TY - JOUR ID - 45846 TI - Socio-demographic and delivery characteristics of patients with obstetric fistula in Haut-Katanga Province, Democratic Republic of Congo JO - Iranian Journal of Colorectal Research JA - ACRR LA - en SN - AU - Nesambi, Joseph B AU - Mukuku, Olivier AU - Kakudji, Prosper L. AU - Kakoma, Jean-Baptiste S.Z. AD - Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Lubumbashi, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo AD - Department of Maternal and Child Health, Institut Supérieur des Techniques Médicales, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo, AD - Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Lubumbashi, Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo. Y1 - 2019 PY - 2019 VL - 7 IS - 3 SP - 1 EP - 5 KW - Obstetric fistula KW - Socio-demographic KW - delivery KW - Haut-Katanga DO - N2 - Background: In developing countries, fistulae are generally caused by long obstructed labors. Obstetric fistula (OF) is a severe condition which can have devastating consequences for a woman’s life.Objective: Describe the socio-demographic and delivery characteristics of patients with OF in Haut-Katanga province in the DRCongo.Methods: This is a prospective descriptive study of 413 patients with OF in Haut-Katanga province during the period from September 2009 to December 2018.Results: At fistula occurrence, 53.3% of patients were younger than 20 years (mean age: 21.3 ± 6.7 years) and 65.8% were primiparous. More than half had primary education and 39.7% were illiterate; 70.2% of the patients were separated or divorced. Fistula developed after delivery at home in 239 (57.9%) of 413 women. A total of 393 (95.2%) women developed fistula after vaginal delivery. A total of 387 (93.7%) of the 413 women reported that the fetus did not survive the labor during which fistula developed. 92.3% had a vesico-vaginal fistula and the mean age of fistula was 6.5 years. Surgical repair was successful in 82.9%.Conclusion: Obstructed labor remains the most important cause of OF in Haut-Katanga. It is important to prevent OF arising from obstructive causes. The surgical treatment of OF will depend upon the type, size and location of fistula. UR - https://colorectalresearch.sums.ac.ir/article_45846.html L1 - https://colorectalresearch.sums.ac.ir/article_45846_9b0c57769b802b408eadb9587a82d937.pdf ER -