Abstract
Introduction: The incidence of Legg-Calvé-Perthes Disease (LCPD) has varied considerably both between countries and between population groups. The incidence of LCPD has not been reported in Korea. The purpose of this study was to determine the annual incidence of LCPD in Korea and to compare this to other population groups.
Materials and Methods: Firstly, only LCPD children who were living in Chonnam Province, Korea, and were aged 14 years and under during the years 1999, 2000, and 2001, were reviewed to measure the annual incidence. Secondly, for a further study regarding the variables related to the epidemiological interest, 816 hips, which were treated at our hospital during the last 32 years from 1972 to 2003, were reviewed.
Results: The population aged 14 years and under was 734,645 in 1999, 728,721 in 2000, and 719,504 in 2001. Among them, the number of LCPD children was 29 in 1999, 28 in 2000, and 24 in 2001. The annual incidence was 3.9 per 100, 000 in 1999, 3.8 in 2000, and 3.3 in 2001, with a mean incidence of 3.7 per 100, 000.
Discussion: The annual incidence of LCPD in Korean children aged 14 years and under was 3.7 per 100,000. This Korean incidence was lower than the 5.1 to 21.1 per 100,000 incidence reported in Caucasians and higher than the 0.45/100,000 reported in blacks or mixed decent. The incidence of gender, bilaterally, age of disease onset, extent of head involvement, and other related epidemiological parameters was similar to those reported in other studies.
The abstracts were prepared by Michael A. Mont, M.D. and Lynne C. Jones, Ph.D. Correspondence should be addressed to L. Jones at Good Samaritan Prof. Bldg., Suite 201, 5601 Loch Raven Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21239
