Biliary tract disease and sickle cell anaemia in Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra.

This study has examined the incidence of biliary tract disease in the general medical and surgical wards of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital as well as the prevalence of the disease in patients attending the Sickle-cell Clinic. There were 72 confirmed cases of biliary tract disease (0.5 percent hospital admissions) of which 17 or 23.9 percent had a positive sickling (AS, SS, SC). When SS and SC patients only were considered the incidence of biliary tract disease was significantly higher than the rest of the population. The incidence in biliary tract disease among patients attending the Sickle-cell Clinic was in this semiprospective study found to be 14.6 per cent; analysis of several clinical variables indicated that haemolysis was an important causative factor. There were however several other unexplained factors which emphasize the need for a more detailed prospective study in this area.