Background Although sub‐Saharan Africa has a high prevalence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), there remains a lack of systematic and comprehensive assessment of risk factors and early CVD outcomes in adults in sub‐Saharan Africa. Methods and Results Using a stratified multistage random sampling method, we recruited 1106 men and women, aged >18 years, from the general population in Ghana to participate in a national health survey from 2016 to 2017. In Ghanaian adults, the age‐standardized prevalence of known CVD risk factors was 15.1% (95% CI, 12.9%–17.3%) for obesity, 6.8% (95% CI, 5.1%–8.5%) for diabetes mellitus, 26.1% (95% CI, 22.9%–29.4%) for hypertension, and 9.3% (95% CI, 7.1%–11.5%) for hyperuricemia. In addition, 10.1% (95% CI, 7.0%–13.2%) of adults had peripheral artery disease, 8.3% (95% CI, 6.7%–10.0%) had carotid thickening, 4.1% (95% CI, 2.9%–5.2%) had left ventricular hypertrophy, and 2.5% (95% CI, 1.5%–3.4%) had chronic kidney disease. Three CVD risk factors appeared to play prominent roles in the development of target organ damage, including obesity for peripheral artery disease (odds ratio [OR], 2.22; 95% CI, 1.35–3.63), hypertension for carotid thickening (OR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.22–3.08), and left ventricular hypertrophy (OR, 5.28; 95% CI, 2.55–12.11) and hyperuricemia for chronic kidney disease (OR, 5.49; 95% CI, 2.84–10.65). Conclusions This comprehensive health survey characterized the baseline conditions of a national cohort of adults while confirming the prevalence of CVD risk factors, and early CVD outcomes have reached epidemic proportions in Ghana. The distinct patterns of risk factors in the development of target organ damage present important challenges and opportunities for interventions to improve cardiometabolic health among adults in Ghana.

Objectives Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular mortality globally and in Ghana. May Measurement Month (MMM) is a global awareness and screening campaign initiated by the International Society of Hypertension. Methods Participants were recruited by opportunist sampling in the Ashanti region of Ghana. The blood pressures of participants were measured three times and the mean of the last two readings was used for the analysis. Simple and multiple logistic regression was used to determine the predictors of hypertension. Results The MMM 2018 awareness and screening campaign enrolled 5054 participants with a mean age of 39.4 ± 14.7 years. There were 2553 (50.6%) males, 987 (20.1%) of respondents had never checked their blood pressure and 676 (13.9%) had a prior history of hypertension. The prevalence of hypertension was 37.4%. We found that 589(66.8%) of 822 respondents with high blood pressure did not have a history of hypertension. Respondents with a known history of hypertension on medication were 442 (65.9%) and 219(68.0%) of 322 respondents on medication had uncontrolled hypertension. The predictors of high blood pressure in a multiple logistic regression were increasing age (OR = 1.05 CI 1.05–1.06, p < 0.001), history of alcohol intake (OR = 1.33 CI 1.04 −1.70, p = 0.02), overweight (OR = 1.4 CI 1.14–1.76, p = 0.001) and obesity (OR = 1.32, CI 1.01–1.74, p = 0.047). Conclusion There is a high prevalence of hypertension in the Ashanti region in Ghana. Most participants with hypertension were not aware and the majority of those with hypertension on medications were uncontrolled. This calls for more education and screening of hypertension to decrease cardiovascular mortality.

Heart failure is a major clinical problem worldwide. It has been recognized as a contributor to cardiovascular disease burden in Africa for many years. There are no data on the prevalence of heart failure in Ghana; and the prevalence of heart failure among patients attending out-patient clinics in Ghana is unknown. This study was designed to determine the prevalence and aetiology of heart failure among patients attending a cardiac clinic in the Department of Medicine, Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), Kumasi, Ghana. Medical records of 524 patients were selected from the cardiac clinic, using simple random sampling. The demographic, clinical, chest X-ray, electrocardiographic and echocardiographic characteristics of the patients was examined. Among the 524 patients, 398 of the patients had heart failure according to the modified Framingham criteria for the diagnosis of heart failure; giving rise to a prevalence of 76%. The heart failure patients were aged between 13-97 years with the mean age (± standard deviation) of 56.5 (± 19) years. There were more females (53.6%; n=213) than males (46.4%; n=185). Majority (45%) of the patients had New York Heart Association (NYHA) Functional class 2. The main aetiologies of heart failure were: hypertension (45%; n=179), rheumatic heart disease (23%; n=90), cardiomyopathy (15%; n=58). Other emerging aetiologies of heart failure in Africa seen in these patients were degenerative valvular disease (7.6%; n=31) and ischemic heart disease (2.3%; n=10).

Introduction: Hypertension is an important public health menace globally and in sub-Saharan Africa. The prevalence of hypertension is on the rise in low- and lower-middle-income countries (LMIC) such as Ghana. This rise led to the adoption of the May Measurement Month (MMM) initiative, a global blood pressure screening campaign. We aimed to create awareness and present the findings of the 2019 MMM screening campaign in the Ashanti region of Ghana. Methods: Ghana was 1 of 92 countries that participated in this global community-based cross-sectional study in May 2019. Participants (⩾18 years) were recruited by opportunistic sampling. The blood pressures of participants were measured 3 times and the mean of the last 2 was used for the analysis. Summary statistics were used to describe the data. Simple and multiple logistic regression models were used to determine the predictors of hypertension. Results: We screened 3080 participants with a mean age of 39.8 ± 16.8 years. The prevalence of hypertension was 27.3% among participants. Two-thirds of the hypertensives were unaware of their condition and only 49.5% of participants with a history of hypertension on medication were controlled. Predictors of hypertension in a multiple logistic regression were increasing age (OR = 1.05 (CI 1.04-1.06), P < .001) and high body mass index (OR = 1.06 (1.02-1.10), P = .005). Conclusion: The MMM initiative is highly commendable and of huge public health importance in LMICs like Ghana. Population-based health programs such as the MMM initiative is encouraged to shape appropriate public health policies to reduce the prevalence of hypertension.