Nigerian Journal of Clinical Practice

BACKGROUND: The inferior alveolar nerve (IAN) is located in the mandibular canal (MC). It is critical to evaluate the position of the MC during treatment planning to prevent intra or postoperative complications. AIMS: This retrospective study aimed to identify the anatomy and anatomical variations of the IAN using soft tissue imaging (pulse sequence magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study was designed as a retrospective Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT) study...

PURPOSE: To evaluate effectiveness and safety of accelerated corneal cross-linking (CXL) in the treatment of keratoconus in pediatric patients. SETTING: Tertiary care hospital. DESIGN: Retrospective observational study. METHODS: In this study, case series of patients 18 years old or younger with progressive keratoconus who underwent accelerated CXL were observed. All consecutive patients underwent accelerated CXL with setting of 9 mW/cm2 for 10-minute Ultraviolet-A radiation, corresponding to a total dose of 5...

BACKGROUND: Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP) and short-term comorbidity data moderate-to-late preterm (MLP) infants in Saudi Arabia are limited. AIM: The present study mainly aimed to identify ROP incidence and severity in MLP infants. The secondary objective was to explore whether moderate preterm infants are more prone to systemic short-term comorbidities compared to late preterm infants. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study was conducted at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, a tertiary center in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia...

BACKGROUND: Perinatal asphyxia contributes significantly to neonatal morbidity and mortality. It occurs worldwide, and the Apgar score is the most widely used method of diagnosis. Recently, umbilical cord arterial pH has been reported as the most objective way to assess fetal acidosis at birth as it predicts the adverse outcome of perinatal asphyxia. It is imperative to establish the concordance between these two diagnostic methods to reinforce the practicality of the Apgar score as the preferred diagnostic tool for perinatal asphyxia in developing nations, such as Nigeria...

BACKGROUND: Standardizing cardiac valve structures and function to body surface area will help the clinician and surgeons in decision-making. AIM: To evaluate the z-scores of the sizes of cardiac structures and function and to present them in Gaussian curves and reference values. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study that involved 300 apparently healthy children. This study was performed among healthy children from birth to 18 years...

BACKGROUND: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is a major barrier to vaccine uptake, and the achievement of herd immunity is required to reduce morbidity and mortality and protect the most vulnerable populations. In Nigeria, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has been high, and uptake remains very low. Healthcare workers (HCWs) in Nigeria can help support public health efforts to increase vaccine uptake. AIM: This study evaluates Nigerian HCWs' acceptance and intent to recommend the COVID-19 vaccine...

BACKGROUND: Hyperlipidemia caused by a high-fat diet (HFD) has many adverse effects on the cardiovascular system, including vascular problems. In addition, a HFD also has significant adverse effects on bone health. AIM: The aim of this study is to examine bone-implant osteointegration and new bone formation in peri-implant defects in fasting and high-fatty diet applied rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, 28 female Sprague Dawley rats were used...

BACKGROUND: Inflammation occurring after vascular endothelial damage plays a role in thrombus formation. Changes in various blood parameters that develop after the inflammatory condition can be used as a marker to predict thrombus. AIM: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet/lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and portal vein thrombosis (PVT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: After applying the exclusion and inclusion criteria to the patients diagnosed with PVT and followed up in our center between January 2006 and May 2018, a total of 38 patients without acquired risk factors for the development of PVT and 52 healthy controls were included in the study...

BACKGROUND: Children infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) may be more prone to helminthic infestation because they have depleted immunity, which increases their susceptibility to infection and infestations, even with minimally pathogenic organisms such as helminths. AIM: The prevalence and pattern of intestinal helminthiasis among children living with HIV attending the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Ituku-Ozalla, Enugu. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study in which 70 HIV-infected children were consecutively recruited from the Pediatric HIV clinic and matched for age and sex with 70 children recruited from the children outpatient clinic (CHOP) of UNTH Ituku-Ozalla...

BACKGROUND: Hearing loss is a neurological sequelae associated with sickle cell disease (SCD) and probably sickle cell trait (SCT) in children and adults but remains understudied. AIM: This study aimed to compare the hearing impairment among children and adults living with SCD or SCT. METHODS: A comparative cross-sectional study conducted in four departments with SCD outpatient clinic in a tertiary hospital in Nigeria. Participants with Sickle cell disease (HbSS) and Sickle cell trait (HbAS) (cohort) and HbAA (control) had comprehensive ear and hearing assessments for sensorineural hearing loss...

INTRODUCTION: Lymphadenopathy is usually due to benign or malignant conditions. It can also be local or systemic in distribution and can involve peripheral or deep-seated lymph nodes. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of lymphoma and the distribution pattern of lymph node pathologies among adult patients who presented with lymphadenopathy and its relationship with age and sex. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted, and a record of all cases of lymphadenopathy with histological diagnosis over 5-year period (January 2017 to December 2021) was extracted from Departments of Anatomical Pathology of Alex Ekwueme Federal University Teaching Hospital, Abakaliki...

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a significant increase in global mortality rates. Numerous studies have been conducted to identify the factors associated with mortality in COVID-19 cases. In these studies, overall mortality was evaluated in patients, and no distinction was made as ward or intensive care mortality. AIM: This study aims to determine mortality-related factors in patients who died while in the ward. This could enable us to review the indications for intensive care hospitalization in possible pandemics...

BACKGROUND: Marginal and internal adaptation are key factors that determine the clinical success of dental restorations. AIM: The aim of this study is to evaluate the marginal and internal fit of crowns fabricated with three different CAD-CAM zirconia materials; two monolithic zirconia materials and one veneered zirconia copings in comparison with conventional metal-ceramic crowns. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Ninety-six extracted molars (n = 96) were selected...

BACKGROUND: One of the major problems of everyday dental practice is cross-contamination. It can place office personnel, dentists, and patients at risk of acquiring serious illness. Disinfection helps in controlling this cross-contamination to an extent. The evaluation was done to find the efficient disinfection method on gypsum casts. AIMS: The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the efficacy of three methods of disinfection of gypsum casts, namely, chemical disinfection by immersion, spray method, and microwave method, and also to evaluate and compare changes in surface roughness and dimensional accuracy between the three methods after disinfection...

BACKGROUND: Urinary tract infection (UTI) and enteritis are major causes of morbidity and mortality in children. A combined profiling of UTI and enteritis could be helpful since stool plays a major role in the etiopathogenesis of UTI. AIM: This study aimed to examine and compare bacterial UTI and bacterial enteritis in respect of their etiology and anti-microbial susceptibility (AMS) in children aged 0 to 17 years at Alliance Hospital, Abuja. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective descriptive study of urine cultures in children who were investigated for UTI and of stool cultures in those investigated for enteritis...

AIM: The research to be conducted on human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 in patients diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in Diyarbakır between 2019-2021 is to contribute to the understanding of the prevalence and effect of this genetic marker in the local population. As a researcher working on HLA-B27 and AS, our focus is to research the following. HLA-B27 Prevalence: To determine the prevalence of HLA-B27 in patients diagnosed with AS during the specified period in Diyarbakır...

BACKGROUND: ERCP is an endoscopic procedure for the diagnosis and treatment of biliopancreatic system diseases. An increase in intra-abdominal pressure due to the insufflation of air to the intestinal lumen may be transmitted to ICP through the course of ERCP. In this prospective, randomized, controlled double-blinded study, we aimed to assess the ICP change using ultrasonography measurement of ONSD in patients undergoing ERCP comparing the effects of propofol and ketofol anesthesia. MATERIAL/METHODS: One hundred and nine patients undergoing ERCP under propofol or ketofol anesthesia were enrolled in the study...

BACKGROUND: The successful outcome of nonsurgical root canal treatment (NS-RCT) is largely dependent on the technical quality of the procedure. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the incidence of separated instruments in endodontic postgraduate clinics between January 2018 and December 2021, and to determine the potential contributory factors that increase the risk of instrument separation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective observational study was conducted in the Department of Endodontics, Faculty of Dentistry, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia...

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of dental caries and oral health of patients on salivary cytokine levels with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT). MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 30 patients (n = 30) diagnosed with HT. The standardization of the participants was achieved with specific biochemical parameters, and the sociodemographic information of the patients was obtained through anamnesis. A pH meter was employed for salivary pH measurement...

BACKGROUND: Compomers are restorative materials commonly used in pediatric dentistry. It is important to investigate the monomer release of materials used especially in pediatric patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the residual monomer released from different-colored flowable compomers at five polymerization times. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three experimental groups were formed: Group 1: pink flowable compomer (Twinky Star, VOCO, Germany), Group 2: blue flowable compomer (Twinky Star, VOCO), Group 3: white flowable compomer, A2 color of Dyract XP (Dentslpy DeTrey, Konstanz, Germany)...