Lipid Profile Alterations and Predisposing factors associated with Cardiovascular Diseases at Kibagabaga District Hospital, Rwanda: A cross sectional study

Abstract Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a public health concern. The World Health Organization reported that approximately 17.9 million deaths result from CVD annually, accounting for 31% of all deaths globally. Methods: A cross-sectional study with 100 simple randomly selected participants was conducted. Blood samples were collected to analyze lipid profiles, such as high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C), triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C) levels, of participants at the Kibagabaga District Hospital Biochemistry Laboratory. The questionnaire was used to record the predisposing factors associated with CVDs. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 was used for data analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to test for mean differences, while the chi-square test was used to assess associations between variables. Results: Most of the participants (38%) were aged 51-60 years and were male (51%) or female (49%). Coronary heart disease (CHD) was the most prevalent CVD (62%) and affected 32% of males and 30% of females, while it accounted for 27% of the population aged 51-60 years. In all the four CVDs, LDL-C had the highest abnormal cases and stood at 97% (n=100), with 59 cases in CHD (n=62), 20 cases in stroke (n=20), 10 cases (n=10) in Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD), and 8 cases (n=8) in Heart Failure (HF). The mean difference resulting from the variation in abnormal lipid profiles according to age group (Fcal=14.54327, p=0.001328; Fcrit=4.066181) and sex (Fcal=57.02564, p=0.000971; Fcrit=6.591382) was statistically significant. Alterations in HDL-C (x2=17, p=0.000698, 95% CI: 2.1, 22.9) were significantly associated with CVD incidence. Among the predisposing factors, only hypertension [(x2=10, 95% CI: (3.6, 21.4), p=0.01853] was significantly associated with CVD incidence. Conclusion: Coronary heart disease was a common CVD, and alterations in lipid profiles were observed among CVD patients, with LDL-C being the most abnormal. Among the predisposing factors, hypertension was the significant contributing risk factor to CVDs. Regular monitoring of lipid profiles is recommended, and patients should respect the advice of physicians to prevent long-term morbidity and further complications of the disease.