Background: The Ghanaian elderly population is increasing at the fastest rate and this has become a burden as the rate is not proportional to the investment in health to meet their deteriorating health needs. This creates discrepancies and inequalities in healthcare access and coupled with poor healthcare provider services, the inequalities widen. Poor care services are related to poor knowledge and bad attitudes of care providers hence this study seeks to explore the health practitioners’ level of knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) toward geriatric care. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional survey design with a simple stratified random technique to select study participants. Out of 257 participants who were sampled for the study, 215 responses were received, representing 83.6% response rate. However, 200 questionnaires were complete (93%) and valid for analysis, which consisted of 166 nurses, representing 83% valid responses, and 34 medical officers, physician assistants, and other allied health care providers, representing 17% valid responses from these professionals. A structured questionnaire was used to assess KAP using the knowledge about Older Patients Quiz (KOP-Q) and Kogan’s Attitudes toward Old People Scale (KAOP). Using a mean score of 80%, knowledge, attitude, and practice were dichotomized into good or bad. The Kruskal-Wallis H test was used to compare mean rank across health professionals’ knowledge, attitude, and practice of geriatric care. Results: It shows that the majority (94%) of participants have low levels of knowledge in geriatric care. The majority (84%) of participants do not practice good geriatric care. Differences in knowledge exist among health providers and were statistically significant ( P = .045). Doctors had the lowest mean knowledge score (78.61). Nurses (100.27) and physician assistants (106.15) had moderate mean knowledge score ranks. Although not statistically significant, the rank order for practice scores from highest to lowest was: physician assistants (112.95), nurses (99.19), and doctors (79.21). There were however no statistically significant differences between professions in practice scores ( P = .067), or attitude scores ( P = .097). Conclusion: Health care providers have low knowledge and, bad attitude toward aged care and this may be related to their service delivery which may affect the aged patronage of healthcare services. This is a wake-up call for authorities to organize continuous professional development to enable care providers to improve their service delivery.

Background: The effect of hypertension is aggravated by lifestyle factors such as alcohol consumption. This study sought to determine the association between alcohol consumption and the level of blood pressures among HIV seronegative and seropositive cohorts. Methods: This secondary analysis was performed on a cross-sectional survey data of 17 922 participants during the period between 2018 and 2020. A questionnaire was used to obtain participants’ alcohol consumption history, which was categorized into non-alcohol consumers, non-heavy alcohol consumers, and heavy alcohol consumers. A linear regression model was used to establish relationships among participants with raised blood pressure (BP ≥ 140/90 mmHg). Results: Out of the total participants, 3553 (19.82%) were hypertensives. Almost 13% of the hypertensives (n = 458; 12.89%) were undiagnosed, and 12.44 % (442) had uncontrolled hypertension. About 14.52% of the hypertensives (3553) were not on any antihypertensive medication. Male non-consumers of alcohol had the highest systolic and diastolic BP; uncontrolled systolic BP (165.53 ± 20.87 mmHg), uncontrolled diastolic BP (102.28 ± 19.21mmHg). Adjusted for covariates, moderate alcohol consumption was associated with HTN among participants who were HIV seropositive [unadjusted (RR = 1.772, P = .006, 95% CI (1.178-2.665)], [RR = 1.772, P = .005, 95% CI (1.187-2.64)]. [unadjusted RR = 1.876, P = .036, 95% CI (1.043-3.378)], adjusted RR = 1.876, P = .041, 95% CI (1.024-3.437). Both moderate and heavy alcohol consumption were significantly related to hypertension among HIV sero-negative [unadjusted model, moderate consumption RR = 1.534 P = .003, 95% CI (1.152-2.044)], [adjusted model, moderate alcohol consumption RR = 1.535, P = .006, 95% CI (1.132-2.080)], [unadjusted model, heavy alcohol consumption, RR = 2.480, P = .030, 95% CI (1.091-5.638)], [adjusted model RR = 2.480, P = .034, 95% CI (1.072-5.738)]. Conclusion: Alcohol consumption is significantly related to increase BP regardless of HIV infection.

Diabetes is undergoing an epidemiologic transition in sub-Saharan Africa, driven by factors such as the westernization of the African diet and changes in personal lifestyle. This transition of the African diet is seen more in urban than rural communities. Dietary counseling is subject to non-adherence because people living with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) are often counseled on diets that are usually difficult to come by in rural communities, and are unpalatable for some. This study, therefore, aimed to investigate dietary non-adherence and perceived barriers to the recommended diet among individuals living with T2DM in a rural community in Ghana. a descriptive cross-sectional survey design with a quantitative approach was used to assess the dietary adherence/non-adherence to dietary counseling of 208 T2DM participants receiving care at the new Edubiase government hospital. Dietary non-adherence was measured as an outcome variable against predictors such as socio-demographic factors, biological risk factors, duration of T2DM, presence of comorbidities (hypertension), and knowledge of T2DM. females were the majority, 73.6% (n=153), and the average age was 58 (SD ±11.9). The prevalence of non-adherence was 39.42% (n=82). About 24.5% (n=51) of the participants ate fruits and vegetables 25% (n=52) every time in their main meal. A total of 43.3 % (n=90) of the participants were engaged in inappropriate dietary habits. The majority cited food unavailability 84.6% (n=176), inaccessibility 80.8% (n=164), and financial constraints 60.1% (n=125) as perceived barriers to dietary non-adherence. The majority, 65.9% (n=137) of the participants, indicated that food preferences and taste contribute to non-adherence to diabetic diets. Among participants who adhered to the recommended diet, females with tertiary education and T2DM onset of less than 5 years were associated with higher adherence (females -aOR = 7.33, 95% CI = 2.33-22.99, P = .001, aOR = 3.69, 95% CI = 1.53-8.88, P = .001). Participants who did not use complementary herbal remedies had higher odds of adhering to dietary recommendations compared to those who used herbal remedies (aOR = 6.53, 95% CI = 2.34-18.23, P = .001). Among participants who were not adhering to recommended diets were those who had poor knowledge of T2DM management and a high Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR) (aOR = 7.97, 95% CI = 2.61-24.31, P = .001, aOR = 0.06, 95% CI = 0.01-0.33, P = .001). the high rates of non-compliance with dietary recommendations underscore the need for comprehensive and targeted interventions to address the multifaceted barriers faced by persons living with T2DM in rural communities.

BackgroundIn Africa, the elderly population is increasing at the fastest rate and this has become a burden as the rate is not proportional to the investment in health to meet their deteriorating health needs. Together with poor health care services, this creates discrepancies in access to health due to the financial limitations of the aged. Poor care services are related to poor knowledge, and bad perception hence this study seeks to explore the health practitioners’ level of knowledge, attitude, practice (KAP), and perception toward geriatric care.MethodsUsing a convenient sampling technique, 257 participants consisting of medical doctors, nurses, and physician assistants will be recruited within two months from three (3) polyclinic hospitals in the Ashanti Region (Tafo Government Hospital Suntreso Government Hospital and Kumasi South Hospital). A structured questionnaire will be used to assess KAP. Knowledge will be accessed by the use of the Knowledge about Older Patients Quiz (KOP-Q) while perception uses and attitude utilizes Nolan and Kogan’s attitude towards old people scale.ResultsThe study will provide insight into the current state of geriatric care in the country especially among health practitioners. It will provide insight into the unique factors contributing to the quality of care health professionals give to the aged. Again, the study will offer the management of the respective hospitals the enormity of the problem (health professional’s knowledge, attitude, and practice of geriatric care) and put in measures to address them

Background: The recent increase in interest in alternative medicine calls for an investigation into the non-target organ effect. Khaya senegalensis is one of such popular plants used to manage malaria in low-income countries. This study therefore aimed at investigating the effect of stem bark extract of Khaya senegalensis (KSE) on the testes (non-target organ) and its related serum hormones. Methods: Grouped mature male rats (n = 4) were treated with 100–1000 mg/kg KSE or distilled water for twenty-eight days. Serum hormones were taken immediately after cervical dislocation, prepared appropriately, and assayed for Testosterone, Luteinizing, and Follicle Stimulating Hormone. The hormones levels were determined using ELISA kits The right testis and epididymis from treated animals were harvested and prepared for histological studies. Results: The result indicated a significant increase ( p = 0.045, 0.038) in the epididymis and serum LH in the 1000 mg/kg KSE, but caused no significant increase in serum FSH and Testosterone ( p > 0.05), in any of the treatment groups. Histological sections of the testes showed mild to moderate degeneration of the spermatogonia and hyalinization (1000 mg/kg, 500 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg) of the seminiferous tubules with reduced spermatogenesis in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusion: Khaya senegalensis could have an adverse effect on the morphology of the testis in a dose-dependent manner.