The Chief Medical Director (CMD) of Barau Dikko Teaching Hospital (BDTH) in Kaduna, Prof Abdulkadir Tabari, says premarital and neonatal screening is a 100 percent solution to ending the occurrence of sickle cell disease in the society.
Tabari said this in an interview on Monday in Kaduna.
Tabari explained that the hospital, which has research as one of its core mandates, entailed over 15 thematic areas where doctors and other health workers in the hospital are working.
He said the research cut across different diseases which are affecting the people including sickle cell disease which solutions are being researched on.
Tabari added that the hospital is prominent in research about sickle cell disease in particular.
According to him, Nigeria has the highest burden of sickle cell disease in the world.
“Out of the 300,000 children born globally with sickle cell disease, more than 150,000 are in Nigeria and the majority are in the northern part of the country.
“In the northern part of Nigeria, the North-West axis has the majority of the sickle cell disease cases. We are an endemic zone of the disease and we felt it necessary to delve into research on its solutions,” Tabari said.
He, therefore, said the hospital has a research group which focused on how to reduce maternal, child, neonatal, and infant mortality.
The CMD added that one of the prominent research in sickle cell the hospitals is doing was of stroke in children with sickle cell disease.
“The commonest cause of stroke in children is sickle cell disease. It is established that about ten to 11 percent of children with sickle cell disease develop stroke before their 20th birthday.
“Our research group seeks to identify those at an early stage who are vulnerable to stroke and then intervene to prevent it.
“We want those with sickle cell to live normal and productive life in the society, hence we collaborate with other sister organisations and health institutions within and outside the country to mount the research,” Tabari said.
The CMD added that neonatal testing was critical to knowing if a newborn baby has sickle cell disease inorder to ensure majors to prevent serious complications in unfortunate cases so as the baby could live healthy through his/her life.
He underscored the importance of blood testing including genotype and awareness creation to adults in the early days of courtship.
This, he said, was to ensure that they know their status and blood compatibly before it leads to a strong bond that would lead to marriage.
