Global disparities in arrhythmia care: Mind the gap

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Global Health
• Medical Education

Background:

• Comprehensive arrhythmia care demands significant resources, including infrastructure, equipment, and expertise.
• Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) face substantial gaps in providing arrhythmia care due to resource limitations.
• A critical training gap exists, limiting access to formal cardiac electrophysiology education for clinicians in LMICs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To highlight the challenges in delivering arrhythmia care in LMICs.
• To identify existing gaps in patient care and clinical training.
• To explore strategies for building sustainable arrhythmia care capacity in resource-limited settings.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing strategies for capacity building in arrhythmia care.
• Analysis of the limitations of current approaches like medical missions and equipment donations.
• Emphasis on the potential of multi-stakeholder collaborations.

Main Results:

• Medical missions offer intermittent support, insufficient for self-sustaining infrastructure.
• Donated or reprocessed equipment can lower costs but doesn't solve infrastructure or personnel needs.
• Collaborative efforts involving diverse stakeholders show promise for sustained support.

Conclusions:

• Addressing the growing burden of cardiovascular diseases in LMICs necessitates strategic capacity building.
• Sustainable arrhythmia care requires integrated approaches that combine patient care and clinician education.
• Multi-stakeholder collaborations are essential for long-term success in improving cardiac electrophysiology services in LMICs.