Anaemia among patients with congestive cardiac failure in Uganda - its impact on treatment outcomes

Background. Anaemia increases morbidity and mortality in patients with congestive cardiac failure (CCF). Few studies have examined the prevalence of anaemia and its impact among patients with CCF in sub-Saharan Africa. We assessed the prevalence of anaemia and its influence on treatment outcome in patients with CCF attending a large referral hospital in Kampala, Uganda. Methods. Echocardiography was done and haemoglobin levels were determined in 157 patients with CCF admitted to Mulago Hospital. The patients were followed up for 2 weeks and their treatment outcome was recorded. Results. Of the 157 patients, 101 (64.3%) had anaemia (mean haemoglobin concentration ≤11.9 g/dl for women and ≤12.9 g/dl for men) at admission. Increasing age and hypertensive heart disease were significantly associated with anaemia (odds ratio (OR) 2.92, confidence interval (CI) 1.41 - 6.05,

Endomyocardial fibrosis: is it a systemic disease?

Background: Patients with endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF) characteristically present with gross ascites and absent or minimal pedal oedema. This has long puzzled clinicians, especially since this clinical picture remains the same regardless of whether there is left, right or biventricular ventricular heart failure. The development of ascites, therefore, may not be directly and solely related to changes in the heart, but to local changes in the peritoneum. In order to investigate this possibility we performed peritoneal biopsies on 28 EMF patients.Methods: Successful peritoneal biopsies were performed on 28 EMF patients and 11 age-matched healthy controls who had died in road accidents.Results: All 28 patients (100%) showed complete or partial peritoneal fibrosis. Twenty Six (93%) had additional signs of chronic peritonitis characterised mainly by lymphocytes (92%) eosinophils (27%) and plasma cells (23%). Neutrophils were not seen. Vascularisation was common (87%) with an increase in capillaries and granulation tissue. Other components were Russel bodies (50%), deposits of fibrin (50%) and haemosiderin pigment (32%). Only two samples showed fibrosis without signs of inflammation. None of the controls showed any of these changes.Conclusion: Peritoneal fibrosis was found in all and peritonitis in most of our EMF patients. This suggests that pathology of EMF is not confined to the heart but also involves the peritoneum. This local peritoneal inflammation may explain why marked ascites is often present with little or no peripheral oedema, and why conventional heart failure treatment is of limited value.Keywords: peritoneal-fibrosis, endomyocardial-fibrosis, ascites, histology, echocardiograph

Rheumatic heart disease in Uganda: the association between MHC class II HLA DR alleles and disease: a case control study

Background Rheumatic heart disease (RHD), the only long term consequence of acute rheumatic fever, remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality among young adults in Uganda. An inherited susceptibility to acute rheumatic fever centers around the major histocompatibility class II human leucocyte antigens. However, there is paucity of data from sub-Saharan Africa. This study compares the frequency of HLA class II DR alleles between RHD cases and normal controls in Uganda. Methods One hundred ninety-nine participants including 96 established RHD cases aged 5–60 years and 103 age and sex matched normal controls were recruited for participation. DNA was manually extracted from buffy coat samples and HLA analysis was performed. HLA-DR allelic frequency comparison between cases and controls were estimated using conditional logistic regression with 95% confidence intervals. P -values were corrected for multiple hypothesis testing. Results 199 participants (103 female, 51.8%) completed the study. The mean (SD) age in years for cases and controls were 29.6 (10.2) and 29(18), respectively. After conditional logistic regression and multiple hypothesis testing, HLA-DR1was associated with a decreased risk of RHD (OR = 0.42, CI 0.21-085, P = 0.01, Corrected P value (PC) = 0.09,) while HLA-DR11 was associated with increased risk of RHD (OR = 3.31, CI 1.57-6.97, P = \u3c0.001, Pc \u3c 0.001). No other significant associations were found. Conclusion In this first study of HLA genetic susceptibility to RHD in Uganda, HLA- DR1 was more common in normal controls while HLA- DR11 was more common among RHD cases suggesting a disease susceptibility association. In future studies, high resolution HLA analysis and genome wide studies should be carried out to confirm this pattern

Endomyocardial fibrosis: is it a systemic disease?

Background: Patients with endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF) characteristically present with gross ascites and absent or minimal pedal oedema. This has long puzzled clinicians, especially since this clinical picture remains the same regardless of whether there is left, right or biventricular ventricular heart failure. The development of ascites, therefore, may not be directly and solely related to changes in the heart, but to local changes in the peritoneum. In order to investigate this possibility we performed peritoneal biopsies on 28 EMF patients. Methods: Successful peritoneal biopsies were performed on 28 EMF patients and 11 age-matched healthy controls who had died in road accidents. Results: All 28 patients (100%) showed complete or partial peritoneal fibrosis. Twenty Six (93%) had additional signs of chronic peritonitis characterised mainly by lymphocytes (92%) eosinophils (27%) and plasma cells (23%). Neutrophils were not seen. Vascularisation was common (87%) with an increase in capillaries and granulation tissue. Other components were Russel bodies (50%), deposits of fibrin (50%) and haemosiderin pigment (32%). Only two samples showed fibrosis without signs of inflammation. None of the controls showed any of these changes. Conclusion: Peritoneal fibrosis was found in all and peritonitis in most of our EMF patients. This suggests that pathology of EMF is not confined to the heart but also involves the peritoneum. This local peritoneal inflammation may explain why marked ascites is often present with little or no peripheral oedema, and why conventional heart failure treatment is of limited value

Ambient Particulate Matter Air Pollution in Mpererwe District, Kampala, Uganda: A Pilot Study

Air quality in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, has deteriorated significantly in the past two decades. We made spot measurements in Mpererwe district for airborne particulate matter PM2.5 (fine particles) and coarse particles. PM was collected on Teflon-membrane filters and analyzed for mass, 51 elements, 3 anions, and 5 cations. Both fine and coarse particle concentrations were above 100 µg/m3 in all the samples collected. Markers for crustal/soil (e.g., Si and Al) were the most abundant in the PM2.5 fraction, followed by primary combustion products from biomass burning and incinerator emissions (e.g., K and Cl). Over 90% of the measured PM2.5 mass can be explained by crustal species (41% and 59%) and carbonaceous aerosol (33%–55%). Crustal elements dominated the coarse particles collected from Kampala. The results of this pilot study are indicative of unhealthy air and suggest that exposure to ambient air in Kampala may increase the burden of environmentally induced cardiovascular, metabolic, and respiratory diseases including infections. Greater awareness and more extensive research are required to confirm our findings, to identify personal exposure and pollution sources, and to develop air quality management plans and policies to protect public health

Subclinical atherosclerosis among HIV-infected adults attending HIV/AIDS care at two large ambulatory HIV clinics in Uganda.

The increased immune activation and inflammation of chronic HIV-infection and the characteristic dyslipidemias associated with HIV infection and antiretroviral therapy (ART) contribute to an increased risk of atherosclerotic vascular disease among HIV-infected adults. There is an emerging need to understand determinants of cardiovascular disease (CVD) among individuals aging with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa. We determined the prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis [carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) ≥ 0.78 mm] and its correlation with traditional CVD risk factors among HIV-infected adults.In a cross-sectional study, HIV-infected adults (ART-naïve and ART-treated) were consecutively selected from patients' enrollment registers at two large HIV clinics at Mulago Hospital, Kampala, Uganda. We measured traditional CVD risk factors including age, biophysical profile, fasting blood sugar and serum lipid profile as well as biomarkers of inflammation. High resolution ultrasound was used to measure common carotid CIMT.Of 245 patients, Median age [Interquartile range (IQR)] 37 years (31-43), 168 (69%) were females; and 100 (41%) were ART-treated for at least 7 years. Overall, 34/186 (18%) had subclinical atherosclerosis; of whom 15/108 (14%) were ART-naïve whereas 19/78 (24%) were ART-treated. Independent predictors of subclinical atherosclerosis included age [odds ratio (OR) 1.83 per 5-year increase in age; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.24-2.69; p = 0.002], body mass index (BMI); OR 1.15; CI 1.01-1.31; p = 0.041 and high low density lipoprotein (LDL) [OR 2.99; CI 1.02-8.78, p = 0.046]. High sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) was positively correlated with traditional cardio-metabolic risk factors including waist circumference (r = 0.127, p = 0.05), triglycerides (r = 0.19, p = 0.003) and Total Cholesterol: High Density Lipoprotein ratio (TC:LDL) (r = 0.225, p<0.001).The prevalence of subclinical atherosclerosis was 18% among HIV-infected adults in Uganda. Traditional CVD risk factors were associated with subclinical atherosclerosis. We recommend routine assessment of traditional CVD risk factors within HIV care and treatment programs in sub-Saharan Africa

Socioeconomic and environmental risk factors among rheumatic heart disease patients in Uganda.

BackgroundAlthough low socioeconomic status, and environmental factors are known risk factors for rheumatic heart disease in other societies, risk factors for rheumatic heart disease remain less well described in Uganda.Aims and objectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the role of socio-economic and environmental factors in the pathogenesis of rheumatic heart disease in Ugandan patients.MethodsThis was a case control study in which rheumatic heart disease cases and normal controls aged 5-60 years were recruited and investigated for socioeconomic and environmental risk factors such as income status, employment status, distance from the nearest health centre, number of people per house and space area per person.Results486 participants (243 cases and 243 controls) took part in the study. Average age was 32.37+/-14.6 years for cases and 35.75+/-12.6 years for controls. At univariate level, Cases tended to be more overcrowded than controls; 8.0+/-3.0 versus 6.0+/-3.0 persons per house. Controls were better spaced at 25.2 square feet versus 16.9 for cases. More controls than cases were employed; 45.3% versus 21.1%. Controls lived closer to health centers than the cases; 4.8+/-3.8 versus 3.3+/-12.9 kilometers. At multivariate level, the odds of rheumatic heart disease was 1.7 times higher for unemployment status (OR = 1.7, 95% CI = 1.05-8.19) and 1.3 times higher for overcrowding (OR = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.1-1.56). There was interaction between overcrowding and longer distance from the nearest health centre (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.05-1.42).ConclusionThe major findings of this study were that there was a trend towards increased risk of rheumatic heart disease in association with overcrowding and unemployment. There was interaction between overcrowding and distance from the nearest health center, suggesting that the effect of overcrowding on the risk of acquiring rheumatic heart disease increases with every kilometer increase from the nearest health center