Proposed lipidology and preventive cardiology research priorities in Africa; Results of a Delphi survey

Abstract

Despite a population of over 1.5 billion, lipidology and preventive cardiology research of African origin is lacking in quantity and impact, and accounts for a small percentage of outputs globally due to limited resources to address the full breadth of unexplored research areas. We therefore conducted a Delphi survey on an expert panel of African clinical investigators to ascertain the proposed areas of priority to provide guidance on the future direction of African research in this field. Round one of the survey generated 58 proposed unanswered questions, and subsequent priority ratings of 1–5 of the proposed questions in two further rounds resulted in 42 priority research questions (PRQs) based on a two-thirds majority rating of 3–5 with 5 being the highest rating. Common themes amongst the 42 PRQs included mostly prevalence and distribution studies on hyperlipidaemia and lipid profiles and their risk of cardiovascular disease with emphasis on atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, aortic stenosis, coronary artery disease, and acute coronary syndrome. The need for a cardiovascular risk score calculator appropriate for the different, diverse African populations was also emphasised. In conclusion, the results of this Delphi survey highlight a number of unanswered PRQs in lipidology and preventive cardiology in Africa that may be helpful to inform the strategic direction of future studies, education and funding in that underrepresented part of the world based on current priorities and may also have relevance globally.