title: Cystic fibrosis in Cape Town.
abstract: A retrospective study of all patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) seen at the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital was undertaken. A total of 106 patients were identified and of these 64 still attend the CF clinic regularly. By 1 year of age 95% had symptoms but only 63% had been correctly diagnosed. In 27% the diagnosis was only made after 5 years of age. Chronic lung disease, failure to thrive, and diarrhoea or steatorrhoea were the most common presenting symptoms. Clinical scores of those still attending the clinic show that 79% are in the mild or better categories. The overall mortality rate was 21% and death was due to severe chest disease in the vast majority of cases. On the basis of the number of new patients with CF born during a 4-year period and the total number of live births recorded in this time, the calculated incidence of CF in Cape Town was 1/2,000 for whites and 1/12,000 for coloureds. Calculated prevalence rates for both whites and coloureds were much higher in urban Cape Town than in the rural areas of the western Cape. This suggests that many cases remain undiagnosed in the rural areas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Cape Town.
authors.forename: I D
authors.initials: ID
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: W B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: MacDonald
authors.forename: M D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Bowie
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Ireland
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D044383:Black People; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003550:Cystic Fibrosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013019:South Africa; D044465:White People