Management of Adult Abdomino-Pelvic Masses at Brazzaville University Hospital

Objective: To report our experience in the management of adult abdomino-pelvic masses at the Brazzaville University Hospital Centre.

Patients and Method: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in the digestive surgery department of the Brazzaville University Hospital from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2023. We included all patients aged at least 18 years treated for a palpable abdomino-pelvic mass.

Results: During the study period, 58 patients were treated for an abdominal or abdominopelvic mass, representing a hospital frequency of 1.7%. The age of our patients ranged from 18 to 90 years, with a median of 48.5 years. There were 41 women and 17 men, giving a sex ratio of 0.41. The main reason for consultation was abdominal enlargement (n = 41, 70.68%) followed by abdominal pain (n = 32, 55.17%). The majority of patients had a WHO perfomens status of 2 (n = 37 or 63.79%). Fifty-six patients underwent abdominal CT scans, the majority of which revealed a tissue mass (n = 39, 70.9%). All patients had undergone surgery. Surgical exploration revealed a retroperitoneal mass (n = 4, 6.89%) and an intraperitoneal mass (n= 54, 93.1%). Several surgical procedures were performed, depending on the location of the mass and whether it had invaded neighbouring organs. The post operative course was mostly straight forward.

Conclusion: Abdominopelvic masses are a significant part of our practice. Surgery is sometimes our only diagnostic and therapeutic option.

Keywords: Abdominopelvic Mass, Surgery, Brazzaville.