Abstract
Objective The aim of this work is to study the epidemiological characteristics of rheumatic conditions in a cohort of 23,550
patients followed up in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
Patients and methods This was a descriptive observational study on records conducted from February 2006 to December 2019
in Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso). All patients seen in rheumatology consultation in the city of Ouagadougou were included.
The diagnosis of mechanical and degenerative osteoarthropathies was based on clinical and radiological fndings; osteoarticular
infection was based on clinical and biological fndings. The diagnosis of gout was based on the clinical fndings, uricemia,
and/or the presence of sodium urate crystals in the synovial fuid on microscope. The diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis and
systemic lupus erythematosus was based on the ACR/EULAR criteria.
Results In total, 23,550 patients were included in the study. These were 14,995 female patients (63.70%) and 2555 male patients
(36.30%). The average age of patients was 49.61±15.36 years with extremes of 9 months to 120 years. Degenerative osteoarthropathies were the most common presentation (13,377 patients; 59.35%) followed by tendinopathies (2199 patients; 9.34%);
chronic infammatory rheumatism was in third place (841 patients; 3.57%) led by rheumatoid arthritis (434 patients); 51.61% of
chronic infammatory rheumatism, systemic lupus erythematosus and ankylosing spondylitis accounted for 71 patients (0.4%) and
63 patients (0.27%), respectively.
Conclusion The epidemiology of rheumatic conditions is characterized by its diversity in hospital setting. The scarcity of
some conditions such as systemic lupus erythematosus, psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis has been confrmed in
this cohort.

Africa · Epidemiology · Rheumatic diseases · Rheumatoid arthritis · Systemic lupus erythematosus