Congenital rubella syndrome: pattern and presentation in a southern Nigerian tertiary hospital

Congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) resulting from maternal rubella infection can result in miscarriages, still birth and rubella infection of the infant. The aim of this study was to evaluate the pattern and presentation of CRS over an 8-year period as seen in the University of Port-Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH), Nigeria.

The medical records of all cases of CRS presenting to the Pediatric Department of UPTH from January 2000 to December 2007 were reviewed.

There were 16 394 babies delivered in UPTH from January 2000 to December 2007. Of these babies, 19 were clinically diagnosed as having CRS, but none had laboratory confirmation. They had a mean age of 5.1 +/-3.2 months (range: 1-11 months). Seventy-five percent of their mothers had presumed rubella infection during the first trimester of pregnancy. Cataract was noticed to be the most prominent systemic manifestation in 18 of the 19 babies. Other common manifestations included hearing impairment (n=14), microcephaly (n=13), patent ductus arteriosus (n=11), and low birth weight (n=10). A surge was observed in the number of babies with CRS from 2004 to 2007; however, this was not statistically significant (chi (2)=8.68, P=0.28). Unfortunately, long-term outcome of the 19 babies was not available.

CRS is commonly diagnosed at our center. Thus, mounting effective surveillance for CRS and considering the inclusion of rubella vaccine in Nigeria are of extreme importance.