The prevalence of selected risk factors for non-communicable diseases in Hargeisa, Somaliland: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), particularly cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, respiratory conditions and cancers, are the most common causes of morbidity and mortality globally. Information on the prevalence estimates of NCD risk factors such as smoking, low fruit & vegetable intake, physical inactivity, raised blood pressure, overweight, obesity and abnormal blood lipid are scarce in Somaliland. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of these selected risk factors for NCDs among 20–69 year old women and men in Hargeisa, Somaliland. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in five districts of Hargeisa (Somaliland), using the STEPwise approach to noncommunicable disease risk factor surveillance (STEPS) to collect data on demographic and behavioral characteristics and physical measurements ( n = 1100). The STEPS approach is a standardized method for collecting, analysing and disseminating data on NCD risk factor burden. Fasting blood sugar, serum lipids (total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and triglycerides) were collected in half of the participants. Results The vast majority of participants had ≤1 serving of fruits daily (97.7%) and ≤ 1 serving of vegetables daily (98.2%). The proportion of participants with low physical activity levels was 78.4%. The overall prevalence of high salt intake was 18.5%. The prevalence of smoking and khat chewing among men was 27 and 37% respectively, and negligible among women. In women, the prevalence of hypertension increased from 15% in the age group 20–34 years to 67% in the age group 50–69 years, the prevalence of overweight and obesity (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m 2 ) from 51 to 73%, and the prevalence of diabetes from 3 to 22%. Similar age-trends were seen in men. Conclusion Most of the selected risk factors for noncommunicable diseases were high and increased by age in both women and men. Overweight and obesity and low physical activity needs intervention in women, while hypertension and low fruit and vegetable consumption needs intervention in both men and women. Somaliland health authorities should develop and/or strengthen health services that can help in treating persons with hypertension and hyperlipidaemia, and prevent a future burden of NCDs resulting from a high prevalence of NCD risk factors.

Survival analysis of all critically ill patients with COVID-19 admitted to the main hospital in Mogadishu, Somalia, 30 March–12 June 2020: what interventions are proving effective?

“…The main comorbidities found in the 131 patients with COVID-19 in our study are similar to the findings of other studies done in Africa [10] Although we are limited by the lack of population-based data on the prevalence of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases in males and females in Somalia, the fact that the proportion of female COVID-19 patients with diabetes in our study (48%; 20/42) was higher than males (32/89; 36%) is consistent with a study done in some areas of Somalia in 2016, which found that the prevalence of risk factors such as diabetes was higher in females than males, and CVD was higher among males, and in both sexes, the risk factors increased with age [15]. These findings are also consistent with another study that examined the burden of noncommunicable diseases in sub-Saharan Africa [12].…”

Factors affecting current khat chewing among male adults 15–59 years in Ethiopia, 2016: a multi-level analysis from Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey

“…Khat chewing is also a growing concern among Ethiopian universities [39] associated with low academic performance in Ethiopian students [40][41][42]. Khat chewing contributes to the high burden of non-communicable diseases like cardiovascular disorders [43,44]. Khat increases the concurrent use of cigarettes and increases risky sexual behavior [9] which further increases the burden of the Human Immune Deficiency Virus (HIV).…”

Opportunities and challenges for delivering non-communicable disease management and services in fragile and post-conflict settings: perceptions of policy-makers and health providers in Sierra Leone

“…To date, documentation of health system challenges and opportunities for NCD prevention and control is limited in LMICs, and especially in sub-Saharan Africa and fragile and post-conflict settings. Much of the literature on NCDs in sub-Saharan Africa focuses on documenting the prevalence of NCDs and their (multiple) risk factors [10][11][12][13][14][15][16] as well as providing a socioeconomic and gender breakdown for these [17,18]. Increasingly, the comorbidity of NCDs and infectious chronic diseases (such as HIV/AIDS) [19,20] has also been recognized.…”