Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest incidence, prevalence, and fatality from stroke globally. Yet, only little information about context-specific risk factors for prioritising interventions to reduce the stroke burden in sub-Saharan Africa is available. We aimed to identify and characterise the effect of the top modifiable risk factors for stroke in sub-Saharan Africa. The Stroke Investigative Research and Educational Network (SIREN) study is a multicentre, case-control study done at 15 sites in Nigeria and Ghana. Cases were adults (aged ≥18 years) with stroke confirmed by CT or MRI. Controls were age-matched and gender-matched stroke-free adults (aged ≥18 years) recruited from the communities in catchment areas of cases. Comprehensive assessment for vascular, lifestyle, and psychosocial factors was done using standard instruments. We used conditional logistic regression to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and population-attributable risks (PARs) with 95% CIs. Between Aug 28, 2014, and June 15, 2017, we enrolled 2118 case-control pairs (1192 [56%] men) with mean ages of 59·0 years (SD 13·8) for cases and 57·8 years (13·7) for controls. 1430 (68%) had ischaemic stoke, 682 (32%) had haemorrhagic stroke, and six (<1%) had discrete ischaemic and haemorrhagic lesions. 98·2% (95% CI 97·2-99·0) of adjusted PAR of stroke was associated with 11 potentially modifiable risk factors with ORs and PARs in descending order of PAR of 19·36 (95% CI 12·11-30·93) and 90·8% (95% CI 87·9-93·7) for hypertension, 1·85 (1·44-2·38) and 35·8% (25·3-46·2) for dyslipidaemia, 1·59 (1·19-2·13) and 31·1% (13·3-48·9) for regular meat consumption, 1·48 (1·13-1·94) and 26·5% (12·9-40·2) for elevated waist-to-hip ratio, 2·58 (1·98-3·37) and 22·1% (17·8-26·4) for diabetes, 2·43 (1·81-3·26) and 18·2% (14·1-22·3) for low green leafy vegetable consumption, 1·89 (1·40-2·54) and 11·6% (6·6-16·7) for stress, 2·14 (1·34-3·43) and 5·3% (3·3-7·3) for added salt at the table, 1·65 (1·09-2·49) and 4·3% (0·6-7·9) for cardiac disease, 2·13 (1·12-4·05) and 2·4% (0·7-4·1) for physical inactivity, and 4·42 (1·75-11·16) and 2·3% (1·5-3·1) for current cigarette smoking. Ten of these factors were associated with ischaemic stroke and six with haemorrhagic stroke occurrence. Implementation of interventions targeting these leading risk factors at the population level should substantially curtail the burden of stroke among Africans. National Institutes of Health.

Background: The potential of mobile-health (mHealth) technology for the management of hypertension among stroke survivors in Africa remains unexplored. We assessed whether an mHealth technology-enabled, nurse-guided intervention initiated among stroke patients within one month of symptom onset is effective in improving their blood pressure (BP) control. Methods: A two-arm pilot cluster randomized controlled trial involving 60 stroke survivors, ≥18 years, with BP ≥140/90 mmHg at screening/enrollment visit at a medical center in Ghana. Participants in the intervention arm (n = 30) received a Blue-toothed BP device and smartphone with an App for monitoring BP measurements and medication intake under nurse guidance for three months after which intervention was withdrawn. Control arm (n = 30) received usual care. Primary outcome measure was proportion with clinic BP < 140/90 mmHg at month 9; secondary outcomes included medication adherence. Findings: Mean ± SD age was 55 ± 13 years, 65% males. Two participants on intervention and three in control group were lost to follow-up. At month 9, proportion on the intervention versus controls with BP < 140/90 mmHg was 14/30 (46.7%) versus 12/30 (40.0%), p = 0.79 by intention-to-treat; systolic BP < 140 mmHg was 22/30 (73.3%) versus 13/30 (43.3%), p = 0.035. Mean ± SD medication possession ratio was 0.95 ± 0.16 on intervention versus 0.98 ± 0.24 in the control arm, p = 0.56. Interpretation: We demonstrate feasibility and signal of improvement in BP control among stroke survivors in a resource-limited setting via an mHealth intervention. Larger scale studies are warranted. Trial registration: NCT02568137. Registered on 13 July 2015 at ClinicalTrials.gov.

Background and Purpose—: Stroke exacts an immense toll in sub-Saharan Africa where there are few resources, and stroke prevention research is limited. The aim of this study is to test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of an m-Health technology–enabled, nurse-guided intervention in improving blood pressure (BP) control among Ghanaian stroke patients within 1 month of symptom onset. Methods—: We conducted a 2-arm cluster pilot randomized controlled trial involving 60 recent stroke survivors encountered within a single tertiary medical system in Ghana. Subjects in the intervention arm (n=30) received a Blue-toothed UA-767Plus BT BP device and smartphone for monitoring and reporting BP measurements and medication intake for 3 months compared with standard of care (n=30). Primary outcome measure was systolic BP <140 mm Hg at month 3; secondary outcomes included medication adherence and autonomous self-regulation. Analysis accounting for clustering was made using generalized linear mixed model by intention to treat. Results—: Mean±SD age was 55±13 years, 65% male. Systolic BP <140 mm Hg at month 3 was found in 20/30 subjects (66.7%) in the intervention arm versus 14/30 subjects (46.7%) in the control arm ( P =0.12). Medication possession ratio scores at month 3 were better in the intervention (0.88±0.40) versus control (0.64±0.45) arm ( P =0.03). One subject in control arm died from a recurrent hemorrhagic stroke. Conclusions—: It is feasible to conduct an m-Health–based, nurse-guided BP control intervention among recent stroke patients in sub-Saharan Africa. We observed a potential signal of efficacy with the intervention, which will need to be tested in a future large definitive study. Clinical Trial Registration—: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier: NCT02568137.

Background: As the second leading cause of death and the leading cause of adult-onset disability, stroke is a major public health concern particularly pertinent in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where nearly 80% of all global stroke mortalities occur, and stroke burden is projected to increase in the coming decades. However, traditional and emerging risk factors for stroke in SSA have not been well characterized, thus limiting efforts at curbing its devastating toll. The Stroke Investigative Research and Education Network (SIREN) project is aimed at comprehensively evaluating the key environmental and genomic risk factors for stroke (and its subtypes) in SSA while simultaneously building capacities in phenomics, biobanking, genomics, biostatistics, and bioinformatics for brain research. Methods: SIREN is a transnational, multicentre, hospital and community-based study involving 3,000 cases and 3,000 controls recruited from 8 sites in Ghana and Nigeria. Cases will be hospital-based patients with first stroke within 10 days of onset in whom neurovascular imaging will be performed. Etiological and topographical stroke subtypes will be documented for all cases. Controls will be hospital- and community-based participants, matched to cases on the basis of gender, ethnicity, and age (±5 years). Information will be collected on known and proposed emerging risk factors for stroke. Study Significance: SIREN is the largest study of stroke in Africa to date. It is anticipated that it will shed light on the phenotypic characteristics and risk factors of stroke and ultimately provide evidence base for strategic interventions to curtail the burgeoning burden of stroke on the sub-continent.