title: Aids is now the commonest clinical condition associated with multilineage blood cytopenia in a central referral hospital in Zimbabwe.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the clinical features and diagnosis of patients hospitalised and found to have multilineage peripheral blood cytopenias.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective cross sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Parirenyatwa Hospital, a central referral hospital in Harare, Zimbabwe.
  
  
  METHODS
  231 consecutive patients whose blood parameters revealed bi- or trilinneage cytopenia during a five month period in 1996.
  
  
  METHODS
  1. Blood cytopenia was described as: (a) Haemoglobin concentration = or < 100 g/L (b) Total leucocyte count = or < 3.5 x 10(9)/L (c) Platelet count = or < 100 x 10(9)/L 2. Other clinical and diagnostic features.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The highest percentage of multilineage blood cytopenia was in the age bracket 30 to 44 years and the male to female ratio was 1.4:1. Pancytopenia was found in 32.5% of patients, while bilineage cytopenia occurred in 67.5%. The commonest bilineage pattern was the combination of anaemia and thrombocytopenia occurring in 46.3% of all study cases or 68.5% of bilineage cytopenias. Anaemia was the most frequent cytopenia; it was found in 95.2% of all study cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The commonest condition with which multilineage blood cytopenia was associated was AIDS which was diagnosed in 25.1% of the study cases.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Haematology and Histopathology, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe. malyangu@africaonline.co.zw
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Malyangu
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Abayomi
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Adewuyi
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Coutts
mesh_terms: D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000740:Anemia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D015897:Comorbidity; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007970:Leukopenia / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013921:Thrombocytopenia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015030:Zimbabwe / Q000453:epidemiology