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Comment
. 2023 Oct 27:11:1203640.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1203640. eCollection 2023.

The prevalence of urolithiasis in subjects undergoing computer tomography in selected referral diagnostic centers in Mogadishu, Somalia

Najib Isse Dirie  1 , Mohamed Hussein Adam  2 , Bashiru Garba  3   4 , Hassan Abdullahi Dahie  5 , Maryan Abdullahi Sh Nur  6 , Fartun Yasin Mohamed  7 , Abdirahman Khalif Mohamud  3 , Jihaan Hassan  3
Affiliations
Comment

The prevalence of urolithiasis in subjects undergoing computer tomography in selected referral diagnostic centers in Mogadishu, Somalia

Najib Isse Dirie et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Introduction and objectives: Somalia was predicted to be in the global stone belt with high urolithiasis prevalence. We aimed to determine the prevalence of urolithiasis and their demographic and computer tomography (CT) characteristics among subjects under CT scans in Mogadishu, Somalia. Materials and Methods: From March 2014 to November 2022, a total of 7,276 patients who underwent an abdominopelvic non-contrast CT scan for various indications were retrospectively reviewed. The mean age was 45.6 years with a standard deviation of 21.1 (range, 0.2-110 years). Patients were subdivided into two categories: adults (≥18 years) and pediatric (≤17 years).

Results: Of the 7,276 patients, 1,075 (14.8%) were diagnosed with urolithiasis. Among those with urolithiasis, 702 (65.3%) were male patients, and 373 (34.7%) were female patients. Among them, adults accounted for 92.7%, while children were 7.3%. Renal stones (nephrolithiasis) were the most common, representing 57% followed by ureteric stones at 35.5%, making upper urinary stones 92.5%. Approximately 70 patients (6.5%) had bladder stones; of these, 26 of them (37%) were accompanied by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). There were 10 urethral stones (0.9%) recorded in the study, all were found in male patients, 8 localized in prostatic urethra, and 2 in the bulbar urethra. The overall mean stone size was 13.2 mm, and 60% of them ranged from 5 to 22 mm. Only 24% of the patients were asymptomatic. Single stones were almost 70%, while staghorn calculi were 8.2%. More than 60% of the patients with urolithiasis showed some degree of hydronephrosis ranging between mild to severe.

Conclusion: A CT scan-based urolithiasis prevalence indicates 14.8% in Mogadishu, Somalia, and these results are consistent with the probability calculation of the weights-of-evidence (WofE) methodology based on several risk factors including temperature, climate change, mineral deposit, drinking water quality, and distribution of carbonated rocks. Considering the high prevalence of the disease, Somalia needs to invest more in prevention and treatment facilities while also training urologists that are capable of utilizing minimally invasive techniques in the country.

Keywords: Mogadishu; Somalia; non-contrast computed tomography; prevalence; urolithiasis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distribution of the affected organs in patients with urolithiasis.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Stone size by gender in patients with urolithiasis.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Different age groups and stone sizes of patients with urolithiasis.
Figure 4
Figure 4
(A) Computer reconstructed NCCT of the abdomen showing bilateral multiple renal stones. (B) NCCT of the abdomen showing right renal stones.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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