title: Aetiology of heart failure as seen from a National Cardiac Referral Centre in Africa.
abstract: 572 consecutive patients with heart failure referred to the National Cardiothoracic Centre, Accra, Ghana, over a 4-year period were evaluated for the aetiology of heart failure using two-dimensional Doppler echocardiography with colour flow. The mean age of the subjects with heart failure was 42.3 +/- 0.9 years. The male to female ratio was 1.2:1.0. Combined heart failure was seen in 50.5% of subjects. Peak incidence of heart failure occurred in the 5th decade. The main causes of heart failure were hypertension (21.3%; n = 122), rheumatic heart disease (20.1%; n = 115) and cardiomyopathy (16.8%; n = 96). Congenital heart disease and coronary artery disease accounted for 9.8 and 10% of cases, respectively. The commonest rheumatic valvular lesion was mitral regurgitation (78%). Dilated cardiomyopathy was the commonest form of idiopathic cardiomyopathy (67.7%; n = 65). Endomyocardial fibrosis and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy accounted for 22.9% (n = 22) and 9.4% (n = 9), respectively, of cardiomyopathies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Ghana Medical School, Korle Bu, Accra, Ghana. ctu@africaonline.com.gh
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Amoah
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kallen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D009202:Cardiomyopathies / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D018618:Echocardiography, Doppler, Color; D005260:Female; D005869:Ghana / Q000453:epidemiology; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012214:Rheumatic Heart Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D017678:Sex Distribution