Prevalence and factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in health professionals in Togo, 2021.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among health professionals (HPs) in Togo. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. METHODS: The study was conducted between 24 February and 3 March 2021 among HPs in Togo. Data on sociodemographic characteristics and intention of vaccination were collected using an online questionnaire. Willingness to get vaccinated against COVID-19 was assessed using a single item: "Would you be willing to be vaccinated against COVID-19?". Responses were grouped into three categories: acceptance (Yes, I will get vaccinated), hesitancy (Not decided yet) and refusal (No). Multinomial regression analyses were performed to assess factors associated with vaccine hesitancy or refusal. RESULTS: A total of 1115 HPs (79.1% male) with a median age of 35 years were enrolled in the study. Vaccine acceptance, hesitancy and refusal were 44.1%, 32.2% and 23.7%, respectively. Female gender was associated with an increased risk of hesitancy (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.93; p = 0.005) and refusal (aOR = 1.77; p = 0.005). Participant age ≥ 50 years, having a personal history of COVID-19 infection and a good knowledge of COVID-19 vaccination were factors that reduced the risk of refusal [(aOR = 0.30; p < 0.001), (aOR = 0.43; p = 0.031) and (aOR = 0.62; p = 0.020)] or hesitancy [(aOR = 0.53; p = 0.005), (aOR = 0.13; p < 0.001) and (aOR = 0.35; p < 0.001)] of the vaccine. CONCLUSIONS: Acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine before the vaccination campaign was mixed among HPs, especially young HPs. Sensitisation and information campaigns should be reinforced to combat misinformation and increase COVID-19 vaccination acceptance in the context of the ongoing global pandemic.

Panorama of inflammatory arthropathies in rheumatologic consultations in Northern Togo.

To determine the frequency and epidemiological profile of inflammatory arthropathies seen during rheumatologic consultations in Togo. This retrospective study examined the records of patients with inflammatory arthropathy seen at a rheumatologic consultation at Kara Teaching Hospital (Northern Togo) over a four-year period. Among the 2361 patients with rheumatic disorders, 152 (6.43%) had an inflammatory arthropathy: 57.24% were men and 42.76% women. The main causes observed were: chronic inflammatory rheumatism (CIR) and connective tissue disease (49.34%), infectious arthritis (26.32%), and gout (24.34%). The mean age of the 75 patients with CIR at the onset of the disease was 40 years and the average duration of evolution was 3.11 years. The main clinical forms of CIR were rheumatoid arthritis (11 cases), spondylarthropathies (20 cases within 11 cases of reactive arthritis), connective tissue diseases (4 cases), and unclassified CIR (31 cases). Nine patients with reactive arthritis were HIV positive. The infectious arthritis was caused by a banal germ in 31 cases and by Koch bacillus in nine other cases. Gout patients (35 men and 2 women) had a mean age of 43 years at the onset of the disease, and the mean duration of the disease was 4.1 years. Gout was monoarticular in 8 cases, oligoarticular in 19 cases and polyarticular in the other 10 cases. This study demonstrates the high incidence of chronic inflammatory rheumatism in Northern Togo.

Rhumatologie en Afrique noire francophone et à Madagascar : état des lieux sur les rhumatologues, les pathologies rhumatologiques, les moyens diagnostiques et thérapeutiques en 2015

Objectif : Dresser l'état des lieux de la rhumatologie en Afrique Noire Francophone (ANF) sur le nombre de rhumatologues, les pathologies rhumatologiques, les moyens diagnostiques et thérapeutiques.Patients et méthodes : Etude transversale par interview auprès de rhumatologues africains pour connaître le nombre de rhumatologues, les moyens diagnostiques et thérapeutiques dans chaque pays entre juin 2014 et juin 2015. Revue de la littérature par recherche avec les mots "rheumatic diseases ; africa" sur Medline, "Médecine d'Afrique noire" électronique, "Médecine et santé tropicale" et "Société des pathologies exotiques". Les données concernaient les pays d'ANF jusqu'en juin 2015 hormis le Burundi, la République Démocratique du Congo et le Rwanda. Celles du Gabon concernaient 6050 rhumatisants vus entre janvier 2009 et décembre 2014 dans le service de médecine interne du centre hospitalier et universitaire de Libreville.Résultats : Pour une population totale de 182,14 millions d'habitants, il y avait 50 rhumatologues soit une densité de 0,03 rhumatologue pour 100.000 habitants. La pathologie la plus fréquente était l'arthrose. La goutte et les infections étaient les premières causes d'arthrites respectivement au Burkina Faso, au Congo Brazzaville, au Gabon et au Bénin, au Cameroun, en Côte d'Ivoire, au Togo. Les rhumatismes inflammatoires chroniques les plus fréquents étaient la polyarthrite rhumatoïde au Burkina Faso, au Cameroun, au Congo Brazzaville et les spondylarthrites par arthrites réactionnelles en Côte d'Ivoire, au Gabon, au Togo. La radiographie et le MTX étaient disponibles dans chaque pays. Il y avait 21 IRM, soit un appareil pour 8,673 millions d'habitants. Les biothérapies type Adalimumab et Etanercept respectivement à 1.710,36 et 1.733,23 € par mois au Gabon, restaient exceptionnellement utilisées.Conclusion : L'état des lieux de la rhumatologie en ANF en 2015 révèle surtout l'extrême carence en rhumatologues dans ces pays, principalement du fait de l'absence de formations locales dans cette spécialité

[Infectious arthritis in hospital patients in Lomé, Togo]. / Arthrites infectieuses en consultation rhumatologique a Lomé (Togo).

OBJECTIVE AND METHODS: The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency and semiological profile of infectious arthritis in the outpatient clinic of the Tokoin University Hospital Center in Lomé, Togo. PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study was based on a review of the charts of patients hospitalized in the rheumatology department over a period of 16 years. RESULTS: During the 16-year study period, 198 of the 13517 patients (1.5%) examined were hospitalized for infectious arthritis. There were 100 women and 98 men with a mean age of 36.3 +/- 17.5 years. Mean disease duration was 9.3 +/- 9.8 months. Diagnosis was banal germ arthritis in 157 cases (79.3%) and likely tuberculosis arthritis in 41 (20.7%). The knee was the most common location (34.3%). Arthritis affected a single joint in 159 cases (80.3%). Isolation of offending microorganism was achieved in 39 patients (19.7%). The most frequently identified agent was Staphylococcus aureus (42.5%). In addition to underdevelopment and poor hygiene observed in most patients in this series, risk factors included human immunodeficiency virus infection in 28 cases, alcoholism in 10, sickle cell anemia in 8, cancer in 3, and diabetes mellitus in 2. Outcome was favorable in 181 patients (88.7%). Four patients died. CONCLUSION: The frequency of infectious arthritis is correlated with underdevelopment and poor hygiene in black Africa.

[Osteoarthritis of the knee in hospital outpatients in Lomé (Togo)]. / Gonarthrose en Consultation Rhumatologique a Lome (Togo).

OBJECTIVE AND METHODS: Medical records of patients seen at the Lomé Teaching Hospital rheumatology unit (Togo) were studied retrospectively to determine the frequency and semiological characteristics of osteoarthritis of knee. RESULTS: Among the 12251 patients seen, 993 (8%, 844 women and 149 men) had osteoarthritis of the knee responding to ACR criteria. Mean age at onset was 51 years and mean duration of osteoarthritis of the knee was four years. The osteoarthritis affected one joint in 470 patients (47%) and two joints in 523 other patients (53%). Mechanic pain (923 patients, 93%) and claudication 251 patients, 25%) were the frequent symptoms. At the knee, the lesions involved the medial femorotibial compartment in 493 patients, the lateral femorotibial compartment in 223 patients, the patellofemoral compartment in 42 patients, and the femorotibial and patellofemoral compartment in 235 patients. 764 of 993 patients (77%) with knee osteoarthritis were obese (femmes: 699, 82.8%) and 729 had varus and/or valgus (73.4%). CONCLUSION: This study confirms the high prevalence of osteoarthritis of the knee in black Africa. Female sex, obesity, and varus or valgus deformities are the main risk factors for femorotibial osteoarthritis in black Africa.

[Risk factors of hip osteoarthritis in Lomé, Togo]. / Facteurs de risque de la coxarthrose a Lomé (Togo).

The medical records of the Lomé Teaching Hospital Rheumatology Unit (Togo) were retrospectively reviewed to study risk factors for osteoarthritis of hip. Among the 14,090 patients examined over a period of 17 years, 89 (0.63%) including 37 women and 52 men had osteoarthritis of the hip as defined according to the criteria of Kellgren and Lawrence. The mean duration of osteoarthritis of the hip was six years. Involvement was unilateral in 77 patients (86.5%) and bilateral in 12 (13.5%). Osteoarthritis of the hip was primary in 41 patients (46.1%) and secondary in 48 (53.9). Risk factors for secondary osteoarthritis of the hip were necrosis of the femoral head (n = 14), epiphysitis (n = 13), dysplasia (n = 11), traumatism (n = 6) including two femoral neck fractures, and tuberculosis of the hip joint (n = 2). In the 14 subjects with necrosis of the femoral head, hemoglobin was type SC in three cases and SS in two. Necrosis of the femoral head appears to be the main risk factor for osteoarthritis of the hip in black Africa. The impact of this risk factor may increase with longer life expectancies of subjects with hemoglobin SS and SC.

[Spondylodiscitis at a hospital outpatient clinic in Lome, Togo]. / Spondylodiscites infectieuses en milieu hospitalier à Lomé (Togo).

PURPOSE: This investigation was carried out to determine the frequency and features of spondylodiscitis in patients attending the Tokoin University Hospital Center in Togo. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective study of patients examined in the Rheumatology Outpatient Clinic over a 17-year period was conducted. RESULTS: Out of 14,708 patients examined during the study period, 222 (1.5%) presented spondylodiscitis. There wire 108 women and 114 men with a mean age of 38 years. The mean duration of symptoms was 6 months. Spondylodiscitis was related to presumptive tuberculosis in 169 patients (76.1%). The most common locations were the lumbar (56.8%) or thoracic (21.6%) spine. It was associated with a pulmonary location in 39 patients (17.6%). In addition to underdevelopment and poor hygiene in most patients, risk factors for spondylodiscitis included HIV infection (n=23), alcoholism (n=27), diabetes mellitus (n=7), and sickle cell anemia (n=7). Response to medical treatment was favorable in 197 patients (88.7%). CONCLUSION: Spondylodiscitis is still a frequent reason for seeking medical care in Black Africa.

Facteurs de risque de la coxarthrose a Lome (Togo)

Objectif et methodes. Une etude retrospective sur dossiers a ete menee afin de determiner les facteurs de risque de la coxarthrose en consultation rhumatologique a Lome (Togo). Resultats. 89 des 14 090 patients (52 hommes; 58;4et 37 femmes; 41;6) examines en 17 ans (0;6) souffraient d'une coxarthrose repondant aux criteres de Kellgren et Lawrence. La duree moyenne d'evolution de la coxarthrose etait de six ans. L'atteinte etait unilaterale chez 77 patients (86;5) et bilaterale chez les 12 autres (13;5). La coxarthrose etait primitive chez 41 patients (46;1) et secondaire chez les 48 autres (53;9). L'osteonecrose aseptique de la tete femorale (14 cas); les sequelles d'epiphysite de croissance (13 cas); la dysplasie (11 cas); le traumatisme de la coxo-femorale (6 cas); la fracture du col femoral (2 cas) et la tuberculose de la coxo-femorale (2 cas) etaient les facteurs de risque associes aux formes secondaires. Trois des 14 patients atteints d'osteonecrose aseptique de la tete femorale etaient porteurs d'hemoglobine SC et deux patients porteurs d'hemoglobine SS. Conclusion. L'osteonecrose aseptique de la tete femorale semble constituer le premier facteur de risque de la coxarthrose en Afrique Noire. Son impact risque de se renforcer avec l'allongement de l'esperance de vie des sujets drepanocytaires homozygotes et des doubles heterozygotes SC

[Lumbar spinal stenosis in an outpatient clinic in Lome, Togo]. / Le canal lombaire rétréci en consultation rhumatologique à Lomé (Togo).

The purpose of this study was to determine the frequency and semiological characteristics of lumbar spinal stenosis in patients attending the rheumatology outpatient clinic at the Lomé Teaching Hospital. Medical records of 13081 patients seen over a 15-year period were retrospectively reviewed. A total of 760 (5.8%) had lumbar spinal stenosis. There were 556 women (73.2%) and 204 men (26.8%) with a mean age at onset of 52 years (range, 25 to 65 years). The mean duration of lumbar spinal stenosis was 4.5 years. The main symptom was nerve root pain in 712 (93.7%) involving one root in 248 cases and more than one root in 464. Most patients in this group were between the ages of 35 and 65 years. Pain was relieved by bending the spine forward in 456 patients (60%) and claudication was present in 643 patients (84.6%). Walking distance was less than 500 meters in 491 patients and more than 500 meters in 152. Pain was exacerbated by extension of the spine in 475 patients (62.5%) and associated with paresthesia in 532 patients (70%) and sphincter dysfunction in 155 patients (20.4%). Roentgenography of the lumbar spine was performed in 504 patients and showed abnormalities in 475. The most common radiographic abnormality was degenerative disk disease (n = 251). Myelography was performed in 56 patients, showing a rosary-like image in 31 cases and disk herniation in 23. Lumbar spinal stenosis in Black Africa appears to be more common than in industrialized countries and to affect mainly women in the fifth decade of life. The semiological profile of lumbar spinal stenosis appeared to be similar in Black Africa and industrialized countries.

Le canal lombaire retreci en consultation rhumatologique a Lome (Togo)

Une etude sur dossiers a etemenee afin de determiner la frequence et le profil semiologique du canal lombaire retreci au cours d'une consultation rhumatologique a Lome (Togo). Sur les 13081 patients examines en 15 ans; 760 (5;8) souffraient d'un canal lombaire retreci. Ces 760 patients qui se repartissaient en 556 femmes (73;2) et 204 hommes (26;8) avaient en moyenne 52 ans au debut de la maladie (extremes : 25 et 65 ans). La duree moyenne d'evolution de celle-ci etait de 4;5 ans. Le maitre sympto- me etait une lomboradiculalgie (monoradiculaire : 248 patients; pluriradiculaire : 464 patients) presente chez 712 patients. La douleur cedait a la flexion du rachis chez 456 patients (60) et etait claudicante chez 643 patients (84;6) : perimetre de marche inferieur a 500 metres chez 491 patients et superieur ou egal a 500 metres chez 152 patients. Elle etait exageree par l'hyperextension du rachis chez 475 patients (62;5); associee a des paresthesies chez 532 patients (70); et a des troubles sphincteriens chez 155 patients (20;4). La radiographie du rachis lombaire effectuee chez 504 patients comportait des anomalies chez 475. Ces anomalies radiologiques etaient dominees par la discopathie degenerative. La saccoradiculographie realisee chez 56 patients a mis en evidence une image en chapelet dans 31 cas et une hernie discale dans 23 cas. Le canal lombaire retreci parait frequent enAfrique et surviendrait avec predilection chez la femme de la cinquantaine. Son profil semiologique semble analogue a celui decrit en Occident

Le canal lombaire retreci en consultation rhumatologique a Lome (Togo)

Une etude sur dossiers a etemenee afin de determiner la frequence et le profil semiologique du canal lombaire retreci au cours d'une consultation rhumatologique a Lome (Togo). Sur les 13081 patients examines en 15 ans; 760 (5;8) souffraient d'un canal lombaire retreci. Ces 760 patients qui se repartissaient en 556 femmes (73;2) et 204 hommes (26;8) avaient en moyenne 52 ans au debut de la maladie (extremes : 25 et 65 ans). La duree moyenne d'evolution de celle-ci etait de 4;5 ans. Le maitre symptome etait une lomboradiculalgie (monoradiculaire : 248 patients; pluriradiculaire : 464 patients) presente chez 712 patients. La douleur cedait a la flexion du rachis chez 456 patients (60) et etait claudicante chez 643 patients (84;6) : perimetre de marche inferieur a 500 metres chez 491 patients et superieur ou egal a 500 metres chez 152 patients. Elle etait exageree par l'hyperextension du rachis chez 475 patients (62;5); associee a des paresthesies chez 532 patients (70); et a des troubles sphincteriens chez 155 patients (20;4). La radiographie du rachis lombaire effectuee chez 504 patients comportait des anomalies chez 475. Ces anomalies radiologiques etaient dominees par la discopathie degenerative. La saccoradiculographie realisee chez 56 patients a mis en evidence une image en chapelet dans 31 cas et une hernie discale dans 23 cas. Le canal lombaire retreci parait frequent enAfrique et surviendrait avec predilection chez la femme de la cinquantaine. Son profil semiologique semble analogue a celui decrit en Occident

Spondyloarthropathies in sub-Saharan Africa.

HLA-B27 is virtually absent in most of the sub-Saharan Africa populations, and ankylosing spondylitis is rare; only a few patients have been reported from central and southern Africa. HLA-B27 was present in only one of 17 patients (6%). The disease shows clinical features that are similar to those observed in white HLA-B27-negative patients with ankylosing spondylitis; ie, the disease onset is later compared with HLAB27-positive patients, the patients rarely get acute anterior uveitis as one of the extra-articular manifestations, and familial occurrence of ankylosing spondylitis is rarely observed. There is a virtual absence of ankylosing spondylitis even in the west African countries of Gambia and Senegal, where 3% to 6% of the general population has HLA-B27. The epidemic of HIV infection in sub-Saharan Africa in recent years, however, has been associated with a dramatic upsurge in the prevalence of spondyloarthropathies other than ankylosing spondylitis, primarily reactive arthritis and undifferentiated forms of the disease, and less often psoriatic arthritis. HLA-B27, because of its rarity and virtual lack of association with the observed cases of spondyloarthropathy in this population, cannot be used as an aid to diagnosis of spondyloarthropathy in black Africans. Conversely, HIV infection is increasingly showing such a strong association with reactive arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and undifferentiated spondyloarthropathies in sub-Saharan African populations that any patient with acute or chronic inflammatory arthritis may need to be tested for possible HIV infection. More research is needed on the evaluation of risk and protective factors in sub-Saharan African populations to better delineate the relative importance of genetic and environmental factors in the pathogenesis of spondyloarthropathies.

Risk factors for gout in Togolese patients.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the risk factors for gout in Togolese patients. METHODS: The medical records of patients admitted to the Lomé Teaching Hospital (Togo) rheumatology department over a ten-year period were reviewed retrospectively. RESULTS: Of the 8351 study patients, 160 (1.9%) fulfilled American Rheumatism Association criteria for gout; 159 were male. Mean age at disease onset was 44 years, and mean disease duration was six years. Tophi were recorded in 35 cases and a history of renal colic in one. Only five patients (3.1%) had no identifiable risk factors. The main risk factors in the remaining patients were alcohol abuse (133/160, 83.12%), overweight/obesity (64/160, 40%), and hypertension (42/160, 26.25%); 153 patients (95.6%) had at least one of these risk factors, 58 patients (36.32%) had two, and 14 (8.8%) had all three. Of the 42 hypertensive patients, 20 were on diuretic therapy. Seventeen patients (10.62%) had a family history of gout. There was no evidence that AS or AC hemoglobinopathy (32 and 13 cases, respectively) influenced the course or natural history of gout. CONCLUSION: Although population-based studies are needed for confirmation, our study suggests that risk factors for gout in Togolese patients are similar to those in other parts of Africa and in Western countries.

Low back pain in hospital outpatients in Lomé (Togo).

OBJECTIVE: To determine the patterns of low back pain and the conditions associated with this symptom in outpatients attending the rheumatology unit of the Lomé Teaching Hospital. METHODS: Medical records of patients seen over a ten-year period were studied retrospectively. RESULTS: Among the 9,065 patients seen during the study period, 3,204 (35.34%; 1,850 women and 1,354 men) had low back pain. Mean age at onset was 41 years, and mean duration of low back pain was three years. Diseases associated with low back pain were as follows: degenerative spinal disease, N = 3,054 (95.32%); spinal infections, N = 79 (2.47%); spondyloarthropathies, N = 44 (1.37%); and tumors, N = 27 (0.84%). The patterns of degenerative spinal disease included low back pain (N = 1,535, 47.91%), low back pain with nerve root pain suggestive of disk herniation (N = 1,108, 34.58%), and low back pain with nerve root pain and claudication suggestive of lumbar spinal stenosis (N = 411, 12.83%). Schöber's index was abnormal in 831 of the 1,408 patients (59%) with acute pain or disk herniation. Most patients with lumbar spinal stenosis were women (72.26%) and were aged 35 to 64 years. Findings suggestive of tuberculosis were present in 62 of the 79 patients with lumbar spinal infection. Among the 44 patients with spondyloarthropathies, 15 had ankylosing spondylitis and 11 had infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Multiple myeloma was present in ten patients and metastatic tumors in eight. CONCLUSION: Low back pain seems to be as common in sub-Saharan Africa as in occidental countries, with a prevalence of one-third among rheumatology outpatients. Lumbar spinal stenosis seems more common than in the occident and is mainly observed in woman. Schöber's index is not useful for measuring forward bending of the lumbar spine in Africans. The epidemiology of spondyloarthropathies in sub-Saharan Africa has been changed by the expanding HIV epidemic, despite the low prevalence of the HLA B27 phenotype.

Musculoskeletal conditions in children attending two Togolese hospitals.

OBJECTIVE: A retrospective study was conducted in order to point out the different kinds of musculoskeletal conditions observed in children attending two Togolese hospitals. RESULTS: A total of 434 (242 females, 192 males) of the 29 620 children examined (1.5%) were suffering from these conditions. Probable joint and bone infections (187 patients, 43%), limb deformities (106 patients, 24%), osteochondrosis (60 patients, 14%) and vaso-occlusive crisis due to haemoglobinopathies (29 patients, 7%) were the main conditions observed. Osteomyelitis observed in 128 patients affected the humerus (25 patients), radius (10 patients), femur (68 patients), tibia (15 patients), fibula (five patients), and both tibia and fibula (five patients). Probably, infectious arthritis seen in 30 patients affected mainly the hip (11 patients) and the knee (13 patients). In the spine, infection affected the midthoracic and upper lumbar areas. Underdevelopment, sickle cell anaemia and sickle cell haemoglobin C disease were the main risk factors in determining susceptibility to infections. Vaso-occlusive crises were due to sickle cell anaemia (11 patients) and sickle cell haemoglobin C disease (18 patients). Osteochondrosis seen in 60 patients free from haemoglobinopathy involved the spine (Scheuermann's disease, 38 patients) and the hip (Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, 22 patients). Limb deformities were observed in the knee (varus and valgus deformities in 64 patients) and the foot (talipes varus equin in 40 patients). CONCLUSION: This study's findings, which require further confirmation, suggest some conclusions. Scheuermann's disease can explain in part the degenerative disc conditions observed in African adults. Valgus and varus deformities play an important role in the development of knee osteoarthritis in Black Africa. An African child with joint or bone pain should be investigated for sickle cell anaemia. In the future, improved lifestyle and better health care will be essential to reduce bone and joint infections, and allow refined diagnosis of connective tissue diseases now probably underestimated in African children.

[Connective tissue diseases in the hospital outpatient service in Lomé (Togo)]. / Les connectivites en consultation hospitalière à Lomé (Togo).

PURPOSE: There have been few studies of connective tissue diseases in Africa. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted in order to describe the various connective tissue diseases and their semiological profile in patients attending the dermatology and rheumatology units at Lomé hospital. RESULTS: Clinical examinations showed that eighty-four (0.2%) out of the 34,169 patients were suffering from connective tissue diseases. Diseases that were encountered were the following: scleroderma (18 cases), systemic lupus erythematosus (four cases), discoid lupus erythematosus (15 cases), rheumatoid arthritis (29 cases), polymyositis and dermatomyositis (16 cases), juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (one case), giant cell arteritis (one case). Raynaud's syndrome was present in six out of the 18 patients suffering from scleroderma. Nephrotic syndrome was observed in a patient suffering from systemic lupus erythematosus. A septicemia caused this patient's death. Two patients suffering from polymyositis had cancer. No etiology was found in the 14 other patients. Hip involvement was present in two patients suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis had no systemic involvement (nodulitis, vasculitis). CONCLUSION: Our results are in agreement with those of previous studies on connective tissue diseases in Africa. However, further studies are required to better understand the epidemiological and semiological profiles of connective tissue diseases in Africa.