Heart Diseases: Statistical Comparison between US and Africa
Cardiomyopathy is a rare heart muscle disease over the world,
but not in Africa where it is one of the major causes of heart
failure, according to experts that reviewed all available
cardiomyopathy studies performed in Africa, along with all the
information about the causes and types of heart muscle disease
in Africa, where 10 per cent of the world's population lives.
A 10 per cent to 17 per cent of cardiac problems found through
autopsies in South Africa and Uganda, and 17 per cent to 48 per
cent of heart failure diagnoses in many parts of Africa are due
to dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), which is an enlargement of the
entire heart, explain researchers.
In the United States, 4 to 8 per 100,000 people are affected by
DCM, but African overall incidence is unknown, because the
corresponding studies have not been made yet.
Researchers' findings show that Peripartum cardiomyopathy has a
very high incidence throughout Africa and Nigeria. This illness
can cause heart failure and it develops between the last month
of pregnancy and the first five months after childbirth.
Peripartum cardiomyopathy incidence in the US is 1 in 15,000
deliveries; meanwhile the incidence in South Africa is 1 in
1,000 cases.
DCM is caused by various factors, under generally accepted
African theory. These include untreated high blood pressure,
infective and toxic agents, inappropriate immunologic reactions,
nutritional deficiencies, and genetic factors.
According to experts, it is important to do more research to
understand the underlying reasons for Africa's high
cardiomyopathy rate, and prevent or reduce it.
Article written by Hector Milla, editor of http://www.heartdisease
sympton.com a website about heart disease
symptoms .You may see a full list of 100 heart disease
articles at http://www.he
artdiseasesympton.com/xenu.html