BackgroundThe prevalence of Sickle cell disease is extremely high in Democratic Republic of Congo. Despite this high prevalence of the disease, data on renal abnormalities in children are rare.MethodThe study proposed to assess blood pressure, glomerular function, urea and uric acid levels in 65 steady state Congolese children with homozygous sickle cell disease and 67 normal controls.ResultsIn Hb-SS group, blood pressure level tended to be lower than Hb-AA groups but there was no statistically significant difference (p>0.05) between the two groups. The absolute values for GFR corrected for BSA were significantly higher in Hb-SS group compared to Hb-AA group (130.5±34.1 ml/min/1.73 m2 vs 113.7±24.5 ml/min/1.73 m2; p = 0.004). Children with Hb-SS were more likely to hyperfiltrate (30.8% of subjects) than children with Hb-AA (6.1% of subjects). Proteinuria was found in 4 (6.2%) children with Hb-SS. Uric acid level was significantly increased in children with Hb-SS compared to corresponding values in control group (4.4±1.3 mg/dl vs 3.5±1.1 mg/dl; p<0.001). Urea level was significantly decreased compared to corresponding values in Hb-AA group (15.3±8.3 mg/dl vs 22.9±10.1 mg/dl; p<0.001).ConclusionHyperfiltration, low creatinine, lower urea and high uric acid are more common in children with sickle cell disease than in normal controls.

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Sickle cell anemia is a chronic illness associated with important nonmedical complications. The prevalence of depression and its clinical profile among Congolese children suffering from sickle cell disease are unknown. We therefore conducted a cross-sectional study in children between 8 and 17 years. The main goal of this study was to describe prevalence and characteristics of depression in this population living in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo. The cross-sectional survey is of patients attending 2 referral centers. Children aged 8 to 17 years old were evaluated by a semistructured interview and standardized scales for depression separated by age and sex, the Multiscore Depression Inventory for Children. Completed questionnaires were received from 81 respondents. There were 43 girls and 38 boys. Depression symptoms were observed in 70 (86.4%) cases. Among this group, 6 children (8.6%) were observed to have severe depression. The most common symptoms were observed to be social introversion (81.5%), defiance (77.8%), helplessness (76.5%), and sad mood (70.4%). Of the 70 subjects, 19 (23.5%) had suicidal ideation. In Kinshasa, the prevalence of depression was high to those reported in western countries. Psychological interventions for individuals with sickle cell disease might complement current medical treatment in our midst.

It appears that at least one of six children with SCT had hyperfiltration. The findings could form a basis for further studies on this renal physiology among SCT individuals in Africa.