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CARDIOVASCULAR JOURNAL OF AFRICA • Africa STEMI Abstracts, April 2018
8
AFRICA
Presenting Author
Name:
Harun
Surname:
A. Otieno
Contact Number
+254718173303
Article
English Title
An online survey on the clinical use of the 12-lead electrocardiograph amongst East African health care professionals.
Category
Quality outcomes
English Abstract
Background:
The burden of heart disease is growing worldwide, and the majority of those affected are in low & middle
income countries.(1) In Africa cardiovascular disease account for 11% of total deaths(2) and is now the second most
common cause of death after infectious disease. The 12-lead electrocardiograph plays an important diagnostic tool for
detecting and managing cardiovascular disease. It is estimated that less than half of hospitals in Kenya and Uganda have
functional ECG machines available limiting the capacity to diagnose CVD.(3)
Aim:
To evaluate the clinical use of 12-lead electrocardiograph amongst health care workers in East Africa in public and
private health facilities.
Methods & Materials:
Using an online survey sent to the national cardiac society members of each country, we obtained
information on the clinical use and characteristics of the ECG in hospital and clinic settings.
Results:
There were 199 respondents representing 120 healthcare facilities from 5 countries. Kenya had 59 and Burundi
33, represented. In Kenya, only 21% of lower level public health facilities had an ECG machine. In Kenya, in 59% of facili-
ties ECGs were interpreted by a doctor, physician or cardiologist. In Burundi 72% of public facilities had an ECG.
Conclusions & Recommendations:
There is a need to improve CVD diagnosis by equipping and training more public
facilities in East Africa with ECG machines and training healthcare workers with ECG application and interpretation.
Key words:
Electrocardiograph, East Africa, Cardiovascular disease, Online survey
References:
(1) Beaglehole R. Globalisation and the Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Disease: The Neglected Chronic
Diseases of Adults.
Lancet
2003;
362
: 903–8.
(2) WHO (World Health Organization). 1999. The World Health Report 1999 – Making a Difference. Geneva: WHO
(3) Carlson S. Capacity for diagnosis and treatment of heart failure in sub-Saharan Africa.
Heart
2017;
103
: 1874–1879.
Authors
Name &
Surname
Title
Expertise
Affiliation
Country
Harun A.
Otieno
Dr.
Interventional
Cardiologist
Africa Heart
Associates
africaheartmd@gmail.comKenya
Disclosure
I hereby agree that I am authorised to submit this abstract on behalf of all the authors and I agree that the copyright of the
above mentioned abstract, shall reside with the Cardiovascular Journal of Africa (Clinics Cardive Publishing (Pty) Ltd.) and
there is no conflict of interest to report.