A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda

Abstract Introduction Brain tumors (BTs) are a group of heterogeneous tumors which are aggressive and have significant morbidity and mortality globally. Aim of the work This study aims to provide a 6-year review of the frequency of histological subtypes of BTs from a single tertiary hospital in Ugan...

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Main Authors: James J. Yahaya, Advera I. Ngaiza
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: SpringerOpen 2025-07-01
Series:Egyptian Journal of Neurosurgery
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s41984-025-00432-7
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author James J. Yahaya
Advera I. Ngaiza
author_facet James J. Yahaya
Advera I. Ngaiza
author_sort James J. Yahaya
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Introduction Brain tumors (BTs) are a group of heterogeneous tumors which are aggressive and have significant morbidity and mortality globally. Aim of the work This study aims to provide a 6-year review of the frequency of histological subtypes of BTs from a single tertiary hospital in Uganda. Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study which included retrospective data from hospital records. Data were extracted from the patients’ files who were managed due to BTs in the neurosurgery unit from January 2013 to December 2018. Patients with available files and histology reports altogether with information consisting of histopathological diagnosis and clinical information on duration of diseases, and treatment modality among many others were included in the analysis. Results A total of 88 histologically confirmed cases with BTs were recorded at the neuropathology unit for a period of 6 years. The mean age of the patients was 35.3 ± 19.2 years, and males were slightly more prevalent 51.1% (45/88) compared to females. Most of the patients 54.5% (48/88) were presenting clinically with headache. Of all the cases analyzed, the vast majority 71.6% (63/88) of the patients had benign tumors. Gliomas were the most common BTs which were found in 44.3% (39/88) followed by meningiomas which comprised 40.9% (36/88). Astrocytomas were the commonest type of gliomas which consisted of 38.5% (15/39) of all the gliomas. Conclusion This study reports on a cohort of patients with BTs among whom, most of them were presenting clinically with headache. From our findings, it can be observed that the highest referral for acute neurosurgical intervention is glioma, followed by meningioma.
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spelling doaj-art-19aed20192e2471591e0f706c5aa021d2025-08-20T03:42:20ZengSpringerOpenEgyptian Journal of Neurosurgery2520-82252025-07-014011710.1186/s41984-025-00432-7A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, UgandaJames J. Yahaya0Advera I. Ngaiza1Department of Pathology, School of Health Sciences, Soroti UniversityDepartment of Pathology, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS)Abstract Introduction Brain tumors (BTs) are a group of heterogeneous tumors which are aggressive and have significant morbidity and mortality globally. Aim of the work This study aims to provide a 6-year review of the frequency of histological subtypes of BTs from a single tertiary hospital in Uganda. Methods This was a descriptive cross-sectional study which included retrospective data from hospital records. Data were extracted from the patients’ files who were managed due to BTs in the neurosurgery unit from January 2013 to December 2018. Patients with available files and histology reports altogether with information consisting of histopathological diagnosis and clinical information on duration of diseases, and treatment modality among many others were included in the analysis. Results A total of 88 histologically confirmed cases with BTs were recorded at the neuropathology unit for a period of 6 years. The mean age of the patients was 35.3 ± 19.2 years, and males were slightly more prevalent 51.1% (45/88) compared to females. Most of the patients 54.5% (48/88) were presenting clinically with headache. Of all the cases analyzed, the vast majority 71.6% (63/88) of the patients had benign tumors. Gliomas were the most common BTs which were found in 44.3% (39/88) followed by meningiomas which comprised 40.9% (36/88). Astrocytomas were the commonest type of gliomas which consisted of 38.5% (15/39) of all the gliomas. Conclusion This study reports on a cohort of patients with BTs among whom, most of them were presenting clinically with headache. From our findings, it can be observed that the highest referral for acute neurosurgical intervention is glioma, followed by meningioma.https://doi.org/10.1186/s41984-025-00432-7Brain tumorsClinical characteristicsHistological diagnosis
spellingShingle James J. Yahaya
Advera I. Ngaiza
A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda
Egyptian Journal of Neurosurgery
Brain tumors
Clinical characteristics
Histological diagnosis
title A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda
title_full A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda
title_fullStr A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda
title_full_unstemmed A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda
title_short A 6-year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda
title_sort 6 year review of brain tumors at a national referral hospital in kampala uganda
topic Brain tumors
Clinical characteristics
Histological diagnosis
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s41984-025-00432-7
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