Age at menarche varies with time of onset and the influence of social factors depends on the population under consideration. The objective of the present study was to determine the age at menarche among secondary school girls in Benin City, Nigeria and identify some of the social factors that might influence it. In this cross sectional study information on age at menarche was obtained from 1,640 menstruating secondary school girls (aged between 10 and 20 years) using the status quo method. Information sought in the structured questionnaire used included date of birth, date of menarche, educational attainment and occupation of parents, birth position, family size and State of origin. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 12.0. The mean age at menarche was 13.44±1.32 years (95% Confidence Interval, CI= 13.36-13.50). One out of every 15 (6.7%) girls below 12 years of age had attained menarche, indicating early menarche. There was statistically significant relationship between the mean menarcheal age and socioeconomic status (p< 0.001), birth position (p< 0.01) and family size (p< 0.01). The current mean age at menarche among secondary school girls in Benin City is 13.44±1.32 years and it is influenced by socioeconomic status, birth position and family size.

In Nigeria, thyroid disorders in childhood and adolescence have not been sufficiently studied. Where studies are available, they were either conducted decades ago or they involved only adults. The objectives are to describe the pattern of thyroid disorders among children and adolescents seen in a Nigerian teaching hospital and highlight the management challenges encountered. In this retrospective study, the case notes of all the children and adolescents with thyroid disorders seen in the Paediatric Endocrine-Metabolic Clinic and of those admitted into the wards of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) from 2005 to 2011 were audited. The total number of cases seen at the paediatric clinics of the Department of Child Health, UBTH was derived from the clinic attendance register of the department. Of the 8,350 cases seen during the period, 9(0.11%) had thyroid disorders, representing one per 930 cases. Of the 9 patients with thyroid disorders, 6(66.7%) had hyperthyroidism, 2(22.2%) had nongoitrous hypothyroidism and one (11.1%) had euthyroid goiter. The overall mean age at presentation for thyroid disorders was 11.2±4.3 years (95% Confidence Interval, CI = 8.4-14.0) and female-to-male ratio was 4:1. For the patients with hyperthyroidism, the mean age of presentation was 12.8±3.1 years (95% CI= 10.3-15.3) and female-to-male ratio was 5:1. The two children (a boy and a girl) with nongoitrous hypothyroidism were aged 3.5 and 6.0 years respectively. The mean duration of symptoms before presentation was thyroid disorders 1.72±1.2 years (95% CI=0.94-2.50), hyperthyroidism 8.5±1.5 months (95% CI=7.3-9.7). The only case of euthyroid goiter (female) presented at the age of 14 years. The two children with nongoitrous hypothyroidism had florid signs of hypothyroidism, such as growth retardation, mental retardation and delayed developmental milestones at presentation. A high clinic default rate was observed. Hyperthyroidism was the most common form of thyroid disorder observed and patients with thyroid disorders tended to present late.

Objective: In view of the increased prevalence of chloroquine resistance and the recent WHO malaria drug policy recommendation to use a combination of therapies especially artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) in Africa, we tried to assess the prescription pattern and level of knowledge in the use of antimalarial drugs including ACTs among medical practitioners in Osogbo metropolis, southwest Nigeria, an endemic area of Plasmodium falciparum infection. Method: Questionnaires were sent to every medical practitioner working in all the health facilities in the metropolis, namely, a teaching hospital, general hospital, mission hospital, comprehensive health centre and 20 privately owned health facilities. Of the total of 100 questionnaires sent out, 96 were completed and returned while the remaining 4 were not returned. The questionnaires were self-administered. Result: Sixty-seven percent of the respondents work in the teaching hospital, while the remaining 33% either work in the general hospital or in private medical practice. 82.4% prescribed chloroquine despite the widespread resistance, indicating that this remains the most prescribed antimalarial drug. 45.7% apply the dosage regimen correctly (Χ2 P<0.005); 66.7% prefer the use of chloroquine injection; 85.6% give chlorpheniramine with chloroquine because of pruritus; 14.4% give it because of its synergistic and reversal mechanism. Other commonly prescribed drugs include sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (71.1%), halofantrine (53.6%), amodiaquine and quinine (51.1%), mefloquine (20.6%), artemisinin or ACTs (18.6%) and co-trimoxazole (17.5%). Of these, the dosage regimen was applied correctly for: sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (30.9%), halofantrine (12.8%), amodiaquine (3.2%), co-trimoxazole (2.1%), ACTs, quinine and artemisinin monotherapy (1.1%). About 40% of practitioners prefer the use of combination therapy in the future. Conclusion: There is an obvious paucity of knowledge on the prescription of antimalarial drugs. The proportion of practitioners anticipating the use of combination therapy in the future indicates that with continued medical education the use of combination therapies especially ACTs will be accepted easily.