Prevalence of Cardiovascular Disease and Risk Factors in Ghana: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Background: The increasing cardiovascular disease (CVD) burden threatens the global population as the major cause of disability and premature death. Data are scarce on the magnitude of CVD among the population in West Africa, particularly in Ghana. This study examined the available scientific evidence to determine the pooled prevalence (PP) of CVD and risk factors in Ghana. Methods: February 2023. All articles published in the English language that assessed the prevalence of CVD or reported on CVD in Ghana were included. Two authors independently performed the study selection, assessed the risk of bias, extracted the data and checked by the third author. The effect sizes and pooled odds ratio (POR) were determined using the random-effects DerSimonian-Laird (DL) model. Based on the subgroup analysis, the prevalence of CVD was higher in hospital-based settings at 10.74% (95%, confidence interval [Cl]: 8.69, 12.79) than in community-based settings at 5.04% (95% Cl: 2.54, 7.53). The risk factors were male gender (pooled odds ratio [POR]: 1.66; 95% CI: 1.02, 2.70), old age (POR: 1.32; 95% CI: 1.21, 1.45), unemployment (POR: 2.62; 95% CI: 1.33, 5.16), diabetes (POR: 2.79; 95% CI: 1.62, 4.81) and hypertension (POR: 3.41; 95% CI: 1.75, 6.66). Conclusion: The prevalence of CVD was high in Ghana. Urgent interventions are needed for the prevention and management of the high burden of CVD and its risk factors.