Urologic disease in a resource-poor country

Area of Science:

• Global Surgery
• Urologic Surgery
• Public Health

Background:

• Urologic diseases represent a significant health concern in resource-limited settings.
• Understanding the prevalence of urologic surgical conditions in central Haiti is crucial for developing appropriate care strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To document the prevalence and types of urologic surgical diseases presenting for treatment in central Haiti.
• To analyze the scope of urologic surgical interventions and surgeon training in the region.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of surgical case logs from five hospitals in central Haiti.
• Data collected from June 2009 to July 2010, including patient demographics, diagnoses, and procedures.
• Analysis of surgeon training (urologic vs. non-urologic) for surgical cases.

Main Results:

• Urologic surgical diseases accounted for 9.0% of all surgical cases.
• Most common diagnoses: hydrocele (33.3%), phimosis (23.0%), benign prostatic hyperplasia (10.8%), and cryptorchidism (7.3%).
• Hydrocelectomy and circumcision were the most frequent procedures; urologists performed all transurethral resections of the prostate.

Conclusions:

• Urologic surgical diseases represent a substantial source of morbidity in central Haiti.
• Data on the scale and scope of urologic disease are vital for developing effective health systems in low-resource settings.