Neonatal surgical emergencies at the Bukavu Provincial General Reference Hospital in Democratic Republic of Congo

This study aims to determine the prevalence of neonatal surgical emergencies and their epidemiology. This retrospective cohort study reports 30 cases whose data were collected in the Department of Surgery at the Bukavu Provincial General Reference Hospital over a period of 3 years, from January 2010 to December 2013. Neonatal surgical emergencies account for 1.31% of surgical pathologies in general. The most frequent age of patients during medical consultation was less than 8 days. Male prevalence was noted with sex-ratio 3/2. The most frequent pathologies were gastrointestinal tract emergencies (43.3%) followed by neurological emergencies (40%). 80% of newborns underwent surgery. Mortality rate was 43.3%. Neonatal surgical pathologies occur in our midst. Clinicians should be on alert and implement prenatal diagnostic programs and proper neonatal care management in order to save the lives of these children.