Chioma Umeha

  A women’s uterus is the size of a clenched fist but can grow as big as a soccer ball or larger during pregnancy. In addition to pregnancy, there are many other reasons why a woman’s uterus may become enlarged. An enlarged uterus can be the result of a medical condition that not only causes it to grow but also to bleed and become painful. A condition that results in an enlarged uterus may require treatment. Causes and risk factors A woman can be unaware that she has an enlarged uterus. Most often, women discover they have a problem during a pelvic exam. It is possible a woman may notice a bloated belly or that clothes seem too tight, but for most, a diagnosis of an enlarged uterus is unexpected. There are multiple reasons why the uterus may become enlarged. An enlarged uterus may be more common in menopausal women, but women in their childbearing years can develop this condition too. Fibroids Fibroids are one of the most common causes of an enlar ged uterus. Fortuna

Chioma Umeha The Federal Government through the Ministry of Health has spent over     N4 billion over the humanitarian crisis in the North-East region of Nigeria. A statement signed    by Boade Akinola, Director, Media and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, the Minister of Health made the statement during the Commemoration of the 2017 World Humanitarian Day in Abuja, recently. Prof. Adewole noted that four billion naira was used in purchasing relief materials including drugs and medical consumables, hospital equipment, capacity building and deployment of volunteer health workers. He added that a two-pr onged approach was adopted solely to provide basic medical services to the affected population and strengthen the pillars of the health system. He affirmed that the Federal Ministry of Health has responded to the humanitarian situation within Nigeria by strengthening the Special Project Department and appointing a Substantive Director to c

Lagos –  Nigeria can reduce outbreak of diarrhea and other diseases associated with contaminated water by dedicating one per cent of the national budget to rural water supply, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has said. The United Nations(UN) agency for children further    tasked governments across the    Niger Delta states to invest consciously in the provision of safe water supply and sanitation for its rural populace. The provision of such basic social amenity, according to UNICEF would encourage handwashing and other hygienic practices among school-age children and rural populace. The international agency stated this at a ‘WASH’ media    meeting by the Federal Ministry of Information in collaboration with UNICEF in Uyo the Akwa Ibom State capital on Tuesday, noting that the chemical contaminations resulting from oil and gas exploration in the Niger Delta region has made it necessary for efforts to be made to ensure safe and constantly checked water for human

Chioma Umeha Malaria is highly endemic in Nigeria and poses a major challenge to human development. Pregnant women, especially ‘primigravidas’ that is a woman who is pregnant for the first time are particularly at risk. The disease may not only account for up to 15 per cent of anemia in pregnancy, it cause s miscarriages, premature births and low birthweights in newborn babies. In view of this, researchers and stakeholders have restated the need for early commencement of antenatal care by pregnant women. According to them, this aids early diagnosis and prompt treatment of malaria in pregnant women as well as uptake of Intermittent Preventive Treatment in Pregnancy (IPTp). Making the recommendations during a recent media chat on “Malaria In Pregnancy,” they stressed that regular and appropriate use of Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets (LLINs) help to prevent malaria in pregnant women. The event was jointly organised by the National Media Elimination Programme (NMEP) and

Lagos –  Men that take up to 60 per cent alcohol in 48 hours may be at risk of developing abnormal quality of sperm-teratozospermia. Stating this was Dr. Sharon Osaide, a fertility physician and gynecologist with Rose Du Rouge International Initiative while delivering a lecture recently on health, at the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) Orientation Camp, Ipaja-Lagos. Not only did Osaide warn against too much consumption of alcohol, she also warned against unhealthy lifestyle as well as conditions such as smoking and obesity, which she linked to infertility in men and women. “Men that take up to 60 per cent alcohol in 48 hours would develop teratozospermia otherwise described as abnormal sperm cell. Though they have normal sperm counts, but they would have abnormal quality of sperm. “Obesity in male and female could lead to infertility, when a woman is obese, they would not ovulate regularly. When a man is obese, he will produce the estrogen hormone rather than the testo

Ahmed Yakasai, President, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN) is a veteran practitioner with over three decades of experience. Yakasai who is a former Chairman of PSN Kano State Branch, first National Deputy President of PSN and a two-time past Commissioner in Kano State, in this interview with  CHIOMA UMEHA,  shares perspectives on pharmacy and health management issues. Excerpts: Nigeria has celebrated 57th years anniversary of independence. What are the challenges of the health sector? What is the way forward? Nigeria continues to contend with a plethora of challenges not necessarily caused by this incumbent administration. Among numerous challenges, the following stand out: poor funding, delayed and unlawful appointments in regulatory agencies, poor composition structures in the health sector including, lopsided appointments in Federal Health Institutions (FHIs) as well as poor attitude to research and development. If we restrict ourselves to the highlighted, you wi