = 0.0016). The median basal metabolic rate was 1389 in diabetic subjects and 1430 in control (P = 0.8648). The median metabolic age was 45 in diabetic subjects and 48 in control (P = 0.9143). The median bone component was 2.4 in diabetic subjects and 2.4 in control (P = 0.0922). The median VF component was 12% in diabetic subjects and 6% in control (P = 0.0016). Conclusion: Bioimpedance analyses of body composition showed that T2DM patients have significantly higher body fat, VF and physique rate compared with age and sex-matched healthy controls.

Anthropometric and body composition parameters of Kaduna and Rivers State women aged 18–30 years

Differences in anthropometry and body composition in populates arising from ecological habitat has been documented in several studies. The study attempted to evaluate the differences between the anthropometric and body composition parameters in young women of Kaduna and Rivers State, Nigeria. The study involved young women, without physical deformities within the age range of 18–30 years (mean age 22.10 ± 2.62 and 22.55 ± 3.78 for Kaduna and Rivers women respectively) that are indigenes of Kaduna and Rivers State. The study was based on a cross-sectional sampling of 788 tertiary institution students (401women from Rivers State females and 387 Kaduna females). The following anthropometric variables were measured: weight to the nearest 0.1 kg and height to the nearest 0.5 cm using a stadiometer, limb circumferences, and body circumferences using a nonstretchable tape. Body composition parameters were measured using bioimpedance analyzer. Data obtained showed that limb circumferences of Kaduna women are signifi cantly higher than Rivers women (P < 0.000 for arm circumference, P < 0.01 for calf circumference, and P < 0.000 for forearm circumference) except for the thigh circumference. However, weight, height, iliac and tricep skinfold of women from Rivers State was signifi cantly higher than Kaduna women (P < 0.01, P < 0.01, P < 0.05, and P < 0.05). Muscle mass, percentage body fat, basal metabolic rate, and metabolic age of Rivers women were signifi cantly higher than that of their Kaduna counterparts at a signifi cant level of P < 0.001, P < 0.05, P < 0.01, and P < 0.01, respectively. Rivers state women presented higher anthropometric variables and body composition parameters, but a lower limb circumference than their counterparts from Kaduna State. The difference in body composition could be tied to genetics and physiological variation that exists between individuals of a different population.

Differences in pattern of menstruation between Kaduna and Rivers State Women of Nigeria

Aim: This study was designed to investigate and compare the menarcheal age, menstrual cycle regularity, menstrual flow duration, prevalence of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), and symptoms during menstruation (SDM), in women from Kaduna and Rivers states, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Nonpregnant, nulliparous women from Rivers (n = 401, mean ± SD: 22.55 ± 3.78) and Kaduna (n = 387, mean 22.10 ± SD 2.62) states aged 18-30 years participated in the study. Subjects were randomly selected from some higher institutions in Kaduna and Rivers states. Data were obtained using a self-administered, structured questionnaire. Results: The mean age at menarche was higher in Rivers women than in their Kaduna counterparts, but there was no significant difference. The minimum and maximum menarcheal ages for this study were 10 years and 19 years respectively. The results showed that 311 (80.4%) of Kaduna females and 288 (71.8%) of Rivers females experienced regular menstrual cycles; 245 (63.3%) of Kaduna females and 324 (80.8%) of Rivers females experienced a menstrual flow duration of 4-6 days. Most of the study participants experienced at least one premenstrual symptom (Kaduna: 387 or 100%; Rivers: 366 or 91.3%) and one SDM (Kaduna: 36 or; 95.1%; Rivers 397 or 99%); the comparison of PMS and SDM between subjects from the two states showed a significant difference (c2 = 35.348, P = 0.000; and c2 = 10.637, P = 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: A difference was observed between the menstrual patterns of women from Kaduna and Rivers states.