Sickle-cell killing children in Nigeria
(GIN)-Thousands of infants are dying from sickle-cell anemia yearly in Nigeria-one of the highest rates in all Africa, reports the head of the country's sickle-cell foundation.
"This genetic disorder alone accounts for eight percent of infant mortality in Nigeria , which calls for urgent attention," said foundation head Sadiq Wali.
Meanwhile, Xechem Nigeria will boost production of Nicosan- used in the treatment of sickle cell disease-to 50,000 capsules daily in the next six to nine months when a new plant in Abuja , Nigeria, opens. The plant was financed with a two loans, one from the Nigerian Export-Import Bank and another from a U.S. bank.
Xechem International, a New Jersey company, holds exclusive world-wide rights to Nicosan. On July 6, 2006 the drug was officially launched in Nigeria, with then-President Olusegun Obasanjo in attendance.
According to the World Health Organization, an average 200,000 infants are born with sickle-cell in Africa, with 150,000 of them found in Nigeria.