title: Non-communicable diseases in sub-Saharan Africa: what we know now.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has a disproportionate burden of both infectious and chronic diseases compared with other world regions. Current disease estimates for SSA are based on sparse data, but projections indicate increases in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) caused by demographic and epidemiologic transitions. We review the literature on NCDs in SSA and summarize data from the World Health Organization and International Agency for Research on Cancer on the prevalence and incidence of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus Type 2, cancer and their risk factors.
  
  
  METHODS
  We searched the PubMed database for studies on each condition, and included those that were community based, conducted in any SSA country and reported on disease or risk factor prevalence, incidence or mortality.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found few community-based studies and some countries (such as South Africa) were over-represented. The prevalence of NCDs and risk factors varied considerably between countries, urban/rural location and other sub-populations. The prevalence of stroke ranged from 0.07 to 0.3%, diabetes mellitus from 0 to 16%, hypertension from 6 to 48%, obesity from 0.4 to 43% and current smoking from 0.4 to 71%. Hypertension prevalence was consistently similar among men and women, whereas women were more frequently obese and men were more frequently current smokers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of NCDs and their risk factors is high in some SSA settings. With the lack of vital statistics systems, epidemiologic studies with a variety of designs (cross-sectional, longitudinal and interventional) capable of in-depth analyses of risk factors could provide a better understanding of NCDs in SSA, and inform health-care policy to mitigate the oncoming NCD epidemic.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA. sdalal@hsph.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Shona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dalal
authors.forename: Juan Jose
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Beunza
authors.forename: Jimmy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Volmink
authors.forename: Clement
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Adebamowo
authors.forename: Francis
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Bajunirwe
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Njelekela
authors.forename: Dariush
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mozaffarian
authors.forename: Wafaie
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Fawzi
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Willett
authors.forename: Hans-Olov
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Adami
authors.forename: Michelle D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Holmes
mesh_terms: D017954:Africa South of the Sahara / Q000453:epidemiology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000453:epidemiology; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors