A Centre for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Tuberculosis (CDT) in a resource-limited setting: a dragnet for patients with heart disease?

Cardiovascular disease is a growing public health problem in sub-Saharan Africa. Cough and dyspnea are symptoms of both lung diseases and heart failure. This study aimed at determining the contribution of cardiac diseases versus pulmonary diseases in the etiological profile of patients presenting with cough and dyspnea in a Center for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Tuberculosis (CDT), in a semi-rural area in Cameroon.

This is a cross-sectional analysis of data from patients aged 18 years or more who consulted for cough and or dyspnea between December 2009 and December 2010 at the CDT of Lafe-Baleng, Bafoussam, Cameroon.

A total of 1196 patients were received for various complaints during the study period; 348 (29.1%) of them presented with cough and or dyspnea, and were included in the study. 186 patients (53.4%; 95% CI: 48.2-58.6) had a pure cardiac disease, while 122 patients (35.1%; 95% CI: 30.2-40.2) had a pulmonary disease. The prevalence of hypertension was 50.9%, and hypertensive heart disease was the most frequent cardiac disease with a prevalence rate of 37.6%. Heart failure was diagnosed in 222 patients, representing 63.8% (95% CI: 58.9-68.9) of patients with cough and or dyspnea, and 18.6% (95% CI: 16.5-21.0) of all the patients received at the CDT of Lafe-Baleng during the study period. Compared to patients with a pulmonary disease, patients with cardiac disease were older (p < 0.001) and more likely to present with dyspnea (p < 0.001) and to have hypertension (p < 0.001).

We found a high prevalence of heart failure in this Centre for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Tuberculosis thus, a veritable dragnet for patients with heart disease. Our findings emphasize the urgent need to increase the access to cardiovascular care and to continuously raise the awareness of the communities on cardiovascular diseases in Cameroon.