Pattern of Lower Limb Doppler Ultrasonography Requests and Findings in a Tertiary Institution in Makurdi; North-Central Nigeria

Background: Doppler ultrasound scan (DUS) is a valuable, cost effective, and relatively rapid diagnostic technique that provides a non-invasive assessment of the vascular circulation in the lower limb.Aims:To determine the pattern of lower limbs Doppler requests in our environment and to evaluate the Doppler findings.Study Design:Retrospective studyPlace and Duration of Study:Radiology department of Benue state university Teaching Hospital over a one-year period from January 2018 to December 2018.Methods: We included 200 patients that had lower limb Doppler ultrasound for various indications.Data on age, gender, indications and findings was retrieved from departmental cards and case Original ResearchArticle
Msuega et al.;JAMMR, 33(7): 45-57, 2021; Article no.JAMMR.6581346notes, then collated and analyzed using SPSS software version 23, with the Pvalue taken as =.005.Results: Two hundred patients were scanned;106 males and 94 females with age range of 10-109 years. Their mean age was 34.2 ±13.5 years.Most patients 48(24.0%), who presented for Doppler sonography of the lower limb had diabetic foot ulcer (DFU), followed by left leg swelling in 42(21.0%) patients. DVT alone was indicated in 33(16.5%) patients. Both DFU and DVT were more in the male patients with a M:F ratio of 26:22 and 21:12 respectively. The indications for lower limb doppler ultrasound scan are seen to generally increase with increasing age, with the least among those less than 40years 32(16.0%) and highest among the greater than 60years age groups 89(44.5%). At doppler ultrasound, there are more patients with Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) 104(52.0%). Normal study and peripheral vascular disease (PVD) have equal incidence respectively in 48(24%) of the patients. DVT and PVD were more in the male group with a M: F ratio of 55:49 and 27:21 respectively while normal studies were seen equally in both sexes (M: F=24:24). Conclusion: Doppler ultrasound has been shown to be a cost-effective and valuable non-invasive tool for the diagnosis of lower limb vascular diseases