Background and Objective: Prisons are penal institutions, where most often human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing of inmates is neglected. The prison could serve as a source of HIV spread during reintegration of the inmates back into the society upon release. The study is designed to determine the seroprevalence of HIV infection among male inmates in Birnin Kebbi prison, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: A total of 290 counseled and consenting inmates aged 15–55 years were enrolled in a “cross-sectional” study. Serum samples prepared from venous whole blood obtained from inmates were screened for HIV infection by a parallel testing algorithm using two commercial HIV-1 and 2 antigen testing kits. Results and Analyses: The results from the study showed that 8 (2.76%) out of the 290 inmates enrolled in the study had detectable HIV antibodies. The prevalence rate among the age groups was as follows; 15–24 years (2.78%), 25–34 years (2.74%), 35–44 years (5%), and 4–55 years (0.00%). Among the ethnic groups, the prevalence rates recorded were Tiv (14.29%), Nigeriens (7.69%), Igbo (4.55%), Yoruba (2.7%), and Hausa/Fulani (1.92%). Conclusion: Our study observes a high prevalence rate of HIV, across age grades, and ethnicities among inmates. Considering the non-HIV testing of inmates in prisons, we recommend the establishment of preventive and management measures of HIV in penal institutions throughout the country.

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The importance of human microbiota and their genomes, human microbiome, in health and disease has been increasingly recognized. Human microbiome has tremendous impact in our pathophysiology by modulating metabolic functions, protecting against pathogens, and educating the immune system. In particular, human microbiome is a major player at the interface between humans and their environment and therefore is crucial to the development of environmental disease. In this article, we briefly summarize and interpret the recent advances in the understanding of the roles of human microbiome in environment-related health and disease, and call for a more systematic integration of human microbiome and environmental disease research within the framework of evolutionary medicine.

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Arsenic concentrations exceeding the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) maximum containment level (MCL) of 10 μg/l are frequently reported in groundwater and well water in Southeast (SE) Michigan. The following research examined the relationship between arsenic exposure in well water and groundwater in SE Michigan and several adverse health effects including cancer, diabetes mellitus, cerebrovascular disease, and kidney disease. The expected outcome was to prove that arsenic exposure is a problem in the area while addressing mitigation strategies and technologies needed to reduce exposure. The objective of this research was to propose effective methods and strategies to help mitigate and reduce the risk of arsenic exposure for the population in SE Michigan. Reducing arsenic concentration in well water and groundwater will help reduce adverse health effects as well as keep drinking water safe for residents in the area. Relevant data about the geology of the area and epidemiological studies of arsenic-related disease and mortality rates proved the increased incidence of diseases related to arsenic exposure in the area. The population demographic data and arsenic exposure data were analyzed. The data collected demonstrated that residents in SE Michigan are exposed to elevated arsenic concentrations in well water and groundwater that exceed the EPA MCL. The elevated levels of arsenic in well water and groundwater are due to the mobilized inorganic arsenic in the bedrock aquifers in SE Michigan. The findings from the research show that arsenic, even at low levels, is harmful to human health. Mitigation strategies discussed include legislative action, systems for removing arsenic from water, adopting improved well-drilling practices, education, using bottled water, and more. Implementing these controls would increase the health and quality of life for residents of SE Michigan.

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Objectives: The main purpose of the study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of women concerning breast cancer in Jos and environs. Methods: A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to 400 respondents within the age of 18 years and above residing in Jos North and South Local Government Areas of Plateau state. The data collected were then analyzed using the IBM Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20.0 software programmer. Results: Out of the 400 study populations, only 395 (98.8%) responded to the study and 209 (53.0%) of them fall within the age 18–27 years while 89 (22.6%) were within 28 and 37 years, with only 17.8% and 6.6% in the age groups of 38–47 and ≥48 years, respectively. Two hundred and twenty (55.6%) were single, 153 (38.8%) married, while 8 (2.3%) divorced/separated, and 11 (2.8%) were widowed. The highest number (172 [43.7%]) of the respondents had secondary certificates as their highest academic qualifications, followed by diploma/The Nigeria Certificate in Education/Community Health Extension Workers (25.1%) and first degree (20.8%). Nearly 95% of the respondents have heard of breast cancer, with 30.94% of them having knowledge of the risk factors, 59.9% knew the signs and symptoms of the disease, and their main source of information (35.8%) was the media. Most of the respondents had positive attitude toward the disease, but their cancer breast screening practices were generally poor as majority of them (47.1%) had no idea of the right age to initiate self-breast examination, with majority (28.4%) confessing not practicing self-breast examination very often, neither visiting medical practitioner for breast cancer examination and care. Conclusion: The result of this study shows positive attitudes of the respondents toward the disease though high percentage of them had poor knowledge on risk factors and average knowledge of the signs and symptoms of the disease, in addition to poor breast self-examination practices.

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Both in China and abroad, the modern era of medicine and biomedical science has provided substantial improvements to the heath and quality of life of populations across many parameters. Concomitant with these improvements, however, the deleterious consequences of modern social production must also be investigated if we wish to produce a full account of how it has modified health. One such deleterious consequence is mental illness, which currently accounts for a substantial proportion of the disease burden worldwide. In this paper, we present one prominent component of this burden: the association of mental disorders with cerebrovascular disease. It has been established in the literature that cerebrovascular disease and mental illness are reciprocally aggravating; by discussing what is currently known about the mechanisms that mediate this relationship, we hope to stimulate future investigation into what is still unknown. We believe that further understanding in this area would not only improve our ability to treat patients with mental and cerebrovascular disease but also yield valuable insight into what factors, whether psychosocial, biological, or both, might constitute their common origin, and thus present a target for prevention.

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