From Welfare to What?: The Limitations of Low-Income Work

The premise of the welfare law enacted by Congress is that people living in poverty could vastly improve their economic status if only they were employed. The author argues that economic security for welfare recipients will not be realized simply by increasing the labor-force attachment. Home health aides comprise an occupation that could absorb many of the large pool of workers expected to join the labor market because demand for their services is high and barriers to entry are low. However, as this survey shows, the home health field offers limited promise to welfare recipients because, significantly for women rolling off welfare, it is among the increasing number ofjobs in the economy that offer low wages and few benefits

Negotiating societal crises through eschatological narratives in Yoruba gospel music: Notes from evangelist J. A. Adelakun’s “Amona Tete Maa Bo”

Scholars have discussed how gospel music offers a framework for responding to the religious, social, and economic experiences of people in the society. Beyond performing religious and evangelistic purposes, how gospel music illuminates societal crises–politics and ecology–is yet to be known. This study examines the role of gospel music as a tool to facilitate religious experience while articulating social concerns. Specifically, it discusses the approaches employed by Yoruba gospel musicians in evoking spirituality in their discourse on societal problems. Reference is made to the musical performance of a popular Yoruba gospel music album titled “Amona Tete Maa bo” by Evangelist J.A. Adelakun which was accessed on YouTube. Further information is gathered from other internet sites including blogs, social media as well as periodicals which provided the secondary sources of data for the study. Through textual and musical analyses of the first and longest track in the album, and relying on critical discourses from musicology, religion and cultural studies, this paper demonstrates how gospel musicians deploy musical and theological approaches to reference and negotiate their social, political and environmental ‘salvation’ through eschatological narrative. The article explains the extent to which these approaches in gospel music and by extension Yoruba gospel musicians are evocative of the general spiritual dimension to almost every social, political and ecological crisis in Africa

Nasal Glioma: Prenatal Diagnosis and Multidisciplinary Surgical Approach

Nasal gliomas are congenital, nonmalignant rests of neuroglial tissue that typically present as a craniofacial mass. The differential diagnosis of such masses includes lesions that often require the involvement of various surgical subspecialties, including otolaryngology, neurosurgery, plastic surgery, and ophthalmology. Early surgical excision of these masses is advised to minimize nasal and craniofacial distortion. Accordingly, early diagnosis and management planning are paramount, and advances in prenatal imaging are creating a new role for obstetricians and radiologists in the initiation of diagnostic and therapeutic interventions. We describe the case history of a young patient found to have a craniofacial mass on routine prenatal ultrasound and subsequently managed with a multidisciplinary team approach

“How Worldly Should We Get to Win the World?”: Autoethnographic Reflections on Sacred and Mundane Entanglements in Nigerian Gospel Music Discourse

This article explores the intersection of religion and popular culture by examining how the connections between the sacred and secular are portrayed in public discourse surrounding Nigerian gospel music. Studies exploring gospel music in Nigeria have examined its growth, style, classifications, and significance in facilitating spirituality in everyday life. As a form of Christian popular culture, gospel music influences and is influenced by secular art forms. This interaction has generated several criticisms from both within and outside the Christian fold. Despite the longstanding tensions relating to the entanglement between gospel music and secular popular expressions, how these controversies are encountered, framed, and discussed in public discourse has not received scholarly investigation. Based on years of observation and sacred public conversations, including sermons and social media comments, this study aims to answer the following question: How are the concepts of spirituality and ‘worldliness’ framed in the public discourse on gospel music practices in Nigeria? What are the possible explanations for the interaction between the sacred and the secular in Nigerian gospel music? What do these public discourses mean for understanding how the ‘boundaries’ of Christianity and its artistic forms, including gospel music, are stretched, collapsed, constructed, reconstructed, mediated, and negotiated through the structures of popular culture in Nigeria? The study reveals that symbolic entanglements, fandom and celebrity culture, as well as labour and religious economy, frame the discourse regarding the perpetual interactions between gospel music and secular entertainment. It concludes that the public controversies regarding the extent to which religious actors, including preachers and gospel musicians in Nigeria and Africa, will go (including mobilising secular popular culture) to win the world are limitless.    &nbsp

Comparative Study of Variola and Varicella in Nigeria

1. Variola and varicella have been known for centuries in Nigeria, though not differentiated as separate entities. 2. Variolisation was practised by some of the tribes. 3. Isolation in the bush far from human dwellings is the general rule observed by most of the tribes. Cases are treated only by the smallpox priest or by someone who has had a previous attack. The same applies to handling of corpses, which are invariably denied burial rites. 4. Difficulties in diagnosis may be met with not only in relation to diseases like typhoid, influenza, pneumonia, measles, but also in relation to diseases like malaria, yellow fever and papular syphilides, which are common. 5. Stress is laid on the careful examination of all skin rashes in the Negro, and the isolation of any doubtful case. 6. The presence of a dark pigmented centre in variola papules is of valuable diagnostic importance when seen. 7. Variola and varicella are diseases of the hot months when people are least likely to crowd together. Fly prevalence, increased facilities for communication between neighbouring villages, aerial convection, and the effect of heat and sunlight on vaccine lymph and vaccination during the hot season are responsible factors for this seasonal incidence. 8. The incidence of variola is higher in African males than females. An even higher incidence of varicella in males is observed. This is due to a greater measure of natural immunity to both diseases in African women than is enjoyed by the men. 9. Variola is not selective as to age. All ages are almost equally affected, though, on account of vaccination, the incidence is now shifted to adult life. Varicella, in contrast, is selective as to age. In cold and temperate climates it is a disease of childhood, but in Nigeria,and probably in other tropical countries, it is a disease of adult life. The immunity enjoyed in childhood is closely related to the high natural immunity in African women. This immunity gradually passes off till it is at a minimum in adult life, when the incidence of varicella is highest. 10. The evolution of the eruption in the Negro is slow, and this is probably related to the texture and pigmentation of the skin

Choice of Antiretroviral Drugs for Postexposure Prophylaxis for Adults and Adolescents: A Systematic Review

Background. The choice of preferred regimens for human immunodeficiency virus postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) has evolved over the last 2 decades as more data have become available regarding the safety and tolerability of newer antiretroviral drugs. We undertook a systematic review to assess the safety and efficacy of antiretroviral options for PEP to inform the World Health Organization guideline revision process. Methods. Four databases were searched up to 1 June 2014 for studies reporting outcomes associated with specific PEP regimens. Data on PEP completion and discontinuation due to adverse events was extracted and pooled estimates were obtained using random-effects meta-analyses. Results. Fifteen studies (1830 PEP initiations) provided evaluable information on 2-drug regimens (zidovudine [ZDV]- or tenofovir [TDF]-based regimens), and 10 studies (1755 initiations) provided evaluable information on the third drug, which was usually a protease inhibitor. The overall quality of the evidence was rated as very low. For the 2-drug regimen, PEP completion rates were 78.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 66.1%-90.7%) for people receiving a TDF-based regimen and 58.8% (95% CI, 47.2%-70.4%) for a ZDV-based regimen; the rate of PEP discontinuation due to an adverse event was lower among people taking TDF-based PEP (0.3%; 95% CI, 0%-1.1%) vs a ZDV-based regimen (3.2%; 95% CI, 1.5%-4.9%). For the 3-drug comparison, PEP completion rates were highest for the TDF-based regimens (TDF+emtricitabine [FTC]+lopinavir/ritonavir [LPV/r], 71.1%; 95% CI, 43.6%-98.6%; TDF+FTC+raltegravir [RAL], 74.7%; 95% CI, 41.4%-100%; TDF+FTC+ boosted darunavir [DRV/r], 93.9%; 95% CI, 90.2%-97.7%) and lowest for ZDV+ lamivudine [3TC]+LPV/r (59.1%; 95% CI, 36.2%-82.0%). Discontinuations due to adverse drug reactions were lowest for TDF+FTC+RAL (1.9%; 95% CI, 0%-3.8%) and highest for ZDV+3TC+boosted atazanavir (21.2%; 95% CI, 13.5%-30.0%). Conclusions. The findings of this review provide evidence supporting the use of coformulated TDF and 3TC/FTC as preferred backbone drugs for PEP. Choice of third drug will depend on setting; for resource-limited settings, LPV/r is a reasonable choice, pending the improved availability of better-tolerated drugs with less potential for drug-drug interaction

Isolation and Characterization of Bacteriophages from Fish tank Samples

Bacteriophages (phages) are viral obligate intracellular parasites that infect bacteria. Research has been carried out on alternative treatment plans for bacterial infections due to the increase in antibiotic resistance. Phages have been proposed as an alternative to antibiotics. This research focused on the isolation and characterization of bacteria from small aquariums. A total of 42 bacterial isolates were isolated from seven different fish tank water samples and were tested to determine if they possessed phages. Spot plaque assay revealed presence of lytic phage for only one of the isolated bacterial strains, which was determined to belong to Enterobacteriaceae family based on the 16S ribosomal RNA sequencing. The phage isolated in spot plaque assay was successfully propagated in liquid bacterial culture. TEM showed that the isolated phage had a complex capsid and according to its morphology probably belongs to the family Myoviridae. Analysis of phage’s genetic material indicated that it is a DNA phage with its highest DNA sequence similarity with previously described phages of bacteria from Enterobacteriaceae. Further analysis is required to determine if this phage belongs to a previously described phage species or not and if it has potential in the treatment of enterobacterial infections

From caution to urgency: the evolution of HIV testing and counselling in Africa.

OBJECTIVE: To describe recent changes in policy on provider-initiated testing and counselling (PITC) for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in African countries and to investigate patients' experiences of and views about PITC. METHODS: A review of the published literature and of national HIV testing policies, strategic frameworks, plans and other relevant documents was carried out. FINDINGS: Of the African countries reviewed, 42 (79.2%) had adopted a PITC policy. Of the 42, all recommended PITC for the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission, 66.7% recommended it for tuberculosis clinics and patients, and 45.2% for sexually transmitted infection clinics. Moreover, 43.6% adopted PITC in 2005 or 2006. The literature search identified 11 studies on patients' experiences of and views about PITC in clinical settings in Africa. The clear majority regarded PITC as acceptable. However, women in antenatal clinics were not always aware that they had the right to decline an HIV test. CONCLUSION: Policy and practice on HIV testing and counselling in Africa has shifted from a cautious approach that emphasizes confidentiality to greater acceptance of the routine offer of HIV testing. The introduction of PITC in clinical settings has contributed to increased HIV testing in several of these settings. Most patients regard PITC as acceptable. However, other approaches are needed to reach people who do not consult health-care services

Treatment outcomes of patients on Second-line Antiretroviral Therapy in resource-limited settings: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

A growing proportion of patients on antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited settings have switched to second-line regimens. We carried out a systematic review in order to summarize reported rates and reasons for virological failure among people on second-line therapy in resource-limited settings