Congenital Anomalies of the Kidney and Urinary Tract in Southeast Nigeria: Findings from Computed Tomography Scan.

Abstract

Background: There is a paucity of information and data on congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) in the African setting.

Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence, pattern and distribution of CAKUT as observed from computed tomography (CT) scans in a black African population.

Methods: This was a retrospective study carried out in Enugu, Southeast Nigeria. The study population was drawn from subjects who had an abdominopelvic CT scan or CT urography for either urological or non-urological conditions. Data was pulled from three large-volume referral centers for CT scans in the city center, and study period extended from January 2015 to December 2024. Analysis was performed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) for Windows, version 27.0. Data were described using frequencies and proportions in tables and charts.

Results: The records of 3507 subjects were retrieved for this study. A total number of 122 subjects had congenital anomalies of the kidneys or the urinary tract, which gave a prevalence of 3.5% (95% confidence interval: 2.9-4.1%). The mean age of subjects was 39 ± 19.8 years and the majority of them were males (57.4%). The most prevalent anomaly was pelviureteric junction (PUJ) obstruction (1.28%), followed by duplex collecting system.

Conclusion: The prevalence of CAKUT from this study was 3.5%. Pelvic ureteric junction obstruction was the most prevalent congenital anomaly of the urinary tract in our setting.