Welcome message from the Editor-in-chief
Abstract
It is with much pleasure that I welcome you to volume 2 issue 2 of the Health Sciences Investigations Journal. The Journal remains committed to reaching the global community with open access publications from basic and clinical health sciences. According to the World Health Organization “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”. Thus, our multi-disciplinary journal consistently provides an avenue for communication of research findings in health, the science of well-being. The current issue of the Journal contains a case study on the bifid median nerve, an anatomical variation that is caused by the early and proximal division of the nerve trunk preceding entry into the carpal tunnel. The bifid median nerve was identified in an adult male Wolof cadaver during dissection of the anterior region of the wrist. The nerve within the carpal tunnel had a cleavage at the superficial finger flexor muscles. This is a rare condition that hand surgeons must know to avoid the median nerve in carpal tunnel release operations. In this issue, we also present data on clinical features of 57 children (12 - 17 years) infected with the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Accra Regional Hospital in Ghana. The most common symptom was a headache (50%) and this was followed by cough (35.7%). Two other articles in Child Health in this issue are multivariate analysis of risk factors associated with severe underweight among children under 5 years and screening for wasting and underweight in sick children (6 - 59 months). In the former study, both child and maternal risk factors were associated with being underweight, and these include multiple births, small size at birth, mother’s education and the number of children under 5 years. Improvement in maternal education, socio-economic status of families and family planning were considered key in resolving the challenge of child underweight. In the latter article, 4% (out of 199) of children were classified as being severely wasted by Mid Upper Arm Circumference Measurement, whereas 3% were diagnosed to have severe acute malnutrition. Analogous to the former study, determinants of wasting were the low level of maternal education and age of children (< 24 months). We highlight these publications because globally malnutrition constitutes a critical cause of the increase in mortality of children under 5 years of age. I am grateful to the hardworking Editorial Team and the Reviewers for their effort in ensuring that the Journal publishes good articles for our cherished readers. The Advisory Board, Authors and Publishers are also acknowledged for their contributions. I welcome suggestions, complaints, discussions, and thoughts from authors and readers to help us to maintain high standards. I look forward to receiving your high-quality manuscripts for publication. Thank you.
Acknowledgements
The University of Ghana College of Health Sciences, the copyright owner, the patron, and sponsor of HSI Journal has always shown a deep interest in the affairs of its constituent institutions. The Journal is indeed grateful to Professor Julius Fobil, the Provost of the University of Ghana College of Health Sciences, for his immense support and leadership.
About the Editor-in-chief
Professor Andrew Anthony Adjei is a Professor of Immunology at the Department of Pathology, University of Ghana Medical School. He is the Coordinator for Worldwide Universities Network and the Australia-Africa Universities Network. He is a Fellow of the following: African Academy of Sciences (AAS), Ghana Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the African Sciences Institute. He is a Member of the Ghana Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists; Coordinator, University of Ghana Vice Chancellor’s Strategic Teams; Chairman, College of Health Sciences Ethical and Protocol Review Committee; and the Chairman, College of Health Sciences Public Lecture and Scientific Conference Committee.
