Prevalence and determinants of blood pressure variability in pygmies of Southern region Cameroon.

INTRODUCTION: The impact of urbanization and living conditions on the prevalence of hypertension in the Cameroonian population is poorly known. AIM: To evaluate the prevalence and determinants of blood pressure (BP) in adult Pygmies and Bantus living in urban and rural areas of Southern Cameroon. PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS: This was a cross-sectional comparative study of 406 adults (96 urban Bantus, 100 urban Pygmies, 111 rural Bantus and 99 tropical rainforest Pygmies with a traditional Pygmies way of life), recruited in Southern Cameroon (mean age 42 ±â€Š17 years; 56.7% women). Sociodemographic, anthropometric and BP parameters were collected. Hypertension was defined as BP at least 140/90 mmHg and/or use of BP-lowering drug(s). RESULTS: The age-standardized prevalence of hypertension in urban Bantus, rural Bantus, urban Pygmies and traditional Pygmies was 18.0, 13.5, 9.3 and 4.1%, respectively. Mean SBP and DBP differed significantly according to Bantu vs. Pygmy ethnicity, and urban vs. rural residency. After multiple adjustments, mean arterial pressure was significantly associated with age, BMI, Bantu ancestry and urban residency. CONCLUSION: Bantu ethnicity and urban residency are significantly associated with high-BP among people from Southern Cameroon.

Factor associated with progression to chronic arterial hypertension in women with preeclampsia in Yaoundé, Cameroon

Introduction: hypertensive diseases in pregnancy are the leading medical problem during pregnancy. Some of the women affected remain hypertensive after pregnancy and the post-partum period. This study aimed to assess the factors associated to the persistence of hypertension after preeclampsia.Methods: this was a retrospective cohort study which included all women who had preeclampsia. The minimal follow-up period was 12 months. We excluded from the study all women who had superimposed preeclampsia. Sociodemographic data and past history were recorded and a physical exam was performed for all participants. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine factors independently associated to the persistence of hypertension.Results: our cohort consisted of 136 women. The mean follow-up period was 3.7 years. Thirty two women (23.53%) remained hypertensive. This represented an incidence rate of 2.85% per year. Old age (≥ 40 years), housewife occupation, multigravidity (> 4), onset of preeclampsia before 34 weeks' gestation, obesity and the presence of hypertension in siblings were factors independently associated to persistent hypertension. Conclusion: many women affected by preeclampsia remain hypertensive after pregnancy. It is important to provide adequate follow-up for this patients in order to intervene on the factors leading to this outcome

Dyslipidemia in Patients with a Cardiovascular Risk and Disease at the University Teaching Hospital of Yaoundé, Cameroon.

Objective. To determine the frequency of lipid abnormalities in patients with a cardiovascular risk and disease at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) of Yaoundé. Materials and Methods. We conducted a cross-sectional study from 1 March to 31 May 2015 at the UTH of Yaoundé. We included all patients seen in the outpatient department with a diagnosis of a cardiovascular disease or a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Patients who accepted to participate in the study were asked to answer a questionnaire; after that a blood sample was taken for lipid profile. An informed consent was signed by all the participants and the study has received approval from the national ethic committee. Results. We recruited 264 patients of which 119 were men and 145 were women with a sex ratio of 0.82. Mean age was 61.36 years. The frequency of lipid profiles abnormalities was as follows: low HDL cholesterol (44.3%), hypertriglyceridemia (18.9%), high LDL cholesterol (3.8%), and high total cholesterol 3.4%). Hypertriglyceridemia was strongly associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Conclusion. Low levels of HDL cholesterol and hypertriglyceridemia are more prevalent in our study population. More studies are needed to confirm this finding in our environment.