Incidence and patterns of cardiovascular disease in north western Nigeria

Background:Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been major problem in the developed and developing countries and its burden in these countries is overwhelming. There is a dearth of literature and data on the prevalence and patterns of CVD in developing countries, especially Nigeria. Objectives: This study was carried out to determine the most common cardiovascular disorder, the mostly affected age and sex groups and annual increase/decrease between 2001 and 2005 in Northwestern Nigeria. Methods: Our study reviewed the pattern and incidence of CVD in North western Nigeria. Case notes of patients in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital and Usman Dan Fodio University Teaching Hospital were reviewed between 2001 and 2005. These two teaching hospitals provide tertiary health care services to six out of seven states that form north western Nigeria with a population of 29,720,322 Nigerians. Results: A total number of 4103 case notes of CVDs were reviewed out of which 2159(52.69%) were males while 1944(47.40%) were females. A steady rise in the incidence of CVD between 2001-2005 was observed. Hypertension (39.1%) was the most prevalent CVDs while congenital heart disease (1.1 %) had the lowest. Conclusion: It was concluded that hypertension was the most prevalent CVD while congenital heart disease was the lowest. A steady increase in the incidence of CVD was observed during the period under review.