Publications by authors named "Owolabi L"
Elucidating the genetic contributions to Parkinson's disease (PD) etiology across diverse ancestries is a critical priority for the development of targeted therapies in a global context. We conducted the largest sequencing characterization of potentially disease-causing, protein-altering and splicing mutations in 710 cases and 11,827 controls from genetically predicted African or African admixed ancestries. We explored copy number variants (CNVs) and runs of homozygosity (ROHs) in prioritized early onset and familial cases.
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- The study aimed to investigate how alcohol consumption is linked to stroke occurrences in Nigeria and Ghana by comparing individuals who had strokes to those who didn't.!
- It involved over 7,368 participants, classifying them into groups based on their alcohol consumption habits, and utilized various statistical models to analyze the data.!
- Results indicated that current drinkers had a higher risk of stroke, particularly among moderate, binge, and heavy drinkers, while former drinkers showed no significant stroke risk. !
Article Synopsis
- African ancestry populations have the highest stroke burden globally, yet the genetic factors contributing to stroke in these groups are not well understood, prompting the SIREN study in West Africa to investigate this.
- The study involved recruiting stroke patients and stroke-free controls to conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS), leading to DNA analysis that identified significant SNPs near specific genes associated with stroke risk.
- Key findings highlighted protective genetic variants near AADACL2 and MIR5186 on chromosome 3, as well as other notable associations on chromosomes 5, 6, 12, 16, and 18, which could provide insights for future stroke risk assessment in these populations.
Factors associated with frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption among selected sub-Saharan African populations: evidence from the Cardiovascular H3Africa Innovation Resource Project.
Int J Epidemiol
February 2024
Background: Frequent fruit and vegetable consumption is considered a promising dietary behaviour that protects health. However, most existing studies about the factors associated with this phenomenon among Africans are based on single-country reports, apart from one meta-regression combining smaller studies. This study harmonized large datasets and assessed factors associated with the frequency of fruit and vegetable consumption in this population.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) is associated with a high case fatality rate in resource-limited settings. The independent predictors of poor outcome after ICH in sub-Saharan Africa remains to be characterized in large epidemiological studies. We aimed to determine factors associated with 30-day fatality among West African patients with ICH.
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- Non-cigarette tobacco (NCT) use is linked to an increased risk of stroke among indigenous Africans, suggesting a need for better understanding and public health interventions.
- The study involved 7,617 respondents, showing that those who used smokeless NCT had a significant association with stroke, while smoked NCT did not show a strong link.
- Increased awareness and targeted policies are essential to address the rising burden of stroke related to NCT usage in the population.
Introduction: Despite the considerable number of clinical studies conducted, questions on the importance of the determinants of outcome after ischaemic stroke still exits.
Methodology: Eighty consenting acute ischaemic stroke patients presenting to the emergency unit of Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe, along with 80 age and sex-matched controls were recruited. All the subjects were examined after relevant clinical history and stroke severity was determined using the NIHSS score.
Background: There is a growing interest in stroke genomics and neurobiobanking research in Africa. These raise several ethical issues, such as consent, re-use, data sharing, storage, and incidental result of biological samples. Despite the availability of ethical guidelines developed for research in Africa, there is paucity of information on how the research participants' perspectives could guide the research community on ethical issues in stroke genomics and neurobiobanking research.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: This study aimed to develop a risk-scoring model for hypertension among Africans.
Methods: In this study, 4413 stroke-free controls were used to develop the risk-scoring model for hypertension. Logistic regression models were applied to 13 risk factors.
Article Synopsis
- Background research indicates that severe stroke outcomes in sub-Saharan Africa may be linked to initial stroke severity, but there is limited knowledge on what influences stroke severity specifically in indigenous Africans.
- A study involving 3,660 West African stroke cases found that diet (high meat and low vegetable consumption) and lesion volume significantly correlated with severe stroke conditions, with severe cases comprising over half of all evaluated strokes.
- The findings suggest that addressing dietary habits and understanding lesion characteristics could help mitigate the high rates of severe stroke in this population.
Background: Every minute, six indigenous Africans develop new strokes. Patient-level and system-level contributors to early stroke fatality in this region are yet to be delineated. We aimed to identify and quantify the contributions of patient-level and system-level determinants of inpatient stroke fatality across 16 hospitals in Ghana and Nigeria.
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- The study examined how stroke-free individuals and healthcare providers in Nigeria and Ghana perceive and prefer the disclosure of genetic testing results related to stroke.
- Findings indicated that healthcare professionals generally had a better understanding of genetic testing compared to family members, and suggested that relatives and religious figures are preferred for delivering sensitive results to patients.
- Challenges for effective disclosure included inadequate information, fear of stigma and familial distress, and a lack of awareness about national guidelines, highlighting the need for culturally tailored educational initiatives.
Background: Stroke is a leading cause of disability and mortality worldwide, but little is known about the contribution of secondhand smoke exposure (SHSE) to stroke epidemiology among indigenous Africans.
Objective: To evaluate the association of SHSE with stroke among indigenous Africans.
Methods: We analyzed the relationship of SHSE with stroke among 2990 case-control pairs of adults who had never smoked (identified in the SIREN study) using conditional logistic regression at a two-sided P < 0.
Background: Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), due to its potential for causing morbidity and disability from foot ulcers and amputations, is increasingly becoming a source of concern in Saudi Arabia and worldwide. However, wide variability exists in the prevalence of DPN reported in previous studies in Saudi Arabia, limiting the utility of existing data in national public health policy. Therefore, the aim of this study was to systematically evaluate the magnitude of DPN in patients living with DM in Saudi Arabia in order to inform policymakers during the implementation of appropriate preventive and treatment strategies for DPN.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDifferential associations between pre-diabetes, diabetes and stroke occurrence among West Africans.
J Stroke Cerebrovasc Dis
November 2022
Background: There are limited data from Africa on the burden and associations between pre-diabetes (pre-DM), diabetes mellitus (DM) and stroke occurrence in a region experiencing a profound rise in stroke burden.
Purpose: To characterize the associations between stroke and dysglycemic status among West Africans.
Methods: The Stroke Investigative Research and Educational Network (SIREN) is a multicenter, case-control study involving 15 sites in Ghana and Nigeria.
Aims: The relationship between vegetable consumption and hypertension occurrence remains poorly characterized in sub-Saharan Africa. This study assessed the association of vegetable consumption with odds of hypertension among indigenous Africans.
Methods And Results: We harmonized data on prior vegetable consumption and hypertension occurrence (defined as one of the following conditions; systolic blood pressure ≥140 or diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mmHg or previous diagnosis or use of antihypertensive medications) from 16 445 participants across five African countries (Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana and Burkina Faso) in the Stroke Investigative Research and Educational Network and Africa Wits-INDEPTH partnership for Genomic studies.
Background: We evaluated the characteristics of carotid and vertebral atherosclerosis in indigenous West Africans with stroke.
Methodology: Of the 3778stroke patients recruited between 01/2014 and 08/2017, 1070 (28.3%) received carotid and vertebral artery evaluation with B-mode Ultrasound.
Article Synopsis
- The study explored the prevalence and implications of metabolic syndrome (METS) in African patients with newly diagnosed stroke, involving 3998 participants.
- Factors linked to METS included age over 50, male gender, higher income, stress, family history of diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
- The findings revealed that METS was common among stroke patients and associated with greater stroke severity and a higher risk of death within one month of the stroke, highlighting the need for lifestyle interventions to mitigate these risks.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the awareness and willingness to donate biological samples for neurobiobanking in Ghana and Nigeria, revealing low levels of knowledge about blood and brain donation among community members.
- About a third of respondents knew about blood donation, while only 18.8% were willing to donate their brain after death, primarily due to cultural beliefs and lack of information.
- The research highlights the importance of targeted public education regarding neurobiobanking and informed consent in sub-Saharan Africa, taking into account the region's sociocultural diversity.
Stroke is a major cause of death in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and genetic factors appear to play a part. This has led to stroke biobanking and genomics research in SSA. Existing stroke studies have focused on causes, incidence rates, fatalities and effects.
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- The fields of stroke genomics, biobanking, and precision medicine are developing rapidly in sub-Saharan Africa, but ethical and social implications remain uncertain due to diverse cultural contexts.
- The African Neurobiobank for Precision Stroke Medicine-ELSI Project involves a collaborative effort across Ghana and Nigeria, focusing on building capacity through workshops with stakeholders to create and validate data collection instruments.
- Findings indicate that these workshops significantly improved participants' knowledge in genetic and genomic research, highlighted the need for culturally appropriate tools, and demonstrated that a developed mini-dictionary effectively enhanced understanding and engagement in genomic data collection.
Article Synopsis
- The study examined recurrent strokes in Ghana and Nigeria, revealing that 9.4% of stroke cases were recurrent, primarily ischemic (79.9%).
- Older age, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, and family history of cardiovascular disease were significant risk factors for recurrent strokes.
- The conclusions suggest that addressing modifiable lifestyle factors could help reduce recurrent stroke rates in sub-Saharan Africa.
Objectives: To compare health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and diabetic neuropathy (DN) (D+N) with patients with DM without DN (D-DN) and healthy participants. To evaluate factors associated with poor HRQoL in patients with DN.
Methods: This study included 306 participants residing in Bisha, Saudi Arabia.
Background: The relationship of diet with stroke risk among Africans is not well understood.
Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the association between dietary patterns and stroke risk among West Africans.
Methods: In this multi-center case-control study, 3684 stroke patients matched (for age and sex) with 3684 healthy controls were recruited from Nigeria and Ghana.
Background: Despite the usefulness of ulnar nerve conduction studies in identifying disorders of ulnar nerves, there is a lack of normative values for the ulnar nerve in Nigerian population.
Objective: The objective of the study was to generate normative values for motor and sensory ulnar nerve conduction studies (NCSs) in Nigerian population and to determine the influence of gender and height on ulnar nerve conduction velocity (NCV).
Materials And Methods: A total of 200 healthy volunteers were selected after clinical evaluation to exclude common causes of ulnar neuropathy.