Global cardiovascular disease (CVD) burden is high and rising, especially in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Focussing on 45 LMICs, we aimed to determine (1) the adult population’s median 10-year predicted CVD risk, including its variation within countries by socio-demographic char...acteristics, and (2) the prevalence of self-reported blood pressure (BP) medication use among those with and without an indication for such medication as per World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines.
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Background: COVID-19 is a global public health crisis that affects all sectors; studying the impact of this pandemic on the delivery of cardiology services in Africa is crucial as COVID-19-related cardiovascular complications may worsen the CVD burden in this already highly affected and resource-lim...ited continent
Methods: This was a cross-sectional e-survey study conducted amongst cardiologists in African countries. The primary outcome was the change in service delivery in African cardiology units during the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary outcomes were the satisfaction of cardiologists with regards to the workload and factors associated with this satisfaction.
Results: There was a significant reduction in working time and the number of patients consulted by week during this pandemic (p<0.001). In general, there was a decrease in the overall activities in cardiovascular care delivery. The majority of cardiology services (76.5%) and consulting programs (85%) were adjusted to the pandemic. Only half of the participants were satisfied with their workload. Reconfiguration of the consultation schedule was associated with a reduced satisfaction of participants (p=0.02).
Conclusions: COVID-19 is associated with an overall reduction in cardiology services rendered in Africa. Since the cardiovascular burdens continue to increase in this part of the World and the risk of cardiovascular complications linked to SARS COV2 remains unchanged cardiology, departments in Africa should anticipate a significant surge of cardiology services demanded by patients after the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Age-standardized cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality rates by region ranged from 73.6 per 100,000 in High-income Asia Pacific to 432.3 per 100,000 in Eastern Europe in 2022. Global CVD mortality decreased by 34.9% from 1990 to 2022. Ischemic heart disease had the highest global age-standardized D...ALYs of all diseases at 2,275.9 per 100,000. Intracerebral hemorrhage and ischemic stroke were the next highest CVD causes for age-standardized DALYs. Age-standardized CVD prevalence ranged from 5,881.0 per 100,000 in South Asia to 11,342.6 per 100,000 in Central Asia. High systolic blood pressure accounted for the largest number of attributable age-standardized CVD DALYs at 2,564.9 per 100,000 globally. Of all risks, household air pollution from solid fuels had the largest change in attributable age-standardized DALYs from 1990 to 2022 with a 65.1% decrease.
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Hypertension is the leading preventable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and disability globally. In low- and middle-income countries hypertension has a major social impact, increasing the disease burden and costs for national health systems. The present call to action aims to stimulate all A...frican countries to adopt several solutions to achieve better hypertension management. The following 3 goals should be achieved in Africa by 2030: (1) 80% of adults with high blood pressure in Africa are diagnosed; (2) 80% of diagnosed hypertensives, that is, 64% of all hypertensives, are treated; and (3) 80% of treated hypertensive patients are controlled. To achieve these aims, we call on individuals and organizations from government, private sector, health care, and civil society in Africa and indeed on all Africans to undertake a few specific high priority actions. The aim is to improve the detection, diagnosis, management, and control of hypertension, now considered to be the leading preventable killer in Africa.
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Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) have collectively remained the leading causes of death worldwide and substantially contribute to loss of health and excess health system costs. The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) Study has tracked trends in death and disability since 1990 a...nd has provided an updated perspective on the status of cardiovascular health globally, regionally, and nationally.
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Socioeconomic status is associated with differences in risk factors for cardiovascular disease incidence and outcomes, including mortality. However, it is unclear whether the associations between cardiovascular disease and common measures of socioeconomic status—wealth and education—differ among... high-income, middle-income, and low-income countries, and, if so, why these differences exist. We explored the association between education and household wealth and cardiovascular disease and mortality to assess which marker is the stronger predictor of outcomes, and examined whether any differences in cardiovascular disease by socioeconomic status parallel differences in risk factor levels or differences in management.
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To assess the quality of Indian clinical practice guidelines (CPG)s for the management of cardiovascular conditions, MEDLINE, Embase, Google Scholar and websites of relevant medical associations and government organisations were searched, from inception until August 2020, to identify Indian CPGs for... the management of cardiovascular disease (CVD) conditions, produced in or between 2010 and 2019. Excluded were CPGs that were not specific to India, focused on alternative systems of medicine, of non-CVD conditions (even if they included a component of CVD), and those related to the electronic devices, cardiac biomarkers, or diagnostic procedures. Quality of the each included CPG was assessed using the AGREE II tool by four reviewers in duplicate, independently. Each AGREE II domain score and overall quality score was considered low (≤40%), moderate (40.1%-59.9%), and high (≥60%). Of the 23 CPGs included, six (26%) were reported to be adapted from other CPGs. Fourteen (61%) CPGs were produced by medical associations, six (26%) by individual authors and three (13%) by government agencies. Based on the AGREE II overall quality score, two (9%) CPGs were of high quality, four (17%) and seventeen (74%) CPGs were of moderate and low quality, respectively. Except for scope and purpose, and clarity of presentation all other domains were rated low. The quality of most Indian CPGs for managing CVD conditions assessed using the AGREE II tool was moderate-to-low. Combined efforts from different stakeholders are needed to develop, disseminate and implement high-quality CPGs while identifying and addressing barriers to their uptake to optimize patient care and improve outcomes.
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Objective: To identify gaps in national stroke guidelines that could be bridged to enhance the quality of stroke care services in low- and
middle-income countries.
Methods: We systematically searched medical databases and websites of medical societies and contacted international organizations.
Co...untry-specific guidelines on care and control of stroke in any language published from 2010 to 2020 were eligible for inclusion. We reviewed
each included guideline for coverage of four key components of stroke services (surveillance, prevention, acute care and rehabilitation).
We also assessed compliance with the eight Institute of Medicine standards for clinical practice guidelines, the ease of implementation of
guidelines and plans for dissemination to target audiences.
Findings: We reviewed 108 eligible guidelines from 47 countries, including four low-income, 24 middle-income and 19 high-income countries.
Globally, fewer of the guidelines covered primary stroke prevention compared with other components of care, with none recommending
surveillance. Guidelines on stroke in low- and middle-income countries fell short of the required standards for guideline development;
breadth of target audience; coverage of the four components of stroke services; and adaptation to socioeconomic context. Fewer low- and
middle-income country guidelines demonstrated transparency than those from high-income countries. Less than a quarter of guidelines
encompassed detailed implementation plans and socioeconomic considerations.
Conclusion: Guidelines on stroke in low- and middle-income countries need to be developed in conjunction with a wider category of
health-care providers and stakeholders, with a full spectrum of translatable, context-appropriate interventions.
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Objective: To conduct a landscape assessment of public knowledge of cardiovascular disease risk factors and acute myocardial infarction symptoms, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillator (AED) awareness and training in three underserved communities in Brazil.
Metho...ds: A cross-sectional, population-based survey of non-institutionalised adults age 30 or greater was conducted in three municipalities in Eastern Brazil. Data were analysed as survey-weighted percentages of the sampled populations.
Results: 3035 surveys were completed. Overall, one-third of respondents was unable to identify at least one cardiovascular disease risk factor and 25% unable to identify at least one myocardial infarction symptom. A minority of respondents had received training in CPR or were able to identify an AED. Low levels of education and low socioeconomic status were consistent predictors of lower knowledge levels of cardiovascular disease risk factors, acute coronary syndrome symptoms and CPR and AED use.
Conclusions: In three municipalities in Eastern Brazil, overall public knowledge of cardiovascular disease risk factors and symptoms, as well as knowledge of appropriate CPR and AED use was low. Our findings indicate the need for interventions to improve public knowledge and response to acute cardiovascular events in Brazil as a first step towards improving health outcomes in this population. Significant heterogeneity in knowledge seen across sites and socioeconomic strata indicates a need to appropriately target such interventions.
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Background: Peripheral artery disease is a growing public health problem. We aimed to estimate the global disease burden of peripheral artery disease, its risk factors, and temporospatial trends to inform policy and public measures.
Methods: Data on peripheral artery disease were modelled using the... Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019 database. Prevalence, disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), and mortality estimates of peripheral artery disease were extracted from GBD 2019. Total DALYs and age-standardised DALY rate of peripheral artery disease attributed to modifiable risk factors were also assessed.
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The American Heart Association, in conjunction with the National Institutes of Health, annually reports the most up-to-date statistics related to heart disease, stroke, and cardiovascular risk factors, including core health behaviors (smoking, physical activity, diet, and weight) and health factors ...(cholesterol, blood pressure, and glucose control) that contribute to cardiovascular health. The Statistical Update presents the latest data on a range of major clinical heart and circulatory disease conditions (including stroke, congenital heart disease, rhythm disorders, subclinical atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, heart failure, valvular disease, venous disease, and peripheral artery disease) and the associated outcomes (including quality of care, procedures, and economic costs).
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Prompted by the 20th anniversary of the 1993 World
Development Report, a Lancet Commission revisited the
case for investment in health and developed a new
investment frame work to achieve dramatic health gains by 2035. Our report has four key messages, each accompanied by opportunities for action... by national governments of low-income and middle-income countries and by the international community.
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International financing for health has been high on the political and global health agenda since COVID-19. The recent launch of the Pandemic Fund represents the first consolidated effort of the international community to mobilise additional voluntary financial resources for the purpose of strengthen...ing global efforts in pandemic prevention, preparedness and response (PPR). Against such a dynamic landscape, building on recent critiques and new policy proposals, we propose a new generation of more equitable, effective and coordinated financing arrangements for pandemic PPR and for global health and development more broadly: lessons that could be applied in the ongoing endeavour of the Pandemic Fund.
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Over the past two decades, China has become a distinctive and increasingly important donor of development assistance for health (DAH). However, little is known about what factors influence China’s priority-setting for DAH. In this study, we provide an updated analysis of trends in the priorities o...f Chinese DAH and compare them to comparable trends among OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) donors using data from the AidData’s Global Chinese Development Finance Dataset (2000–2017, version 2.0) and the Creditor Reporting System (CRS) database (2000–2017). We also analyse Chinese medical aid exports before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic using a Chinese Aid Exports Database.
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The often-prominent role of external assistance in health financing in low- and middle-income countries raises the question of how such resources can enable the sustained or even expanded coverage of key health services and initiatives even after donor funding is no longer available. In response to ...this question, this paper analyses the process and outcomes of donor transitions in health—where countries or regions within countries are no longer eligible to receive grants or concessional loans from external sources based on eligibility criteria or change in donor policy.
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Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are of increasing concern for society and national governments, as well as globally due to their high mortality rate. The main risk factors of NCDs can be classified into the categories of self-management, genetic factors, environmental factors, factors of medical co...nditions, and socio-demographic factors.
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Volume 3, Cancer, presents the complex patterns of cancer incidence and death around the world and evidence on effective and cost-effective ways to control cancers. The DCP3 evaluation of cancer will indicate where cancer treatment is ineffective and wasteful, and offer alternative cancer care packa...ges that are cost-effective and suited to low-resource settings. Main messages from the volume include:
-Quality matters in all aspects of cancer treatment and palliation.
-Cancer registries that track incidence, mortality, and survival paired with systems to capture causes of death are important to understanding the national cancer burden and the effect of interventions over time.
-Effective interventions exist at a range of prices. Adopting ‘resource appropriate’ measures which allow the most effective treatment for the greatest number of people will be advantageous to countries.
-Prioritizing resources toward early stage and curable cancers is likely to have the greatest health impact in low income settings.
-Research prioritization is no longer just a global responsibility.
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In 2018, approximately 60,000 Ugandans were estimated to be suffering from cancer. It was also reported that only 5% of cancer patients access cancer care and 77% present with late-stage cancer coupled with low level of cancer health literacy in the population despite a wide coverage of primary heal...thcare facilities in Uganda. We aimed to contribute to reducing the unmet needs of cancer prevention and early detection services in Uganda through capacity building.
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Information on the causes of cancer at specific sites is important to cancer control planners, cancer researchers, cancer patients, and the general public. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Monograph series, which has classified human carcinogens for more than 40 years, recently... completed a review to provide up-to-date information on the cancer sites associated with more than 100 carcinogenic agents. Based on IARC’s review, we listed the cancer sites associated with each agent and then rearranged this information to list the known and suspected causes of cancer at each site. We also summarized the rationale for classifications that were based on mechanistic data. This information, based on the forthcoming IARC Monographs Volume 100, offers insights into the current state-of-the-science of carcinogen identification. Use of mechanistic data to identify carcinogens is increasing, and epidemiological research is identifying additional carcinogens and cancer sites or confirming carcinogenic potential under conditions of lower exposure. Nevertheless, some common human cancers still have few (or no) identified causal agents.
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Approximately 80% of the 463 million adults worldwide with diabetes live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). A major obstacle to designing evidence-based policies to improve diabetes outcomes in LMICs is the scarce availability of nationally representative data on the current patterns... of treatment coverage. The objectives of this study were to estimate the proportion of adults with diabetes in LMICs who receive coverage of recommended pharmacological and non-pharmacological diabetes treatment; and to describe country-level and individual-level characteristics that are associated with treatment.
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