Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data

Objectives Cardiovascular diseases are the second leading cause of mortality behind HIV/AIDS in South Africa. This study investigates cardiovascular disease mortality trends in rural South Africa over 20+ years and the associated barriers to accessing care, using verbal autopsy data.Design A mixed-m...

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Main Authors: Justine I Davies, Stephen Tollman, Kathleen Kahn, Peter Byass, Andrew Fraser, Lucia D’Ambruoso, Jessica Newberry Le Vay
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2021-06-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/11/6/e048592.full
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author Justine I Davies
Stephen Tollman
Kathleen Kahn
Peter Byass
Andrew Fraser
Lucia D’Ambruoso
Jessica Newberry Le Vay
author_facet Justine I Davies
Stephen Tollman
Kathleen Kahn
Peter Byass
Andrew Fraser
Lucia D’Ambruoso
Jessica Newberry Le Vay
author_sort Justine I Davies
collection DOAJ
description Objectives Cardiovascular diseases are the second leading cause of mortality behind HIV/AIDS in South Africa. This study investigates cardiovascular disease mortality trends in rural South Africa over 20+ years and the associated barriers to accessing care, using verbal autopsy data.Design A mixed-methods approach was used, combining descriptive analysis of mortality rates over time, by condition, sex and age group, quantitative analysis of circumstances of mortality (CoM) indicators and free text narratives of the final illness, and qualitative analysis of free texts.Setting This study was done using verbal autopsy data from the Health and Socio-Demographic Surveillance System site in Agincourt, rural South Africa.Participants Deaths attributable to cardiovascular diseases (acute cardiac disease, stroke, renal failure and other unspecified cardiac disease) from 1993 to 2015 were extracted from verbal autopsy data.Results Between 1993 and 2015, of 15 305 registered deaths over 1 851 449 person-years of follow-up, 1434 (9.4%) were attributable to cardiovascular disease, corresponding to a crude mortality rate of 0.77 per 1000 person-years. Cardiovascular disease mortality rate increased from 0.34 to 1.12 between 1993 and 2015. Stroke was the dominant cause of death, responsible for 41.0% (588/1434) of all cardiovascular deaths across all years. Cardiovascular disease mortality rate was significantly higher in women and increased with age. The main delays in access to care during the final illness were in seeking and receiving care. Qualitative free-text analysis highlighted delays not captured in the CoM, principally communication between the clinician and patient or family. Half of cases initially sought care outside a hospital setting (50.9%, 199/391).Conclusions The temporal increase in deaths due to cardiovascular disease highlights the need for greater prevention and management strategies for these conditions, particularly for the women. Strategies to improve seeking and receiving care during the final illness are needed.
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spelling doaj-art-e1a35ce16eb74ecf9fdcc3a94d3f3b6d2024-11-20T04:45:08ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552021-06-0111610.1136/bmjopen-2020-048592Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy dataJustine I Davies0Stephen Tollman1Kathleen Kahn2Peter Byass3Andrew Fraser4Lucia D’Ambruoso5Jessica Newberry Le Vay6MRC/Wits Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit, School of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South AfricaINDEPTH Network, Accra, Ghana3 Medical Research Council/Wits University Rural Public Health and Health Transitions Research Unit (Agincourt), School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South AfricaUmeå Centre for Global Health Research, Umea Universitet, Umeå, SwedenEducation Centre, Basildon University Hospital, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, Basildon, UK9 Aberdeen Centre for Health Data Science, Institute of Applied Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UKPolicy & Implementation Research, Cancer Research UK, London, UKObjectives Cardiovascular diseases are the second leading cause of mortality behind HIV/AIDS in South Africa. This study investigates cardiovascular disease mortality trends in rural South Africa over 20+ years and the associated barriers to accessing care, using verbal autopsy data.Design A mixed-methods approach was used, combining descriptive analysis of mortality rates over time, by condition, sex and age group, quantitative analysis of circumstances of mortality (CoM) indicators and free text narratives of the final illness, and qualitative analysis of free texts.Setting This study was done using verbal autopsy data from the Health and Socio-Demographic Surveillance System site in Agincourt, rural South Africa.Participants Deaths attributable to cardiovascular diseases (acute cardiac disease, stroke, renal failure and other unspecified cardiac disease) from 1993 to 2015 were extracted from verbal autopsy data.Results Between 1993 and 2015, of 15 305 registered deaths over 1 851 449 person-years of follow-up, 1434 (9.4%) were attributable to cardiovascular disease, corresponding to a crude mortality rate of 0.77 per 1000 person-years. Cardiovascular disease mortality rate increased from 0.34 to 1.12 between 1993 and 2015. Stroke was the dominant cause of death, responsible for 41.0% (588/1434) of all cardiovascular deaths across all years. Cardiovascular disease mortality rate was significantly higher in women and increased with age. The main delays in access to care during the final illness were in seeking and receiving care. Qualitative free-text analysis highlighted delays not captured in the CoM, principally communication between the clinician and patient or family. Half of cases initially sought care outside a hospital setting (50.9%, 199/391).Conclusions The temporal increase in deaths due to cardiovascular disease highlights the need for greater prevention and management strategies for these conditions, particularly for the women. Strategies to improve seeking and receiving care during the final illness are needed.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/11/6/e048592.full
spellingShingle Justine I Davies
Stephen Tollman
Kathleen Kahn
Peter Byass
Andrew Fraser
Lucia D’Ambruoso
Jessica Newberry Le Vay
Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
BMJ Open
title Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
title_full Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
title_fullStr Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
title_full_unstemmed Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
title_short Mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in Agincourt, rural South Africa: a mixed-methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
title_sort mortality trends and access to care for cardiovascular diseases in agincourt rural south africa a mixed methods analysis of verbal autopsy data
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/11/6/e048592.full
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