BackgroundFew studies have addressed the pattern of atrial fibrillation (AF) in rural Africa. The purpose of the study was to assess the epidemiology and long-term prognosis of AF in rural African patients in the Regional Hospital Center (RHC) of Tenkodogo, Burkina Faso.ResultsOverall, 107 of 1805 cardiac cases presented with AF (prevalence of 5.9%). Six patients were excluded. Mean age was 66.56 ± 14.92 years, and 53.47% were female. Hypertension was the most prevalent cardiovascular risk factor (59.41%). Congestive heart failure (HF) was reported in 85.15% of the study patients at presentation. Most of the study population presented with severe underlying heart disease (93.1%), and hypertensive heart disease was the most prevalent with 45.54% of the cases. The mean CHA2DS2VASc score in patients with non-valvular heart disease (n = 91) was 3.33 ± 1.25 (extremes 1–6) while the risk of bleeding was low (HAS-BLED score ≤ 1) in 82 patients (81.2%). Oral anticoagulation was prescribed in few cases (5.26%). During a follow-up period of 74.43 ± 23.94 weeks, acute HF and stroke occurred in respectively 43 and 6 patients. Forty-one patients (40.59%) died. The overall survival rate was 69% at 6-month and 59.4% at 1-year follow-up. Patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy were at higher risk of death than other patients (log-rank test = 11.88, p < 0.001) over time.ConclusionAF is not rare in rural African patients and is associated with an increased long-term risk of HF, stroke, and mortality.

Background: We sought the value of the six-minute walk test distance in predicting re-admission in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) in the department of cardiology, Yalgado Ouédraogo University Hospital, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Methods: We did a prospective observational study in patients hospitalized with acute decompensated heart failure and who underwent a 6-minute walk test (6-MWT) at their discharge from hospital. The primary end-point was hospital re-admission for heart failure decompensation. Results: Sixty-one patients (52% females, mean age 46.9 ± 14.1 years, mean left ventricular ejection fraction 32.4 ± 8.2%, mean 6-MWT distance 336.3 ± 65 meters) were followed-up for a 277.6 ± 129.8 days' period. Twenty-one patients (45.3 percent person-years) were re-admitted. Re-admitted patients had shorter 6-MWT distance (p = 0.007) and were more likely to die than those who were not re-admitted (RR = 1.72, 95% CI = 1.13-2.62, p = 0.003). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that re-admission was independently predicted by shorter 6-MWT distance (p < 0.001), New York Heart Association class III (p = 0.03), older age p = 0.03) and lower LVEF (p = 0.02). Conclusion: Distance covered during the six-minute walk test is an independent predictor of hospital re-admission for heart failure decompensation in patients with chronic heart failure.

Objective: Our study aimed at assessing the quality of life (QoL) of patients treated for chronic heart failure (HF), and analyzing the impact of certain factors on that QoL, in the cardiology department of Yalgado Ouédraogo University Hospital of Ouagadougou. Means and Method: It was a descriptive cross-sectional study, performed over a six-month period from May to October 2016. In the study, patients with age over 18 years were included, followed up for chronic HF for at least six months in the outpatient unit, from January 1 st to December 31 st 2015. The questionnaire "Minnesota Living withHeart Failure" was used to assess the QoL. Results: Two hundred and four patients were enrolled. Most of them were living in Ouagadougou (82.8%). Sex ratio was 0.98, and mean age was 56.06 + 16.37 years. The mean overall QoL score was 17.8 + 16.5. QoL was considered good in its three dimensions, in more than 70% of patients. Looking at the mean scores, the male patients, the patients living in rural and semi-urban areas, the patients with impaired left ventricular ejection fraction and those with severe or end-stage renal failure had significant QoL impairment.

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