determine the prevalence and topographic patterns of osteoarthritis.
Medical records of patients seen at the Lomé Teaching Hospital, Rheumatology Clinic (Togo) were studied retrospectively.
Among the 12251 patients seen over a 15 year period, 1085 had appendicular osteoarthritis. Mean age at onset was 50, 3 years (extremes: 7 and 85 years), and mean duration of osteoarthritis was 4.4 years. Principal distribution of affected joints was as follows: knee, 993 patients (844 females, 85%; 149 males); hip, 77 patients (primary osteoarthritis: 36 patients, secondary osteoarthritis: 41 patients) ; scapulohumeral joint, 5 patients; and fingers, 5 patients. At the knee, the lesions involved the medial femorotibial compartment in 493 patients (unilateral: 117 patients, bilateral: 376 patients), the lateral femorotibial compartment in 223 patients (unilateral: 74 patients, bilateral: 149 patients) and the patellofemoral compartment in 42 patients (unilateral: 17 patients, bilateral: 25 patients). Mean age at onset of knee osteoarthritis was 50, 3 years. Among females with knee osteoarthritis, 83% were obese and 63, 5% had varus or valgus deformities.
This study confirms that in black Africa the high prevalence of knee osteoarthritis contrasts with the low prevalence of primary osteoarthritis of the hip and of osteoarthritis of the fingers. Female sex, obesity, and varus or valgus deformities are the main risk factors for femorotibial osteoarthritis in black Africa.