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Clinical and epidemiological features of rheumatic diseases in patients attending the university hospital in Kinshasa

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Abstract

The aim of the present retrospective and hospital-based study was to describe epidemiological and clinical features of rheumatic diseases in patients attending the University Hospital of Kinshasa (UHK). Rheumatic complaint was a reason for consultation in 12.1% of outpatients attending the Department of Internal Medicine of the UHK. Osteoarthritis was the most common rheumatic disease (59.2%), followed by soft tissue rheumatism (16.1%), gout (9.3%), and spondylarthropathies (7.5%). The cumulative frequency of autoimmune diseases (rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, dermatomyositis, and mixed connective tissues disease) and the frequency of osteoporosis were 5.2 and 2.7%, respectively. Lumbar spine was the part of the skeleton mostly affected by osteoarthritis. Pathological fractures in osteoporosis, subcutaneous nodules, rheumatoid factor, and erosive bone lesions in rheumatoid arthritis were rarely found. Compared to the previous studies performed in the same hospital, our results disclose a threefold increase of rheumatic outpatients. The paucity of erosive arthritis and extra-articular manifestations suggest the less severity of rheumatoid arthritis in our patients. Likewise, the absence of femoral and wrist osteoporotic fractures and the scarcity of advanced vertebral crush fractures suggest the mildness of osteoporosis.

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Abbreviations

DM:

dermatomyositis

DRC:

Democratic Republic of Congo

JIA :

juvenile idiopathic arthritis

MCTD:

mixed connective tissue disease

OA:

osteoarthritis

RA:

rheumatoid arthritis

SLE:

systemic lupus erythematosus

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Acknowledgment

We thank Professor J. Dequeker for revising and Professor R.R. Tozin for correcting our manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Internal Medicine, Kinshasa University Hospital, Post Box 123, Kinshasa XI, Democratic Republic of Congo

    J. J. Malemba & J. M. Mbuyi-Muamba

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  1. J. J. Malemba
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  2. J. M. Mbuyi-Muamba
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Correspondence to J. M. Mbuyi-Muamba.

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Malemba, J.J., Mbuyi-Muamba, J.M. Clinical and epidemiological features of rheumatic diseases in patients attending the university hospital in Kinshasa. Clin Rheumatol 27, 47–54 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-007-0650-x

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