Recommendations from Cardiovascular Disease Research in Sub-Saharan Africa; A Literature Review

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DOI: 10.21522/TIJPH.2013.10.03.Art009

Authors : Armstrong Cudjoe, Michael Wilson

Abstract:

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have been a major challenge over the past decade. This has increased the mortality rate amongst the indigenous people of the sub-region. It is expected that this constant CVDs increase could result in an eminent epidemic and lead to high regional burdens due to the high number of Low-middle income countries in the SSA. Despite this, there is, however a low level of literature and research focus on CVDs in SSA, and this has created difficulty in advancing knowledge in this field and hence policy makers and the scientific community are less informed in their quest to fight against CVDs in SSA. This study is aimed at reviewing selected publications on CVDs in SSA to identify important trends and recommendations that could guide stake holders in properly developing the right strategies in reducing CVDs in SSA. The study identified an eminent epidemic of CVDs in SSA and recommends that all stake holders come on board the fight against CVDs. It is expected that the information provided in this review can serve as a guide for future research towards improved management of CVDs.

Keywords: Africa, Cardio diseases, Health, Non-communicable.

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