Source- Graphic.com
Ghana has recorded the first case of a rare genetic disorder Wilson Disease estimated to affect 1 per every 10,000 to 30,000 individuals, which is approximately between 10 and 30 million people worldwide.
After a diagnosis and numerous testing, the case was documented at the Child Health Department, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra.
The victim of the rare condition is a 13-year-old boy who was brought to the hospital after a referral from the Accra Psychiatric Hospital, where the result of the first MRI attracted the attention of the entire medical staff.
Addressing concerns raised over the case, Head, Neuro-Developmental Clinic, Department of Child Health, KBTH, Professor Ebenezer Badoe, mentioned that the first symptom of the disease is usually jaundice before affecting the other organs such as the liver and kidney.
However, in this case, the condition had crossed the jaundice stage and entered his brains, causing him to lose his motor skills, a change in his gait, and deteriorating handwriting.
The pediatric neurologist added that because the disease was rare and needed both parents to have the genes affected, he requested an advance genetic test for both parents and the child, which was done in the United States of America (USA) at a cost of $8,000 with funding from a non-governmental organization, Reg Disease Ghana.
Highlighting the importance of this discovery, Prof. Badoe stressed the need for teachers and caregivers to be given the needed training to pick up simple changes in the children under their care so that they could report for further study to be done for early diagnosis of conditions among children.
Even though the disease is treatable through medication, it comes with a cost of about GH¢450 every month.
