Evaluating the Effectiveness of African School of Hypertension for Non-Physician Health Workers, a Qualitative Study: QuASH Hypertension Study.

Background: The implementation of task sharing and shifting (TSTS) policy as a way of addressing the shortage of physicians and reducing the burden of hypertension in Africa birthed the idea of the African School of Hypertension (ASH). The ASH is saddled with the responsibility of training non-physician health workers across Africa continent in the management of uncomplicated hypertension.

Aim: To get feedback from some faculty members and students who participated in the first ASH programme.

Clinical and echocardiographic findings in a cross-sectional study of HIV-infected adults in Enugu, Nigeria.

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) are implicated in cardiovascular diseases. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical and echocardiographic findings in HIV-infected adults.

Methods: One hundred HIV subjects on HAART, 100 HAART-naïve patients and 100 controls were recruited in this cross-sectional study.

QTc prolongation in Black diabetic subjects with cardiac autonomic neuropathy.

Background: Prolonged corrected QT (QTc) has been identified as a risk factor for malignant arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. Caucasian studies have shown a definite relationship between QTc prolongation and Cardiac Autonomic Neuropathy (CAN) in diabetic subjects.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of prolonged QTc in Black diabetic individuals with CAN and to ascertain how prolonged QTc correlated with the severity of CAN among these patients.

Echocardiographic assessment of left ventricular function in thyrotoxicosis and implications for the therapeutics of thyrotoxic cardiac disease.

Introduction: Thyrotoxicosis is an endocrine disorder with prominent cardiovascular manifestations. Thyroid hormone acts through genomic and non-genomic mechanisms to regulate cardiac function. Echocardiography is a useful, non-invasive, easily accessible, and affordable tool for studying the structural and physiological function of the heart.

The CURB-65 scoring system in severity assessment of Eastern Nigerian patients with community-acquired pneumonia: a prospective observational study.

Background: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Nigeria. Severity assessment is a major starting point in the proper management of CAP. The BTS guideline for managing this condition is simple and does not require sophisticated equipment.

Prevalence and determinants of hypertension in Abia State Nigeria: results from the Abia State Non-Communicable Diseases and Cardiovascular Risk Factors Survey.

Objective: Hypertension is the most common non-communicable disease and risk factor for heart failure, stroke, chronic kidney disease and ischemic heart disease in sub-Saharan Africa. Few population-based studies have been conducted recently in Nigeria and, in Abia State, no previous study has been conducted on the prevalence and correlates of hypertension among the populace. The purpose of our study was, therefore, to determine the prevalence and determinants of high blood pressure in Abia State, southeastern Nigeria.

Blood pressure, prevalence of hypertension and hypertension related complications in Nigerian Africans: A review.

To review studies on hypertension in Nigeria over the past five decades in terms of prevalence, awareness and treatment and complications. Following our search on Pubmed, African Journals Online and the World Health Organization Global cardiovascular infobase, 1060 related references were identified out of which 43 were found to be relevant for this review. The overall prevalence of hypertension in Nigeria ranges from 8%-46.

Clinical findings associated with cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction in adult sickle cell anaemia patients.

Background: Involvement of the cardiovascular autonomic nervous system in various diseases is often associated with increased morbidity and mortality.

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the clinical features associated with cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy (CAN) in adult Nigerians with sickle cell anaemia.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out on 62 steady state sickle cell anaemia patients recruited from the adult out-patient clinic.

Total cardiovascular risk approach to improve efficiency of cardiovascular prevention in resource constrain settings.

Objectives: To determine the population distribution of cardiovascular risk in eight low- and middle-income countries and compare the cost of drug treatment based on cardiovascular risk (cardiovascular risk thresholds ≥ 30%/≥ 40%) with single risk factor cutoff levels.

Study Design And Setting: Using World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Society of Hypertension risk prediction charts, cardiovascular risk was categorized in a cross-sectional study of 8,625 randomly selected people aged 40-80 years (mean age, 54.6 years) from defined geographic regions of Nigeria, Iran, China, Pakistan, Georgia, Nepal, Cuba, and Sri Lanka.

High prevalence and low awareness of hypertension in a market population in enugu, Nigeria.

Background. A community-based study put the prevalence of hypertension in Nigeria at 32.8%.