[Do West African cardiologists adhere to the guidelines for the management of heart failure ?]

Adherence to guidelines for the management of heart failure (HF) has been shown to be a strong predictor of reduced hospitalisations. The aim of this study was therefore to investigate the adherence of West African cardiologists to guidelines for the management of HF.

This was a prospective cross-sectional multicentric study (Côte d'Ivoire, Togo, Benin and Burkina-Faso). The "ADDress your Heart" survey developed was administered online to assess cardiologists' adherence to the guidelines for the management of heart failure.

62.3% of the 106 participants reported that they followed the guidelines closely. The therapeutic classes indicated as first-line by the latest guidelines were insufficiently suggested by physicians: 57.5% for mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists, 41.5% for gliflozins and 30.1% for sacubitril-valsartan In univariate logistic regression, affiliation with a teaching hospital OR [95% CI] = 3.0 [1.3-6.8], p < 0.01 ; access to scientific cardiology journals OR [95 % CI] = 3.4 [1.3-8.9], p = 0.01; and frequent attendance at conferences OR [95% CI]=1.8 [1.2-2.9], p < 0.01, were associated with guideline compliance. These factors persisted in multivariate analysis.

Adherence of West African cardiologists to guidelines on the management of heart failure was moderate. If affiliation to a university hospital is difficult to apply to all cardiologists, access to scientific cardiology journals and frequent attendance in conference should be encouraged.