Publications by authors named "J J Malemba"
Objective: To develop and validate a screening tool to identify patients with a high likelihood for Spondyloarthritis (SpA) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo).
Methods: The development of the SpA Screening questionnaire in Sub Saharian Africa (SpASSS) questionnaire followed 3 steps: The item generation was carried out by a systematic literature review according to the PRISMA guidelines on the clinical manifestations of SpA, interviewing clinical experts and the classification criteria for Spondyloarthritis. The candidate questions were tested in a population of 50 consecutive patients with confirmed diagnosis of spondyloarthritis, in a control population of rheumatic disease excluding SpA and in a group of 200 non-rheumatic participants, randomly chosen in the general population for question reduction and validation.
Article Synopsis
- A study in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, aimed to find out how common osteoporosis is among outpatients with axial rheumatism and what factors contribute to it.
- Conducted over a year, the study included 90 patients, revealing that 34.4% had osteoporosis, with low back pain being the primary symptom.
- Key risk factors identified were aging, smoking, and being non-obese, especially among women, highlighting the need for awareness and prevention strategies in this population.
Introduction: the purpose of this study was to describe the profile of serum lipases in patients with bone fractures and to investigate the associated factors.
Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional study at the Kokolo Military General Hospital in Camp Kokolo (KMGHICK) from July to October 2013. All patients admitted with bone fractures who had agreed to take part in the study were included.
Introduction: The aim of the present study was to describe the clinical and radiological features of knee osteoarthritis in Congolese outpatients attending the University Hospital of Kinshasa (UHK).
Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed in the rheumatology unit of the UHK from January to August 2012. Patients were consecutively recruited.
Article Synopsis
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can reduce life expectancy by 5 to 10 years due to premature atherosclerosis, caused by traditional cardiovascular risk factors and systemic inflammation.
- A study at the University Hospital of Kinshasa (UHK) included 75 RA patients to assess the prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis, measuring it through the carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT).
- Results showed that 32% of patients had subclinical atherosclerosis, with significant associations found for factors like being a woman over 55, higher RA activity, severe RA, high blood pressure, and obesity.