Heart Failure Patients Warned About The Dangers Of Mixing Prescriptions

Mike O’Meara’s life runs on a tight schedule.

Every morning, after a glass of juice and breakfast, the 70-year-old picks up his medication from a blue labeled tray his wife Beth prepared and gulps down 12 and a half pills.

At noon, he swallows three more.

Around dinner time, three more.

And before bed, he reaches for his nightstand drawer to grab his last doses of the day: seven and a half pills.

O’Meara has been diagnosed with diabetes, kidney problems and heart failure. He depends on 16 medicines — 26 pills a day — to manage his health. Taking a variety of pills is not unusual for older patients, but the American Heart Association Monday warned heart failure patients and their doctors that they need to monitor the variety of drugs because of the possibility of unintended consequences.

In the journal Circulation, the American Heart Association said heart failure patients take an average of nearly seven prescription medicines a day and 40 percent of Medicare patients with heart failure also have five or more other chronic diseases. According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 5.7 million Americans live with heart failure.

Heart failure is caused by the cardiac muscle’s inability to pump blood efficiently enough to support the body’s needs. Symptoms include shortness of breath, fatigue and swelling in the legs.

Among the most dangerous drugs for interaction, according to the study, were several commonly used to treat cancer, migraines, Parkinson’s disease and mental health issues.

Dr. Davy Cheng, a professor at Western Ontario University’s medical school and co-author of the statement, said he hoped it would serve as a “current up-to-date review” of the risks associated with medication given to heart failure patients.

Medications were ranked by their potential for harm based on the severity of the reaction and onset from when the last dose was taken. Researchers formulated the ratings based on existing data, scientific trials and package inserts.

More than 32 prescription medications were found to cause direct damage to the heart. For example, anthracyclines, a class of chemotherapy compounds frequently used to combat cancer, contain five agents known for causing irregular heart rhythms and inflammation. Researchers also linked ergotamine, a migraine medication, to heart valve problems.

Commonly used over-the-counter drugs such as ibuprofen can contain high amounts of sodium and damage the heart by causing fluid buildup.

Heart failure is a progressive disease, which means the medicines proven effective today may stop working in a few months, said Dr. Gurusher Panjrath, an assistant professor of medicine at the George Washington University’s medical school in Washington, D.C.

And since many heart failure patients are also dealing with other health conditions, keeping track of the variety of drugs they are taking can be complicated. Many of these patients obtain pills from multiple doctors who seldom consult one another on what he or she prescribed. And without oversight, the prescription cocktail can lead to deadly reactions.

“Heart failure is not an easy disease like the flu that you can forget about it then it’s gone,” Cheng said. “Heart failure is a serious disease.”

The AHA statement contained a list of recommendations for medical professionals to better understand their patients’ prescription drug regimens. It suggests doctors regularly do a comprehensive review of the patient’s medicines, including dosage and frequency, and consider verifying the information with the patient’s pharmacy. It also recommended that physicians avoid prescribing new medication to alleviate side effects from other drugs.

Researchers also advised doctors to carefully consider the risk and benefit of every medication before prescribing it to a patient.

While the statement emphasizes a doctor’s role in improving care coordination, patient engagement also plays a key part in bettering prescription drug management, said Robert Page, professor of clinical pharmacy at the University of Colorado School of Pharmacy and lead author of the study. He recommended patients bring an accurate and complete list of medications to every doctor’s visit. Individuals should also learn the risks of their medications and communicate frankly with their doctors.

“Patients need to be engaged now more than ever,” Page said. “Medicine has become very complex.”

So every morning, before breakfast but after his glass of juice, Mike O’Meara’s wife Beth stirs him awake to measure his vitals and record them in a logbook laying on his nightstand.

Glucose. Temperature. Oxygen saturation. Heart rate. Weight. Blood pressure.

And at every appointment, Beth is present with book in hand to share the details of her husband’s condition with his doctors. Mike said his medical team considers the book “gospel” in tracking his progress. While the heart failure diagnosis changed his life, Mike said his new regimen is a small price to pay to stay alive.

“If someone told you, you had to do this to live,” he said, “wouldn’t you live?”

DEFENCE PROCUREMENT: BUHARI MAY SACK INTERIOR MINISTER

AS THE Presidential Committee on Defence Equipment Procurement in the Nigerian Armed Forces concludes its task and is set to submit its report to President Muhammadu Buhari this week, there are indications that the president may sack his Interior Minister, Lt. Gen. Abdurahman Danbazau, over his alleged indictment on the report. A highly placed security source, during the weekend, told Nigerian Pilot that the president was not happy with the security briefs he had received so far on the report and is willing to sacrifice the embattled minister to ensure that Nigeria is free of corruption. The source further added that among former army chiefs and other top officers of the Nigerian Army, there were attempts to doctor the report but the panels members resisted. According to the report, the security source said that the committee, which was set up by Mr. President to probe the procurement of arms, ammunition and equipment in the military from 2007 to 2015, said several top retired army officers were indicted and some were already scheming to suppress the content of the report. The source, who described the report as “damning” and “explosive,” said some retired top army officers indicted included present Minister of Interior, Abdurahman Bello Dambazau; the immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Kenneth Minimah, and his predecessor, Azubuike Ihejirika. It is alleged that Dambazau was particularly trying to suppress the content of the report. He was appointed the Chief of Army Staff by late President Umaru Yar’Adua, and served between 2008 and 2010. “The committee members are putting things together and will present its findings to the president in the next few weeks or so,” the source said. According to the report, it was reliably gathered that the committee uncovered a whole lot of things, including the outright stealing of funds meant for equipment for the army, inflation of contracts, diversion of money for soldiers’ welfare, money for the rehabilitation of barracks and military facilities and many other corrupt practices. It would be recalled that in March 2016, the committee, predominantly made up of retired military officers, had summoned 292 retired and serving top army officers, including Generals Dambazau, Ihejirika and Minimah. Last August, the president also directed the National Security Adviser, Mohammed Mongonu, to set up a 13-member investigative committee on the procurement of hardware and munitions in the armed forces from 2007. A statement by the special adviser to the president on media and publicity, Femi Adesina, stated that the investigative committee’s mandate was to identify irregularities and make recommendations for streamlining the procurement process in the armed forces. The establishment of the investigative committee was in keeping with President Buhari’s determination to stamp out corruption and irregularities in Nigeria’s public service, Mr. Adesina said. “It comes against the background of the myriad of challenges that the Nigerian Armed Forces have faced in the course of ongoing counter-insurgency operations in the North-East, including the apparent deficit in military platforms with its attendant negative effects of troops’ morale. “The committee will specifically investigate allegations of non- adherence to correct equipment procurement procedures and the exclusion of relevant logistics branches from arms procurement under past administrations, which very often resulted in the acquisition of sub- standard and unserviceable equipment,” the statement added. Recently, the president ordered the arrest of the former Chief of Air Staff, Adesola Amosu, and other top officers of the Nigerian Air Force, after an interim report of an inquiry into the procurement of equipment uncovered widespread diversion of funds and fraud. Those indicted by the report were former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki; former Chief of Defence Staff, Alex Badeh, and another former Chief of
Air Staff, Mohammed Umar, and other top officers, who are all facing corruption charges in the court. “The procurement processes were arbitrarily carried out and generally characterised by irregularities and fraud,” the panel said. “In many cases, the procured items failed to meet the purposes they were procured for, especially the counter insurgency efforts in the North -East. “A major procurement activity undertaken by ONSA for NAF was that concerning the contracts awarded to Societe D’ Equipment Internationaux, SEI, Nig Ltd. “Between January 2014 and February 2015, NAF awarded 10 contracts totalling nine hundred and thirty million, five hundred thousand, six hundred and ninety dollars ($930,500,690) to SEI Nig Ltd. “Letters of award and End User Certificates for all the contracts issued by NAF and ONSA respectively did not reflect the contract sums. Rather, these were only found in the vendor’s invoices, all dated 19 March 2015,” it said. The panel said some of the award letters contained misleading delivery dates suggesting fraudulent intent in the award process. The observed discrepancies are in clear contravention of extant procurement regulations. The SEI contracts included procurement of two used Mi- 24V Helicopters instead of the recommended Mi-35M series at the cost of one hundred and thirty-six million, nine hundred and forty-four thousand US dollars ($136,944,000). “However, it was confirmed that the helicopters were excessively priced and not operationally air worthy at the time of delivery. A brand new unit of such helicopters goes for about thirty million dollars ($30million),” it noted. Furthermore, the helicopters were delivered without rotor blades and upgrade accessories. “Additionally, the helicopters were undergoing upgrade while being deployed for operation in the North- East without proper documentation. It was further established that as at date, only one of the helicopters is in service while the other crashed and claimed the lives of two NAF personnel. “The committee established that ONSA also funded the procurement of four used Alpha-Jets for the NAF at the cost of seven million, one hundred and eighty thousand dollars ($7,180,000). However, it was confirmed that only two of the Alpha-Jet aircraft were ferried to Nigeria after cannibalisation of engines from NAF fleet. “This is contrary to the written assertion of the former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal AN Amosu, to the former NSA that all the four procured Alpha-Jets aircraft were delivered to the NAF. “The non-militarisation of the Alpha-Jets made them unsuitable for deployment to the North-East and they are currently deployed only for training at NAF Kainji. “Furthermore, the procurement of the Alpha-Jets was contrary to the recommendation of the assessment team.” “The committee found that the conduct of Air Marshal Amosu was deliberately misleading and unpatriotic,” the panel said. Amosun and two other senior air force officers arraigned before a Federal High Lagos are already telling the court that they are willing to settle on plea bargain. In a related development, a highly placed EFCC source yesterday confirmed to Nigerian Pilot that the commission was waiting for the official submission of the report before the operatives of the commission would swing into action.

NIGERIA NEEDS DIVERSIFICATION: OSINBAJO

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo said that Nigeria needs diversification of the economy and not restructuring because the Federal Government controls the bulk of the resources. The Nation Reports.

Osinbajo who spoke at the second Foundation Lecture of the Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin in Ondo State, said the nation is not earning enough from oil and taxes anymore, adding that the nation is blessed and every nation can feed itself and also export if engaged in agriculture.

On restructuring, he described calling for restructuring of the country simply because the federal government controls a bigger portion of the resources, may not be helpful or make a difference.

He said: “Even if states are given half of the resources of the federal government, the situation will not change; the only change is to diversify the economy.”

He urged Nigerians to embrace technology as a vital key to development.

In his lecture entitled; The Future is Here Earlier Than We Thought.”, he said understanding the way technology works and thinking out of the box is the way to go in the world of today.

He stressed that the path to greatness and development is in critical thinking and coming up with innovative ideas.

According to the Nation, Osinbajo also listed major and global advancements attained through technology and innovative ideas including how some Nigerians have taken due advantage of it.

Recognizing the central role innovation and technology play for national economic growth plan, he said, that the federal government provided extensively for technology and innovation in the current budget.

IBEDC Staff Electrocuted in Ilorin

A technical staff with the lbadan Electricity Distribution Company (lBEDC) in llorin was electrocuted on Thursday evening.

Eyewitnesses told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in llorin that the deceased, Rasheed Garna, was electrocuted while carrying out repair work on a damaged breaker in llorin.

The eyewitnesses said the incident happened at the lBEDC transmission station at the Sawmill area of llorin.

Scores of symphatisers were sighted at the residence of the deceased located at Egbejila in Ilorin.

Some of his neighbours, who spoke with NAN, said the deceased had just moved to his new house during the Ramadan.

lBEDC Communication Manager, Mr Ayodeji Bada, while confirming the incident to NAN in llorin on Friday said the deceased was electrocuted while on official assignment.

Bada described Garna as a dedicated staff and a complete gentleman.

He said Garna was in the team carrying out repair work on a damaged breaker which had thrown residents of the area into darkness for over a week.

Bada, who described the incident as unfortunate, commiserated with the family of the deceased.

The Police Public Relations Officer in Kwara, Mr Ajayi Okasanmi, also confirmed the incident to NAN on Friday.

JAMB releases new grading system for candidates

Few weeks after the Federal Government scrapped the post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examinations (UTME) as a prerequisite for admission into universities in the country, the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has released a new grading system for the 2016/2017 session.

In the new system candidates seeking admission into universities would be awarded points according to their scores in JAMB and performance at the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE] and Senior School Certificate Examination conducted by the National Examinations Council (NECO).

Points that would accrue to candidates, according to the official grading system released by the body, are as follows:

JAMB SCORE GRADE POINTS
180 - 185 ——————         20 points
186 - 190————————    21points
191 - 195————————-  22points
196 - 200———————-    23points
201 - 205———————-    24points
206 - 210———————      25 points
211 - 215———————-    26 points
216 - 220————————  27 points
221 - 225————————  28 points
226 - 230————————  29 points
231 - 235————————   30 points
236 - 240———————-   31 points
241 - 245———————-    32 points
246 - 250————————  33 points
251 - 300——————    34- 43points
300 - 400—————     44-60 points

As stated in the new grading system, candidates that had single sitting of WASSCE or NECO SSCE would be awarded 10 points, while those that had their results at more than one sitting would score only 2 points. Also students with A1 in subjects offered at the SSCE would score six points, B2 and B3 would garner four points, while C4 - C6 would be graded three points. The new system has tended to collapse the admission process into one though the universities will still decide the cut off marls for various courses.

Reacting to the new development, the Vice President, Association of African Universities (AAU), Prof  Olusola Oyewole, said the Committee of Vice Chancellors would study the development and make its positions clear at the right time. He said it would be too early to judge the new policy even when it has not been implemented to ascertain how fair it would be to the university system.

Oyewole, who is also the Vice Chancellor, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta  (FUNAAB), said the policy has to be studied before further comments.

The decision to scrap post-UTME was reached at the 2016 Combined Policy Meeting on Admissions to Universities, Polytechnics and other higher institutions in Nigeria. The Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu, while declaring open the meeting, said since the federal government and stakeholders had confidence in the examinations conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, there was no need for other screening examinations by  universities.

Reactions poured in torrents across the country. Some described the decision as a drawback to the concerted efforts to improve the quality of students admitted into the nation's universities, while others hailed the decision as one that would restore the  autonomy of the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

Seasoned educationist and Proprietor of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD), Aare Afe Babalola, (SAN), described the decision as a regrettable mistake, noting that many of the students admitted into Nigerian universities through JAMB were not only academically deficient but also unfit to justify the high marks scored in JAMB examinations.

Also, former Vice Chancellor, University of Lagos (UNILAG), Prof Tolu Odugbemi, held similar opinion. He said the decision to scrap the post-UTME without proper research was ill-conceived and utterly worrisome. He maintained that universities should have the right to admit suitable students based on relevant and objective criteria.

Former Vice Chancellor, Nnamdi Azikiwe University (Unizik), Awka, Prof Boniface Egboka, said the emplacement of the post-UTME was widely discussed in the public and accepted for use by Nigerian universities.

He noted that large number of students pass JAMB exam every year, but further screening often reveal that they were not qualified. He argued that conducting the post-UTME allowed universities to select the best out of the mammoth candidates.

A contrary view was expressed by the former Vice Chancellor, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University, Lapai, Niger State, Prof. Ibrahim Kolo, who warned that Nigeria cannot allow itself to veer off the lane of international best practices in educational development.  He said the credibility of examinations conducted by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has improved remarkably over the years, which had over-ruled the essence of further post-UTME tests by various universities.

Kolo explained that the use of external monitors, security agencies, paper and computer test approach, and n computer based test (CBT) had greatly improved the quality and reliability of the results of JAMB examination.

'Indeed JAMB has taken the lead already in adopting measures to overcome genuine challenges associated with the use of technology for ease of public transactions in Nigeria while encouraging other public examinations to begin the CBT approach. The problem with us is that we are most often not patient enough to allow innovations to work, even when it is in tandem with international best practices', he said.

When contacted on phone on the new process put in place by JAMB, the PRO of University of Nigeria, Nsukka Chief Okwun Omeaku, said that the university authorities met on Monday before the Sallah break to deliberate on the new point mode of admission.

He said that they would reconvene by next Monday before issuing a statement on it, saying that the institution has no choice than to obey the new directive.

Chief Omeaku also said that the new admission mode is fantastic as it would eliminate fraud as well as ensure that the best-qualified candidates get admission.

Leicester City unveil Ahmed Musa

Nigerian interna­tional, Ahmed Musa says he joined premier league champions Leicester City on a £18m deal because of the family-like atmo­sphere in the club.

Musa completed the four -year deal with the Foxes Friday to become Leicester's fourth signing of the Summer, following the arrival of Nampaly's trio of Mendy, Ron -Rob­ert Zieler and Luis Her­nandez.

After the deal was con­firmed Musa, 23 , de­clared his delight at mov­ing to the King Power Stadium.

'I feel very happy join­ing Leicester City, for me it's one of the best clubs and I feel very happy,' Musa told the club's web­site. 'I joined because it's one of the best clubs in the Premier League and they are like a family.That's why I joined Leicester City and I'm very excited.

'I look forward to see­ing the fans in the new season and I will do my best to make them happy.'

Leicester's new signing joined CSKA in 2012 and scored 54 goals in 168 games, and has scored 11 times in 58 appearances for Nigeria since making his debut in 2010.

Musa scored twice in Nigeria's 3-2 defeat by Argentina at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, be­coming the first Nigerian to score twice in a World Cup finals match.

His first goal in that Group F game was Super Eagle's fastest at the tour­nament, coming after just four minutes.

The striker scored 13 goals and assisted an­other five for CSKA in 30 Russian Premier League appearances during the 2015-16 season - his most prolific campaign for Leonid Slutsky's side since his arrival from Dutch side VVV-Venlo in 2012.

NFF shortlists Yusuf, Saintfiet, Le Guen for Super Eagles' job

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has shortlisted three coaches for consideration for the post of Chief Coach of Super Eagles, and will name the successful one on Monday.

A statement by the NFF on Friday in Abuja listed the three coaches to include Super Eagles' caretaker coach Salisu Yusuf.

The rest two are former Ethiopia coach Tom Saintfiet, and Frenchman Paul Le Guen, who once coached Cameroon.

'On Friday at the Glass House, the NFF Technical and Development Committee pored over more than 20 applications before cutting the list to three.

'Among those who showed interest in coaching the Super Eagles are Giovanni Solinas, Saintfiet, Hey Antoine, Mark Wotte, Yusuf, Ernesto Paulo Calvinho, Dorian Marin, and Le Guen.

'Others are Miodrag Jesic, Perry Hansen, Ove Pedersen, Adebayo Lateef Kola, Sylvanus Okpala and Peter Ijeh.

'The rest are Vladimir Petrovic-Pizon, Lodewijk de Kruif, Kenichi Yatsuhashi, Bjorn Frank Peters and Ricki Herbert,'' the statement disclosed.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Saintfiet, a 43-year-old Belgian, has coached the national teams of Namibia, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Yemen, Malawi and Togo.

He has also worked with the Qatar national under-17 side, Young Africans FC of Tanzania and Free State Stars FC in South Africa.

Yusuf, 54, was capped by Nigeria at under-20 level and won FA Cup titles with El-Kanemi Warriors of Maiduguri as a player.

He coached top clubs Kano Pillars, El-Kanemi Warriors and Enyimba FC, and assisted Super Eagles' chief coaches Samson Siasia and Stephen Keshi (who died last month).

Yusuf was caretaker coach for two friendly matches, which the Eagles won against Mali and Luxembourg in Europe at the end of May.

Frenchman Le Guen, 52, played for Brest, Nantes and Paris Saint Germain (PSG) and won 17 caps for France, before coaching Rennes, Lyon, PSG (in France) and Glasgow Rangers (in Scotland).

He led the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon to qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals and also coached Oman.

Speaking on the development, Chairman of NFF's Technical and Development Committee, Chris Green, said the shortlist was on the basis of a set of criteria.

'We set a criteria with which we evaluated the nearly two dozen applications and then agreed on the three persons that we shortlisted.

'The Committee will now meet on July 18 to interview the shortlisted candidates and immediately name the next Super Eagles' Head Coach,' he said.(NAN)