PATTERN OF HEART DISEASE IN CHILDREN AT UNIVERSITY OF GONDAR COMPREHENSIVE SPECIALIZED HOSPITAL, NORTH WEST ETHIOPIA, 2021.

Abstract

Abstract Background:-Pediatric Cardiac disease is one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality in children. Most pediatric cardiac problems in developed nations are from Congenital Heart Diseases (CHD) where as Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) is still the challenge for developing nations. In Ethiopia, few single centered studies were done in major teaching hospitals to estimate the burden and pattern of cardiac disease in children, but in our setup its pattern is not yet known, hence the study was intended to know it’s pattern at University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. Objective:-The main objective of the study was to describe the pattern of cardiac disease in children at University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. Methods:- a hospital based cross-sectional descriptive study conducted at of University of Gondar Comprehensive specialized hospital on cardiac Patients age from birth up to 18 years coming to Pediatric Cardiac chronic follow up clinic from May 2021 to August 2021. Results:-During the study period 259 patients were evaluated and investigated with Echocardiography by 2 expert consultant pediatric cardiologists. About 52.5% were Females and 61.1% were coming from rural areas. Of the 259, 54.8% had AHD and 44.4% of patients had CHD and 2 cases accounting 0.8% were having mixed problems. Among those patients with AHD, RHD 120(84.5%), Pericardial Effusion 7(5.8%), PH 7(5.8%), DCMP 5(4.2%) and Myocarditis accounting 4(3.3%). Among those patients who had CHD, VSD the commonest Acyanotic lesions affecting 30.4 % of children where as TOF which affected 6.1 % of children. Echocardiographic Evaluation for 62 % of them was done for an indication of Heart failure and among them around 11.6% patients presented with heart failure with severe complications. Among RHD patients all patients were having mitral valve involvement with the commonest valve involved to be MR 71(59.2%) and AR 44 (36.7%) followed by MR+MS 40(33.3%) and isolated MS was found in 5(4.2%), and about 15(12.5) % of them were having severe Mitral Stenosis lesions. The smallest age a patient with severe MS detected was 6 years. . Conclusions:- This study revealed that AHD more common than CHD. AHD, especially RHD being still continue to be the commonest causes of cardiac problem in Ethiopian children with patients presented with complications and stenotic lesions at their earlier ages. VSD and TOF being the commonest acyanotic and cyanotic lesion detected respectively. The commonest associated comorbid illness in CHD patients was Down syndrome.

Key words:- Children, Pattern of heart disease, Ethiopia