Prevalence of atrial fibrillation in Bengo Province, Angola: Results from a population-based study

Abstract

Introduction: Atrial fibrillation is the most common sustained arrhythmia of clinical significance in the adult population, representing an important public health problem. Literature on the prevalence of atrial fibrillation in Angola is unavailable. Objective: The goal of this paper is to determine the prevalence of atrial fibrillation in a population from Bengo, a province from northern of Angola, stratified by sex and age and analyse its relationship with some cardiovascular risk factors. Material and Methods: The data were obtained from the CardioBengo study, a cross-sectional community-based study, from which a random sample of individuals aged between 15 and 84 years was selected. In total, 2 379 individuals were included in the final analysis. Results: The average age of the participants was 35 years old, and 63% of the sample was female. The following prevalence rates were noted: prior stroke or transient ischaemic attack, 0.4%; congestive heart failure, 0.3%; ischaemic heart disease, 0.3% and left ventricular hypertrophy, 37.2%. Atrial fibrillation was found in two individuals, reflecting a prevalence of 0.084%. Conclusion: Our study reports a low prevalence of atrial fibrillation compared to rates found in studies conducted in developed countries but similar to other studies from Sub-Saharan Africa.

Keywords

• Prevalence
• atrial fibrillation
• cardiovascular risk factors
• Angola
• Sub-Saharan Africa