Doctors warn over rising heart failure cases in Kenya. [iStockphoto]
Heart failure is emerging as one of Kenya's biggest cardiovascular health challenges, fuelled by rising cases of high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and other lifestyle-related risk factors.
Cardiologists have warned that unless the country intensifies public education on heart diseases and the risk factors, Kenyans would continue to grapple with rising cases and the growing health burden.
The experts spoke at a Mombasa hotel during the Kenya Cardiac Society (KCS) 43rd annual scientific congress.
They also called for greater investment in locally generated research and expanded access to cardiovascular medicines, saying Kenya lacks sufficient national data to accurately measure the burden of heart disease.
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"Heart failure is a disease where the heart becomes weak. People struggle to breathe, and it can be caused by many things," said KCS president Dr Mzee Ngunga.
Ngunga said uncontrolled hypertension was one of the leading drivers of heart failure in Kenya, alongside damaged heart valves and blocked arteries caused by cholesterol buildup.
"Heart failure is becoming more common because of an increase in the risk factors. High blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, smoking and excessive alcohol intake are among the major contributors. These are lifestyle diseases that we need to prevent through public education," he added.
He urged Kenyans to adopt healthier lifestyles by avoiding tobacco use, limiting alcohol consumption and managing conditions such as hypertension and diabetes before they lead to serious heart disease.
While cardiovascular disease is becoming increasingly common across Kenya, experts said the country still lacks the data needed to understand its true scale.
"We need to create our own data. Our epidemiology is different from other countries. Infectious diseases, environmental factors and even genetics may influence cardiovascular disease differently here. Yet much of the evidence used to develop treatment guidelines comes from Western Europe and the United States," said Dr Anders Barasa, a consultant physician cardiologist and heart failure specialist.
Barasa said Kenya does not yet have reliable population-based data showing how many people are living with heart failure or other cardiovascular diseases.
"What we know is based on patients who come to hospitals. That does not tell us what is happening in the general population," he said.
He said researchers have begun developing cardiovascular disease registries to better understand disease patterns in Kenya and generate evidence that can inform locally relevant treatment guidelines and health policies.
The Ministry of Health acknowledged the data gap, saying digitisation of the health sector is central to improving disease surveillance and decision-making.
"Without data, you really cannot have enough evidence to support decision-making," said Dr Yvette Kisaka, technical lead for sickle cell and cardiovascular diseases at the Ministry of Health.
Kisaka said the government was investing in digital health systems and disease registries to accurately quantify the burden of cardiovascular diseases across the country.
She added that enhancing diagnosis must be accompanied by the availability of medicines at the locations where patients seek care.
"You cannot diagnose without treating," she said.
According to Kisaka, the Ministry has revised Kenya's essential medicines list to ensure drugs used to treat hypertension and other cardiovascular conditions are available at lower-level health facilities, including Level Two and Level Three health centres, adding that there are plans to extend access even further to dispensaries.
At the same time, Kisaka said Kenya is an emerging medical tourism destination as patients from as far as Europe come for treatment because of easy access to services compared to their countries.
She said Kenya now has many medical specialists that have reduced the burden of patients seeking treatment abroad, adding that African countries such as Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo frequent Kenyan hospitals.
Discussions at the congress highlighted the growing concern that non-communicable diseases, particularly cardiovascular diseases, are placing an increasing burden on Kenya's health system as lifestyle-related illnesses continue to rise.
Health experts said strengthening prevention, expanding access to treatment and generating locally relevant scientific evidence will be critical to reducing the country's growing burden of heart diseases.
The congress brought together cardiologists, researchers, policymakers and other health professionals to discuss advances in cardiovascular care and strategies for addressing the increasing burden of heart disease in Kenya and across the region.