title: Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) in Central Africans.
abstract: Forty two patients who were seen and satisfied the French-American-British (FAB) diagnostic criteria for myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) over a 6-year period at the University of Zimbabwe's Department of Haematology, Harare, are presented. Their overall ages ranged from 29 to 75 years with a mean +/- SD of 57.8 +/- 11.2 years. Males outnumbered females with a male to female ratio of 1.2:1. Refractory anaemia (RA) occurred in 33.3%; refractory anaemia with ringed sideroblasts (RARS) in 16.7%; refractory anaemia with excess blasts (RAEB) in 21.4%; refractory anaemia with excess blasts in transformation (RAEB-T) in 16.7% and chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMML) in 11.9% of the patients. In 90.5% the disease was primary and in 9.5% prior exposure to myelotoxic agents resulted in secondary MDS. The study reveals that MDS as a cause of anaemia in the African population is usually hidden in the big number of well known anaemias due to rampant malaria, malnutrition and a host of nutritional deficiencies. There is therefore the need to increase diagnostic awareness among our clinicians about the existence of these disorders.
authors.affiliation: University of Zimbabwe, Medical School, Department of Haematology, Avondale, Harare.
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Mukiibi
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Paul
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000740:Anemia / Q000209:etiology; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005492:Folic Acid / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009190:Myelodysplastic Syndromes / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D014805:Vitamin B 12 / Q000097:blood; D015030:Zimbabwe / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D005492:Folic Acid; D014805:Vitamin B 12