Ultrasonography evaluation of renal cyst disease in nnewi urban, South east nigeria

Renal cysts were common findings in the kidneys encountered in daily routine ultrasound examination. The majority is benign, but they can become complicated in the case of infection, hemorrhage, and ischemia. Sonographic evaluation plays a great role in classification and characterization of these lesions. The aim of this study was to assess the occurrence of renal cyst, to assess the renal cysts and classify them according to the sonographic appearance and find relationship with age and sex in the study group. This is a retrospective cross-sectional study. A total of two hundred and ninety (290) ultrasounud reports of adult patients that had been certified to have any form of renal cystic disease for a period of three year (June 2015- June 2017) in Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital and two diagnostic centers in Nnewi urban, Anambra State, Nigeria were used for the study. The demographic data were collected using a designed data collection sheet which included the symptoms, clinical history, and demographic information. Data were interpreted and analyzed using statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) software program version 21. The statistics was descriptive and data analysis was in line with the purpose of the study. The result showed that the incidence of renal cysts is significantly higher in male than female (64.8% vs. 35.2%, P= 0.000). Renal cysts were common in patients above 50 years old (63.1%). Aging was a significant factor of the renal cyst (P = 0.000) and size of the cysts was significantly associated with age (P = 0.015). The majority of cysts was solitary (76.6%), unilateral (86.5%), and more located in the right kidney (56.2%). The incidence of cortical simple renal cysts was 63.8%, para-pelvic simple renal cysts was 23.1%, autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) was 10.3%, and acquired cystic kidney disease (ACKD) was 2.8%. The majority of simple renal cysts were asymptomatic (87.6%). Hypertension and flank pain were the common symptoms of ADPKD and ACKD. Age and gender were significant risk factors of renal cysts. ADPKD and ACKD were less frequent among Nnewi adults. Hypertension and flank pain were the most common signs and symptoms of ADPKD and ACKD. Ultrasound plays an effective role to classify and assess renal cysts that help in management and follow-up.