The spectrum of heart disease among adults at the Bamenda Regional Hospital, North west Cameroon: a semi urban setting

OBJECTIVE: We sought to determine the spectrum of heart diseases among adult patients at the Bamenda Regional Hospital in the North West Region of Cameroon. This is a chart review of echocardiographic records. RESULTS: In total, 673 records were included in our study, of which 506 had a definite heart disease. Of the 506, 93 had mixed cardiopathies. Their ages ranged from 18 to 105 years with a median age of 64.0 (Interquartile range = 47-75) years. Females accounted for a greater proportion (55.3%) of the study population. The most common echocardiographic diagnoses were hypertensive heart disease (41.1%), valvular heart disease (22.3%) and cardiomyopathies (11.4%). The prevalence of heart failure was 17.5%, with hypertensive heart disease being the leading cause.