High burden of hypertension across the age groups among residents of Gondar city in Ethiopia: a population based cross sectional study.

BACKGROUND: According to a report on the worldwide trends in blood pressure from 1975 to 2015, mean blood pressure is increasing in low and middle income countries while it is either decreasing or stabilizing in high income countries. Few studies have been published on the prevalence of hypertension in Ethiopia demonstrating an increased trend; however, these studies had small sample size and were limited to participants older than 35 years; which left the burden among adolescents and young adults unaddressed. The aim of this study was to assess prevalence of hypertension (HTN) and associated factors in Gondar city. METHOD: A population based cross-sectional study was conducted among 3227 individuals in Gondar city. A multistage cluster random sampling was used. The Kish method from World Health Organization (WHO) STEPS instrument of random sampling method was used for selecting one individual older than or equal to 18 years from each household. WHO and International Diabetic Association (IDA) criterion was used to classify HTN. RESULT: The overall prevalence of HTN was 27. 4% [95% CI: (25. 8-28.9)]. The prevalence for participants in the age group of ≥35 years was 36. 1%. It consistently increased from 9.5% in the age group of 18-25 years to 46.3% in the age group of ≥65 years (P-value < 0. 001). Only 47% of the participants had ever had any kind of blood pressure measurement. Being elderly (AOR = 5. 56; 95% CI: 3. 71-8. 35), obese (AOR =2. 62; 95%CI: 1. 70-4. 03), widowed (AOR = 1. 87; 95%CI: 1. 27-2. 75), separated (AOR = 1. 87; 95%CI: 1. 27-2. 75), daily alcohol user (AOR = 1. 51; 95%CI: 1. 02-2. 23), male gender (AOR = 1. 42; 95%CI: 1. 18-1. 72) and born in urban area (AOR = 1. 31; 95%CI: 1. 10-1. 56) were found to be independently associated with HTN. CONCLUSION: There is a high prevalence of hypertension in Gondar city and is showing increasing trend compared to previous reports. Interventions to raise awareness and to improve both capacity and accessibility of facilities for screening hypertension are highly recommended.

HIGH PREVALENCE OF ATRIAL FIBRILLATION IN STROKE PATIENTS ADMITTED TO UNIVERSITY OF GONDAR HOSPITAL, NORTHWEST ETHIOPIA.

Introduction: Even though atrial fibrillation is a common risk factor of stroke which contributes to poor outcome, data concerning this association is scarce in African countries. This study assessed the prevalence of confirmed atrial fibrillation and its effect on outcome in stroke patients admitted to University of Gondar Hospital. Methods: Hospital based cross-sectional study by record analysis was done from December 2014 to February 2015. All adult stroke patients with documented head CT scan and ECG results admitted to university of Gondar hospital during June 2010 to May 2013 were included. Relevant data including sociodemographics, type of stroke, and presence of atrial fibrillation was collected from patient charts using a data extraction form. Results: A total of 94 patients with mean age of 67.4±12.4 years and Female to male ratio of 1.13:1 were analyzed. The prevalence of AF was 28.7%. It occurred in 34% and 14% of ischemic and hemorrhagic strokes respectively. The in hospital case fatality of stroke associated with and without atrial fibrillation was 22.2% and 8% respectively while the rate of improvement at discharge was 34% and 68% respectively. Atrial fibrillation was associated with a low rate of improvement at discharge (OR= 0.28 CI: 0.1-0.78). Conclusion: Atrial fibrillation is common in stroke patients in our hospital, especially in the elderly population. It is associated with low rate of improvement at discharge. Appropriate screening and treatment of atrial fibrillation is invaluable for the primary and secondary prevention of stroke.

Isolated Native Tricuspid Valve Endocarditis in a Nonintravenous Drug User.

Infective endocarditis (IE) is a disease characterized by high morbidity and mortality. IE was first described in the mid-16th century. Right-sided infective endocarditis (RSIE) represents 5% to 10% of all IE episodes in adults. RSIE can be divided into three groups according to the underlying risk factors: intravenous drug users (IDUs), cardiac device carriers, and the "three noes" group (no left-sided IE, no IDUs, and no cardiac devices). Tricuspid valve endocarditis in nonintravenous drug users can occur in a variety of conditions including congenital heart disease, intracardiac devices, central venous catheters, and immunologically debilitated patients. Due to the rareness of isolated native nonrheumatic tricuspid valve endocarditis, here, we like to present an 18-year-old male from rural Ethiopia with the diagnosis of isolated native tricuspid valve endocarditis that was treated and cured.