10.25905/5ea910f4ab861
Simon Stewart
Simon
Stewart
Wael K. Al-Delaimy
Wael K.
Al-Delaimy
Karen Sliwa
Karen
Sliwa
Magdi Yacoub
Magdi
Yacoub
Ana Mocumbi
Ana
Mocumbi
Clinical algorithm to screen for cardiopulmonary disease in low-income settings
Torrens University Australia
2020
cardiopulmonary diseases
Public Health and Health Services not elsewhere classified
2020-04-29 05:30:26
Journal contribution
https://torrens.figshare.com/articles/journal_contribution/Clinical_algorithm_to_screen_for_cardiopulmonary_disease_in_low-income_settings/12212501
<p>Africa faces many health challenges, many of which
are unique to the continent. Although rarely considered an important
contributor to premature death in high-income countries, cardiopulmonary
disease (CPD) is, for a number of reasons, a common condition affecting
Africans at a young age. In addition to recognizing CPD as an important condition,
we outline a pragmatic screening protocol for identifying CPD in the African
context.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Any
attempts to understand the burden of disease in sub-Saharan Africa are doomed
to failure if viewed through the prism of experiences in high-income countries.
This situation is particularly evident when considering the limited capacity and
resources to diagnose complex diseases in many parts of this region. This
critical limitation is exacerbated when the complex conditions remain poorly
characterized on a global basis. In this Comment article, we outline the
conundrum of screening for and diagnosing cardiopulmonary disease (CPD) in the African context on the basis
on the following definition: a broad
spectrum of conditions concurrently affecting the heart and lungs that ranges
from those at high risk of developing right heart failure and death owing to
the presence of largely asymptomatic, mild-to-moderate pulmonary hypertension
that represents latent CPD, to those who have already developed concurrent and
symptomatic lung and/or cardiac pathology that represents established CPD. </p>