Interplay of COVID-19 and cardiovascular diseases in Africa: an observational snapshot.
The COVID-19 pandemic, which started around December 2019 has, at present, resulted in over 450,000 deaths globally, and approximately 1% of these deaths have been reported in Africa. Despite the high prevalence of COVID-19 risk factors, namely: hypertension, diabetes, chronic pulmonary disease, cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) such as rheumatic heart disease, compromised immunity and obesity, low case fatality rates have been recorded in many parts of Africa so far. COVID-19 severity has previously been shown to be worse in patients with CVD and hypertension. We observed the severity of COVID-19 and mortality rates in Africa, and compared outcomes with prevalence of established risk factors (hypertension and CVD). We stratified data as per the United Nations' 5 African subregions. North African countries show a positive association between the risk factors and the mortality rates from COVID-19. However, we observed discordant patterns in the relationship between COVID-19, and either CVD or hypertension, in sub-Saharan African countries. In this paper, we also review the pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection and how it worsens CVD and postulate that the differences in modulation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) axis which controls angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE)/ACE2 balance may be an important determinant of COVID-19 outcomes in Africa.
['Chakafana|Graham|G|', 'Mutithu|Daniel|D|', 'Hoevelmann|Julian|J|', 'Ntusi|Ntobeko|N|', 'Sliwa|Karen|K|']
D000349:Africa D000086382:COVID-19 D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases D002319:Cardiovascular System D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions D006801:Humans D006973:Hypertension D015995:Prevalence D011379:Prognosis D012084:Renin-Angiotensin System D018570:Risk Assessment D012307:Risk Factors D000086402:SARS-CoV-2 D012720:Severity of Illness Index
COVID-19 Cardiovascular diseases Africa Hypertension SARS-CoV-2 RAAS