Chief Medical Director of Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Abakaliki, Dr. Paul Ezeonu, has expressed gratitude to President Goodluck Jonathan for making the hospital one of the four sickle cell disease centres in the country.
While celebrating the 2011 Sickle Cell Day at the FMC, the medical expert disclosed that Abakaliki centre had been approved by the Federal Government to be responsible for South-East/South South zones and would take care of all sickle cell complications not treated in smaller hospitals in the zone, and regretted that over 40 million Nigerians are carriers of the disease.
Ezeonu, who had been reappointed as CMD for a second tenure, promised that the centre would have a very powerful phonographic machine similar to the one in other zones, which would give accurate and perfect result of the person’s genotype, “once you are AS you are AS and if you are AA you are AA”, adding that the centre would do all in its power to harmonize the situation and would not only treat the disease but would be a centre for its prevention. According to him, if the carriers were properly counseled not to marry, and if they don’t marry because it is a hereditary disease, they would continue propagating the suffering and other crises that result from it. The CMD urged the press to help in the campaign against the disease, arguing that, “if we campaign effectively and because we don’t want to trample on the rights of Nigerians, we would have suggested they make a law that AS and AS should not marry or AS and SS should not marry, because they have a right to live”. He therefore, pleaded that the media should carry out an aggressive campaign to all nooks and crannies of the state and even beyond.
He reminded those who believe it is witchcraft that it is not, adding that it is rather a hereditary disease happening in the hemoglobin because of the endemic nature of our environment with malaria, and described it as a most disturbing disease in Nigeria where over 40 million are carriers of the disease that is more striking than HIV/AIDS. He added that over 150,000 babies were born as carriers too, which necessitated the United Nations to advise Nigeria to establish centres for its prevention through counseling.
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Posted: at 26-06-2011 01:56 AM (12 years ago) | Addicted Hero
sammy999 at 26-06-2011 02:51 AM (12 years ago) (m)
some people who have the sickle cell disease are healthy. i know a guy who is ss but he is very health and strong, infact he goes to the gym and he is very muscular. so it depends some are mild while some are severe but i think anyone with ss genotype should only marry someone with an aa genotype so as to eradicate this disease
Posted: at 26-06-2011 02:51 AM (12 years ago) | Upcoming
Thank God say I no dey among. The Doctor has really given a good piece of advice. Forget if the sickle cell guy has muscles or not. The thing is in the blood. He gave the advice because so many people are so stubborn and ignorant. The advice is for their own good. The % of sickle cell persons that survive is so low. Beware!
Posted: at 26-06-2011 03:23 AM (12 years ago) | Upcoming
Let the awareness begin as it is even very more deadly than cancer viral disease .Sickle cell anaemia disease kill slowly and makes life unbearable to the infected.i lost my elder brother to this disease ...Nigerian government has to do something really fast to educate people more on this deadly disease.
Posted: at 26-06-2011 08:29 AM (12 years ago) | Newbie
They've tried a lot to make the promise which we av been accustomed to, the next is to start the campaign. Awareness is much important than treatment. Some people are stubborn cos they are not well informed.
Posted: at 26-06-2011 07:04 PM (12 years ago) | Upcoming
They've tried a lot to make the promise which we av been accustomed to, the next is to start the campaign. Awareness is much important than treatment. Some people are stubborn cos they are not well informed.
Posted: at 26-06-2011 07:04 PM (12 years ago) | Upcoming
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