Contribution of Stress Testing to the Management of Ischemic Heart Disease in Mali

Introduction: Exercise stress testing (on a treadmill or ergometer bicycle) is an important test in cardiology for diagnosing myocardial ischemia. This test in Mali is still in its beginning compared to other countries in the sub-region. The lack of data in Mali prompted this study, which aimed to evaluate the indications of this activity and its diagnostic contribution to cardiology in Mali. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective, descriptive study. The study was conducted at the “TOUCAM” medical clinic in Kati based on the analysis of stress test reports between January 2016 and August 2022. Result: During the study period, we documented 73 patients who underwent exercise testing on a bicycle ergometer for suspected coronary heart disease. The mean age of our patients was 47.5 ± 13.8 years (14 and 79 years). Males accounted for the majority (78.1%). The sex ratio is 3.5. More than half of our patients were overweight or obese (77.1%). Hypertension and diabetes affected 52.1% and 25.8% of patients, respectively. 20.8% of patients had coronary artery disease. renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system blockers (56.8%) and beta-blockers (51.3%). The main indications were chest pain (63.0%) and ischemia detection (15.1%). A modified STEEP protocol was used. The majority of our patients (71.2%) achieved at least 85% of their maximum theoretical heart rate. The main reason for the termination of the study was fatigue (57.3%). The average duration was 11.3 ± 4.2 minutes. 24.7% thought the stress tests were positive and 17.8% thought they were controversial. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the importance of stress testing in the diagnosis and treatment of ischemic heart disease, especially in settings where we have very limited access to coronary angiography.

Echocardiographic Aspects of Type 2 Diabetics Patients Hospitalized in the Medicine and Endocrinology Department of the Mali Hospital

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in diabetics. The objective of our study was to investigate the echocardiographic aspects of type 2 diabetics. Patients and Method: Descriptive and cross-sectional study of 12 months from June 2020 to June 2021. We included hospitalized type 2 diabetics who underwent transthoracic cardiac ultrasound in the Department of Medicine and Endocrinology at the Mali Hospital. Results: We collected 128 type 2 diabetics. The predominance was male with a sex ratio of 1.2. The mean age of patients was 60.06 ± 11.54 years with extremes of 28 and 84 years. Echocardiographic abnormalities were dominated by abnormal relaxation of left ventricle in 62.5%, increased of left ventricle mass in 54.7% and left atrium dilation in 28.1%. Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and hypertension had more left atrium dilation with a p of 0.02. Disorders of global kinetics and systolic dysfunction were more prevalent in smoking patients with statistically significant associations, respectively, p = 0.02;p = 0.03. Dyslipidemia had a statistically significant association with segmental kinetic disorders with a p of 0.008. Duration of diabetes greater than 5 years was associated with left atrium dilation and p-value was 0.04. Conclusion: Diabetes is responsible for cardiovascular manifestations that can be identified with transthoracic echocardiography. Its performance in diabetic patients makes it possible to refine the patient’s management.

Epidemioclinics, Etiologies and Prognosis of Cardiogene Shock State in the Intensive Care Unit of the Cardiology Department of the G-Spot Hospital

Objective: The work aimed to describe the etiological and evolutionary aspects of cardiogenic shock in the intensive care unit of the cardiology department (USIC) of the G-spot hospital in Bamako, Mali. Materials and Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study from January 1, 2018 to April 30, 2019 that included all patients admitted to the USIC during this period. Each patient benefited from individual data support with systematic recording of socio-demographic, clinical, complementary and therapeutic data and analyzed with the SOFTWARE SPSS 20.0 French version. Results: The study involved 40 patients out of 311 patients hospitalized in USIC, representing a hospital frequency of 12.86%. Males were the most affected (60%) with a sex ratio of 1.50. The modal class was 41 - 60 years with extremes at 18 years and 89 years. Cardiovascular risk factors were dominated by HTA (27.50%), diabetes and tobacco, each with 22.50%. The general signs were tachycardia (90%), oxygen desaturation (77.50%), impregnable blood pressure (62.50%), agitation (52.50%) and an oliguria (70%). At the electrocardiogram the rhythm was sinus (80%), it was an atrial fibrillation (15%), a ventricular tachycardia (10%) and signs of coronary ischemia (necrosis in 35% and ST over shifted in 20% of cases). At cardiac doppler ultrasound,the left ventricle was dilated (50%), the right cavities dilated (30%), segmental kinetic disorder (40%), the left ventricular systolic function (FEVG) impaired (75%) and valve disease (10%). Biology noted hyper-creatinemia (65%), hyper-glycemia (12.50%), anemia and hyponatremia with 20% frequency each. Among etiology, ischemic heart disease accounted for 57.50% followed by pulmonary embolism 20%, dilated valve cardiomyopathy 7.50% and chronic pulmonary heart 2.50%. The trend in the majority of cases was unfavorable with 60% of deaths. Chronic pulmonary heart and pulmonary embolism were the deadliest with a frequency of 100% and 87.50% respectively. Conclusion: Cardiogenic shock is an infrequent condition with a high mortality of a prognosis. Ischemic heart disease is the most common etiology of the disease.

Epidemio-Clinical, Therapeutic and Evolutive Aspects of Aortic Dissection in the Cardiology Department in Poin “G” Hospital University Center Bamako

Objective: The work aimed at describing an epidemioclinical, therapeutic and evolutionary characteristics of patients hospitalized for aortic dissection in the cardiology department in Point “G” Hospital University Center in Bamako—Mali. Methodology: It was a descriptive cross-sectional study from January 2010 to February 2017 in the CHU Point G cardiology department, including all patients hospitalized during this period. Results: Of 6912 hospitalized patients, 23 patients were concerned by aortic dissection. The prevalence of aortic dissection was 0.33%. The most affected age group was 50 - 69 (43.5%) of patients. The predominance was male with a sex ratio of 4.75. The cardiovascular risk factors were high blood pressure (73.9%) and smoking (60.9%). The major functional signs were chest pain (65.2%) and dyspnea (65.2%). Asphygmy (56.5%) and breath of aortic insufficiency (60.9%) were the dominant physical signs. The electrocardiogram recorded sinus tachycardia with 86.9% of patients. The radiographic of the frontal thorax showed mediastina widening (73.9%). At echocardiography, dilatation of the ascending aorta was described with 73.9% and the intimal veil (47.8%). Pericardial effusion was observed with 26.1% of patients. In the thoracic angioscan, the aortic dissection gave 43.5% for type A and 56.5% for type B. The aneurysm of the aorta was abdominal with 21.7%, ascending portion (13.0%) and descending with 8.7%. Complications were dominated by heart failure (47.8%) and aneurysm of the aorta (34.8%). The lethality was 52.2%. Conclusion: Aortic dissection is a medical and surgical emergency with poor prediction.