Profile of Congenital Genitourinary Anomalies in the Two Teaching Hospitals in Enugu, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Congenital anomalies of the urogenital system are some of the most common birth defects affecting children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and types of congenital genitourinary anomalies seen in the 2 teaching hospitals in Enugu, Nigeria. Materials and Methods:This was an observational study carried out on babies at the two teaching hospitals in Enugu. The newborns were examined for congenital genitourinary anomalies and the study covered a period of 5 years.Results: There were 17,241 babies delivered in the 2 teaching hospitals during the study period. Overall, 328 babies had at least one congenital anomaly which gave an overall incidence of all congenital anomalies of 1.9% or 19 babies per 1000 live births. Out of the 328 babies that had congenital anomalies, 93 babies had a genitourinary anomaly. This gave an incidence of 0.5% or 5 babies per 1000 live births. There was female predominance and majority of the babies were preterm and weighed less than 2.5 kilograms. Hypospadias was the most common genitourinary anomaly and only a few of the anomalies were diagnosed prenatally. Half of the mothers took herbal concoction during their pregnancy and about one-fifth of them had gestational diabetes/ hypertension. Conclusion:Genitourinary anomaly is a common birth defect that is may be associated with some morbidity. Hypospadias is the most common abnormality in the present study and half of the mothers took herbs.