An aetiological survey of paraplegia in Accra.
Sixty-four cases of non-traumatic paraplegia in Accra, Ghana, were investigated. The commonest cause of paraplegia was tuberculosis (29.69%). Next were transverse myelitis and the Guillain-Barré syndrome, each accounting for 10.94% of cases. Parasitic causes were not seen in this study. The other important causes are neoplastic conditions (14.07%) and degenerative conditions namely, cervical spondylosis with myelopathy (12.5%), and motor neurone disease (6.25%). It is concluded that the major causes of non-traumatic paraplegia in Accra are related to non-parasitic microbial infections (51.57%).
Nyame
P K
PK
Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Ghana Medical School, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005869:Ghana / Q000453:epidemiology; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010264:Paraplegia / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D014504:Urban Health