Counting gains of the 39th World Congress on Military Medicine
One of those who benefited from the event is Health Forever, locally-based herbal company that specialises in the production of dietary supplements and anaemia management drugs. WCMM which brings together health professionals in the military worldwide, provides a platform for participants to share ideas and promote new partnerships and strengthen existing ones for mutual benefits. […]
One of those who benefited from the event is Health Forever, locally-based herbal company that specialises in the production of dietary supplements and anaemia management drugs.
WCMM which brings together health professionals in the military worldwide, provides a platform for participants to share ideas and promote new partnerships and strengthen existing ones for mutual benefits.
Health Forever was the only local and herbal products company that was allowed to erect a stand in the Congress Hall of the exquisite Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, venue of the meeting. The company’s products go by the name Jobelyn. Jobelyn’s stand was the busiest. Participants thronged the place to see what the products were.
Dr Ettah Arikpo, a Medical Officer with 49 BN MRS, Ojo Cantonment, Lagos, was spotted at the stand. He spoke about the drug: “I’m quite impressed because before now, the only local pharmaceutical organisation that is here, Jobelyn, years ago, had its products only in suspension, alcohol base solutions.
“But now, its products are in tablets, capsules and syrup. They have transformed getting into partnership with foreign experts. They have been able to look at alkaloids of the products they have and then subtracting the active ingredients to produce these drugs that are targeted for particular sites unlike before when the products were not well researched upon.
“We have their literature here—they have undergone clinical trials which are always what the Nigerian Medical and Dental Council would want to always see—any research body will always want to see the facts and figures. They have been able to come up with a good product.
“Jobelyn can be separated from the normal rung of herbal practitioners who just compound things without research on them, no clinical trials, no verification of the active ingredients needed for such products.
“Jobelyn has one active ingredient which builds up the immunity of the patient and it does quite a range of other functions, like it reduces shrinking of the prostrate, useful in management of dialysis. For men who have decreased libido, it improves it. For quite a while, it has been prescribed in our hospitals.
“We are happy the company has researched on it, made it more presentable and efficacious.”
Olajuwon Okubena is Managing Director of Health Forever.
He said an experiment was made on Jobely in 2003 for the treatment of HIV patients and it was found that the product was efficient when used alone or in combination with anti-retroviral drugs.
He said this experiment which was done over a period of three months, discovered that all patients who used Jobelyn had their CD-4 count reduced to a very considerable level. He said soon after the experiment was concluded, the product was presented at WCMM in Washington, USA in 2004 after an abstract on its work was presented.
The Managing Director explained, “the product got a wide recognition and acceptance over there. This year, the military congress was to be hosted by Nigeria. We have done more work on Jobelyn so we submitted another abstract on the haematological and anti-inflammatory power of this drug. The abstract was selected for oral presentation.
“So yesterday [Tuesday] we made another Power Point presentation to the whole world. This is probably the first time in the history of the country that we are presenting a herbal product at such a level. It is encouraging that the military people are having interest in the herbal medicine.
“Our stand has been the busiest. People throng our stand—it is generating a lot of attention. They say we are having a product which is the most powerful natural anti-oxidant [anti-oxidants normally boost immune system].”
Sorgum bicolour leaf sheath is used in manufacturing Jobelyn. The drug which is useful for management of anaemia related diseases is 13 years in the market.
The drug was registered by NAFDAC as a dietary supplement 11 years ago but it has gone past dietary supplements. It is now doing clinical trials at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital with the hope of using it for the treatment of sickle cell anaemia.
A similar drug, Nicosan was locally developed by a herbalist in conjunction with the Nigeria Institute of Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) for sickle cell anaemia treatment and patented but it has been out of circulation for about two years now.
Four hundred delegates from 107 countries participated in the Abuja WCMM which opened last Sunday.
The congress is organised by the International Committee of Military Medicine (ICMM) established in 1921 after World War I. The congress which was jointly hosted by the military, the SSS and other stakeholders, had the theme, “Military Medicine and Disaster Management.” Commodore Azeez Afolayan was the Director General of the organising committee.
Nigeria is the third country in Africa to host the congress. The first to hold in Africa was South Africa in 2002, followed by Tunisia in 2007. The 40th WCMM holds in Jeddah, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2013.