Authors

Discussion

Background Cardiovascular abnormalities have been described in patients with schistosomiasis. Their true prevalence and clinical features in endemic settings  are unknown.

Aim The study aimed to assess the prevalence of subclinical cardiovascular damage in a population endemic to schistosomiasis.

Methods A cross-sectional study using colour-ultrasound assessment of abdominal and carotid arteries among adults aged >18 years living in Kome Island, Tanzania was conducted. Carotid intimal medial thickness, carotid plaque, mean abdominal aortic diameter, and presence of aneurysms were assessed. Anamnestic data on previous Schistosoma infection was collected; the actual prevalence of Schistosoma mansoni and Schistosoma haematobium was also assessed through stool and urine investigations.

Results A total of 264 participants (166 female, 98 male) were enrolled (mean age of 50 ± 15.5 years). The history of previous schistosomiasis was 27.3%, actual positivity for Schistosoma mansoni was 5.9%.  mAOD was significantly increased among participants with a previous history of schistosomiasis (16.7±2.8 mm vs 17.6 ± 3mm; p = 0.02), with an a-OR of 1.15 [ CI 1.04-1.28]; p= 0.007

Conclusions The significant difference in the mAOD in participants with previous Schistosomiasis history schistosomiasis, suggests the need for further investigations on aortic damage in endemic populations, independently from the positive laboratory investigations.

Key words Schistosomiasis; Cardiovascular risk; Abdominal aortic aneurysm; carotid artery IMT, Colour-ultrasound; South Saharan Africa