Health

An Edmonton woman who received donor stem cells from her sister during a procedure in Calgary last year, has been declared cured of her sickle-cell disease and health officials believe Revée Agyepong is the first adult in Canada to be cured of the disease through such method.

Sickle-cell disease causes red blood cells to become misshapen and results in the clogging of small blood vessels. The disruption can result in bone deterioration and organ failure.

The National Agency for the Control of Aids has said Nigeria contributes the largest number of babies born with HIV in the world. The Director General of NACA, Sani Aliyu in an exclusive interview with Premiumtimes said some of the challenges facing the country in the health sector were responsible for the development.

Food Hygiene Initiative of Nigeria (FHIN) has beckoned on the Federal Government and policymakers to implement laws and policies that will guarantee food safety in the country.

FHIN’s Director General, Mr Nicholas Karimu, made the call in Abuja, during the graduation of about 350 of its officers on Food Preservation, Administration and Safety Practices.

Mr Karimu revealed that the three-week training was conducted at the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp Academy, Sauka, Airport Road, Abuja.

A female resident doctor of the Federal Medical Centre Umuahia, the Abia state capital, has been confirmed dead as a result of Lassa fever at Irrua Specialist Hospital, after few days of admission.

Confirming the report to Channels Television, Medical Director FMC, Dr Abali Chuku, said that the hospital is collaborating with the centre for Disease Control and Ministry of Health, following the guideline and protocol that includes contact tracing, surveillance and prophylaxis for those she came in contact with while on admission at the hospital.

Thanks to a laser-equipped mini-microscope developed by a French start-up, scientists have discovered a previously undetected feature of the human anatomy that could help explain why some cancers spread so quickly.

Nobody was looking for the interstitium, as the new quasi-organ is called, because no one knew it was there, at least not in complex form revealed in a study published this week.

As with many breakthroughs in medicine and science, it was to paraphrase Louis Pasteur’s oft-quoted dictum a case of chance favouring the prepared.

The Nigerian Optometric Association (NOA) says it will kick start a nationwide comprehensive free eye test for children between the ages of five and 14.

Dr Ngozi Nwanekezie, Chairperson of NOA FCT Chapter, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja that the initiative was aimed at improving the sight of children in the country.

She said the exercise was slated for every last Friday of the month and it would begin on March 30 and end in November.

Nwanekezie said the initiative was tagged “My sight, my right”, adding that the objective was to ensure high quality vision and eye health as the right of every child.