Racial and regional disparities in the risk of noncommunicable disease between sub-Saharan black and European white patients.

Objectives: Greater vulnerability of Black vs. White individuals to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) is well charted in the United States, but studies involving sub-Saharan blacks are scarce.

Methods: Baseline data (2021-2024) were collected in 168 sub-Saharan Blacks and 93 European Whites in an ongoing clinical trial (NCT04299529), using standardized patient selection criteria.

Urinary Proteomics and Systems Biology Link Eight Proteins to the Higher Risk of Hypertension and Related Complications in Blacks Versus Whites.

Blacks are more prone to salt-sensitive hypertension than Whites. This cross-sectional analysis of a multi-ethnic cohort aimed to search for proteins potentially involved in the susceptibility to salt sensitivity, hypertension, and hypertension-related complications. The study included individuals enrolled in African Prospective Study on the Early Detection and Identification of Cardiovascular Disease and Hypertension (African-PREDICT), Flemish Study of the Environment, Genes and Health Outcomes (FLEMENGHO), Prospective Cohort Study in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus for Validation of Biomarkers (PROVALID)-Austria, and Urinary Proteomics Combined with Home Blood Pressure Telemonitoring for Health Care Reform Trial (UPRIGHT-HTM).

The development of Africa's first unified hypertension management guidelines.

Hypertension is a leading cardiovascular risk factor, contributing significantly to morbidity and mortality in Africa. The continent is plagued with a high incidence, coupled with low treatment and control rates. The causes are multifactorial, and among the major causes is an absence of standardized African guidelines for the management of hypertension.

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.

Peripartum cardiomyopathy in low- and middle-income countries.

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) causes pregnancy-associated heart failure, typically during the last month of pregnancy, and up to 6 months post-partum, in women without known cardiovascular disease. PPCM is a global disease, but with a significant geographical variability within and between countries. Its true incidence in Africa is still unknown because of the lack of a PPCM population-based study.

Urinary proteomics combined with home blood pressure telemonitoring for health care reform trial-First progress report.

High blood pressure (BP) and type-2 diabetes (T2DM) are forerunners of chronic kidney disease and left ventricular dysfunction. Home BP telemonitoring (HTM) and urinary peptidomic profiling (UPP) are technologies enabling risk stratification and personalized prevention. UPRIGHT-HTM (NCT04299529) is an investigator-initiated, multicenter, open-label, randomized trial with blinded endpoint evaluation designed to assess the efficacy of HTM plus UPP (experimental group) over HTM alone (control group) in guiding treatment in asymptomatic patients, aged 55-75 years, with ≥5 cardiovascular risk factors.

Adherence Clubs to Improve Hypertension Management in Nigeria: Clubmeds, a Feasibility Study.

Background: Hypertension control remains a significant challenge in reducing the cardiovascular disease burden worldwide. Community peer-support groups have been identified as a promising strategy to improve medication adherence and blood pressure (BP) control.

Objectives: The study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and impact of adherence clubs to improve BP control in Southeast Nigeria.

Assessing knowledge, attitude, practice and training related to COVID-19: a cross-sectional survey of frontline healthcare workers in Nigeria.

Objectives: Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at the frontline of efforts to treat those affected by COVID-19 and prevent its continued spread. This study seeks to assess knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) as well as training needs and preferences related to COVID-19 among frontline HCWs in Nigeria.

Setting: A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 1852 HCWs in primary, secondary and tertiary care settings across Nigeria using a 33-item questionnaire.

Prevalence and Determinants of Masked Hypertension in Nigeria: The REMAH Study.

Background: Estimating the burden of hypertension in Nigeria hitherto relied on clinic blood pressure (BP) measurement alone. This excludes individuals with masked hypertension (MH), i.e.

Urinary sodium excretion and its association with blood pressure in Nigeria: A nationwide population survey.

Assessment of level of salt intake in a population is the first step toward planning strategies aimed at salt reduction. As a surrogate of salt intake, we measured a single 24-hour urine sodium (uNa) of free-living 2503 adults in a nationally representative sample of Nigerians drawn from 12 rural and urban communities; and evaluated the community-level association of uNa with blood pressure (BP). Overall, the median (interquartile range (IQR)) of uNa was 99 (105) mmol, ranging from 23.

Prevalence, Awareness, Treatment and Control of Hypertension in Nigeria: Data from a Nationwide Survey 2017.

Background: Previous studies that evaluated the prevalence, awareness and treatment of hypertension in Nigeria were either localized to some specific regions of the country or non-standardized thereby making evaluation of trend in hypertension care difficult.

Methods: We used the World Health Organization (WHO) STEPwise approach to chronic disease risk factor surveillance to evaluate in a nationally representative sample of 4192 adult Nigerians selected from a rural and an urban community in one state in each of the six geo-political zones of the country.

Results: The overall age-standardized prevalence of hypertension was 38.

The immunopathogenesis of tuberculous pericarditis.

Tuberculous pericarditis is a severe form of extrapulmonary tuberculosis and is the commonest cause of pericardial effusion in high incidence settings. Mortality ranges between 8 and 34%, and it is the leading cause of pericardial constriction in Africa and Asia. Current understanding of the disease is based on models derived from studies performed in the 1940-50s.

Diagnosis and Management of Tuberculous Pericarditis: What Is New?

Purpose Of Review: This review provides an update on the immunopathogenesis of tuberculous pericarditis (TBP), investigations to confirm tuberculous etiology, the limitations of anti-tuberculous therapy (ATT), and recent efficacy trials.

Recent Findings: A profibrotic immune response characterizes TBP, with low levels of AcSDKP, high levels of γ-interferon and IL-10 in the pericardium, and high levels of TGF-β and IL-10 in the blood. These findings may have implications for future therapeutic targets.

Adapting a club-based medication delivery strategy to a hypertension context: the CLUBMEDS Study in Nigeria.

Introduction: The prevalence of hypertension in sub-Saharan Africa is among the world's highest; however, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension in this region are suboptimal. Among other barriers, the overburdened healthcare system poses a great challenge for hypertension control. Community peer-support groups are an alternative and promising strategy to improve adherence and blood pressure (BP) control.

Removing the mask on hypertension (REMAH) study: Design; quality of blood pressure phenotypes and characteristics of the first 490 participants.

Previous studies that evaluated the prevalence of hypertension in Nigeria were either clinic based, non-standardized or did not include out-of-clinic blood pressure (BP) measurement. We selected a rural and an urban community in one state in each of the 6 geopolitical zones of Nigeria. Five consecutive BP of adults older than 18 years were measured in the clinic following which, each participant was provided with a home BP device to obtain duplicate morning and evening BP for 3 days.

Quality of pilot trial abstracts in heart failure is suboptimal: a systematic survey.

Background: Pilot trials are miniature researches carried out with the sole aim of acting as the precursor for larger more definitive studies. Abstracts are used to summarize and introduce the findings to the reading audience. There is substantive empirical evidence showing that abstracts, despite their important roles, are not informative enough, lacking the necessary details.

Quality of abstracts of pilot trials in heart failure: A protocol for a systematic survey.

Introduction: Pilot trials are initial small-scale studies done to inform the design of larger trials. Their findings like other studies are usually disseminated as peer-reviewed journal articles. Abstracts are used to introduce the contents to readers, and give a general idea about the full reports and sometimes are the only source of information available to readers.

Domestic solid fuel combustion in an adult population in Nigeria: A cross sectional analysis of association with respiratory symptoms, quality of life and lung function.

Background And Objectives: We examined the association of respiratory symptoms, health status, and lung function with the use of solid fuel (wood, charcoal, coal or crop residue) for cooking or heating in a predominantly non-smoking population.

Methods: Using the protocol of the Burden of Obstructive Lung Diseases (BOLD) initiative, we collected representative population data using questionnaires and spirometry tests. We categorized solid fuel use into 'never user', 'ex user' and 'current user' based on responses to the survey.

Predictors of in-hospital mortality and length of stay in community-acquired pneumonia: a 5-year multi-centre case control study of adults in a developing country.

Background: We investigated predictors of in-hospital mortality and length of hospital stay among adults with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in Nigeria in order to provide recommendations to improve CAP outcomes in developing countries.

Methods: This was a multi-centre case control study of patients ≥18 years who were admitted with CAP between 2008 and 2012. Case notes of 100 consecutive patients who died (cases) and random sample of 300 patients discharged (controls) were selected.

Nocturnal Non-dipping Blood Pressure Profile in Black Normotensives Is Associated with Cardiac Target Organ Damage.

Purpose: A non-dipping pattern of nocturnal blood pressure in hypertensive patients is an established predictor of cardiovascular risk, especially in Blacks. However, data on non-dipping normotensives and cardiovascular risk in this population is sparse. In this study, we aim to determine if a non-dipping profile in a cohort of Black normotensives is associated with cardiac target organ damage.