Epidemiology of peripheral artery disease in elder general population of two cities of Central Africa: Bangui and Brazzaville.

Objectives: Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a common condition in Western countries, mostly in the elderly. Little is known about the epidemiology of PAD in Africa. We sought to determine the prevalence of this condition in the elderly in two community-dwelling cohorts in Central Africa.
Design: Prospective cross-sectional survey in general population over the age of 65 years in Bangui (Central African Republic) and Brazzaville (Congo).
Methods: We conducted a systematic door-to-door survey in two representative districts of each city. Demographic, clinical and biological data were collected. The ankle-brachial index (ABI) was used to detect PAD (ABI ≤ 0.90).
Results: Among the 976 participants, the prevalence of PAD was 15.0% in Bangui and 32.4% in Brazzaville, increasing with age. Adjusted to age, regular alcohol consumption was protective for women in Bangui (OR = 0.50, CI95%:0.25-0.98) and men in Brazzaville (OR = 0.43, CI95%:0.21-0.88). Hypertension was associated with PAD in women (OR = 4.14, CI95%:1.65-10.42 in Bangui and OR = 2.17, CI95%:1.16-4.06 in Brazzaville). Diabetes and smoking showed different associations according to gender and city.
Conclusions: This first population study in Central Africa highlights the high prevalence of PAD in the older population, and emphasizes specificities regarding the risk factors, being different from data published in Western countries.
(Copyright © 2012 European Society for Vascular Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)