Department of Paediatrics, Paediatric Gastroenterology Unit, College of Medicine, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, University of Lagos, Idi-Araba, Nigeria.
Department of Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology Unit, College of Medicine, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria.
Ann Afr Med. 2022 Jan-Mar;21(1):58-64. doi: 10.4103/aam.aam_81_20.
Sickle cell disease (SCD) remains prevalent in Nigeria and can be complicated by cholelithiasis even in children. There is still a dearth of knowledge about the occurrence of cholelithiasis in these children. The present study is aimed to determine the prevalence of cholelithiasis in pediatric SCD in Lagos and documents relevant socio-demographic and clinical correlates.
This was a cross-sectional study of children and adolescents aged 1-19 years with SCD attending the Paediatric Haematology Clinic of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital. One hundred and forty-seven children were consecutively recruited into the study over 3 months and they all had sonographic examination of the gall bladder. The association between cholelithiasis, sociodemographic data, clinical symptoms, laboratory parameters, and the use of hydroxyurea was also documented.
The median age (range) of the study participants was 9.0 (1-19) years and majority were males (59.9%). The prevalence of cholelithiasis was 13.6% and the condition was most prevalent in adolescents (21.4%) compared to the younger children (6.5%). All the children with cholelithiasis were asymptomatic. Age and the frequency of crisis were significantly associated with cholelithiasis on multivariate analysis (P = 0.03, 0.045, respectively). The use of hydroxyurea was not significantly related to the occurrence of cholelithiasis.
The prevalence of cholelithiasis observed in this study is high. Routine screening of older children and adolescents with SCD, especially with the frequent crisis is suggested. Longitudinal studies to establish the relationship between hydroxyurea and cholelithiasis is also advocated.
镰状细胞病（SCD）在尼日利亚仍然普遍存在，即使在儿童中也可能并发胆石症。关于这些儿童胆石症的发生情况，人们的了解仍然很少。本研究旨在确定拉各斯儿科 SCD 中胆石症的患病率，并记录相关的社会人口学和临床相关性。
这是一项横断面研究，纳入了在拉各斯大学教学医院儿科血液科就诊的年龄在 1-19 岁的 SCD 儿童和青少年。在 3 个月内连续招募了 147 名儿童进行研究，他们都接受了胆囊超声检查。还记录了胆石症与社会人口学数据、临床症状、实验室参数以及羟基脲使用之间的关联。
研究参与者的中位年龄（范围）为 9.0（1-19）岁，大多数为男性（59.9%）。胆石症的患病率为 13.6%，在青少年（21.4%）中比在年幼儿童（6.5%）中更为常见。所有患有胆石症的儿童均无症状。多变量分析显示，年龄和危机频率与胆石症显著相关（P=0.03、0.045）。羟基脲的使用与胆石症的发生无显著相关性。
本研究观察到的胆石症患病率较高。建议对年龄较大的儿童和青少年，尤其是有频繁危机的儿童和青少年进行常规筛查。还提倡进行纵向研究以确定羟基脲与胆石症之间的关系。
