Tesfaye Taye Gelaw*, Habtamu Bayih Engida, Belaynew Zemed Alebachew, Workie Shitaw Melesse, Shitahun Fentie Tilahun, Yaregal Kindie Workie
Background: Significant efforts has been put to curve child mortality and morbidity over years and showed a remarkable improvement. Regrettably, paediatric cardiac diseases with an alarming morbidity and mortality rate and psychosocial burden have been given less due attention in LMICs. Objective: Describe the patterns, clinical presentations and morbidity of children with heart diseases attending Bahir Dar University Tibebe-Ghion specialized teaching hospital, North-west Ethiopia. Methods: We conducted descriptive cross sectional study of children with echocardiography confirmed heart diseases, aged from birth to 15 years, evaluated from June 2019-February 2024. Results: Four hundred fifteen children with heart diseases were attending our pediatric cardiac clinic during the study period. Fifty four percent were males. The median (IQR) age of children enrolled was 24 months (4 to 97). Congenital heart defects account for 67.5% of Pediatric heart diseases and acquired heart diseases for 30.6%. 76.4% of the acquired heart diseases had rheumatic heart diseases. Of all CHDs, 72.5% had acyanotic CHD and 23.6% were cyanotic. 24.6% of acyanotic CHDs were isolated ventricular septal defect followed by isolated patent ductus arteriosus (13.8%), atrioventricular septal defect (11.3%), and atrial septal defect (10.3%). TOF (36.4%) was the leading cyanotic CHD followed by d-TGA (16.7%), Tricuspid Atresia (16.7%), and DORV(12.1%). Respiratory distress (65%) and murmur (83%) were the most common presenting complaint and clinical finding respectively. 49% and 32% of children with heart disease had congestive heart failure and pulmonary hypertension respectively. Conclusion: The proportion of congenital heart defects in the paediatric population is rising. Respiratory distress and cardiac murmur are the most common presenting complaint and clinicalfinding of children with heart diseases respectively. Significant proportion of children with heart diseases present with congestive heart failure and pulmonary hypertension.
Published Date: 2025-03-30; Received Date: 2024-03-11
