Demographic and Interventional Pattern of Pediatric Brain Tumors Managed at UDUTH Sokoto: A Decade Review

BACKGROUND: The Epidemiologic pattern of childhood brain tumours during the past ten years in Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital Sokoto was reviewed. OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study is to describe the epidemiological profile, diagnoses and pattern of paediatrics brain tumour. METHODS: This is a retrospective study analyzing the demographic profile, clinical diagnoses and operative interventions of paediatric neurosurgical patients managed at our center over a period of 10years, from January 2007 to December 2016 with Brain Tumour. RESULT: A total of 81 patients had operative interventions during the study period. Forty-three (43) patients were males representing 53.1%, thirty-eight (38) were female with male to female ratio 1.1:1; the majority of them were between 5 and 8 years of age thirty (37%) and most of them are infratentorial forty-eight (48) accounting for 59.3%. Medulloblastoma was the predominant diagnosis accounting for eighteen cases (18) 22.2%. Ventriculo-peritoneal shunt insertion was the commonest procedure performed representing 44.4%. CONCLUSION: Infratentorial tumours are the commonest paediatric tumours seen in our center, with medulloblastoma accounting for the majority of cases. VP shunt is the commonest neurosurgical intervention on paediatric brain tumor patients Keywords: Paediatric; Brain tumor; Medulloblastoma; Infratentorial; Supratentorial; Ventriculoperitoneal shunt