Situations de handicap et médecine de réadaptation chez les femmes de l'Ouest algérien : enquête prospective, à propos de 72 cas

The survey covered 72 Algerian women aged 18-82 years (mean age: 46.7 ± 2 years) with disabilities, examined from 1st January 1999 to 31st December 2001 of whom 55.6% were married and 22% single. The number of dependent children was 3.4% per mother; 48.6% were not in school; 13.9% had a job; 1.4% were retired; 30.1% had an unemployed spouse. The average hospital stay for 44.4% of cases was 42 ± 1.2 days. The pathology responsible was dominated by neurological disorders of central origin (37.5%). Rheumatic diseases ranked second, with 31.9% of the cases. The difficulties were related to resources and the remoteness of healthcare facilities from their homes. Significant adaptation of care is still needed in the sense of community-based rehabilitation proposed by the World Health Organization.