Stroke Care Services in Africa: A Systematic Review

Background: Stroke is the second leading cause of death and adult-onset disability globally. Although its incidence is reducing in developed countries, low- and middle-income countries, especially African countries, are witnessing an increase in cases of stroke, leading to high morbidity and mortality. Evidently, a new paradigm is needed on the continent to tackle this growing burden of stroke in its preventative and treatment aspects. Aims and Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine the scope of stroke care services, where they exist, and their relationship with currently existing health systems. Methods: A detailed literature search was undertaken referring to PubMed and Google Scholar for articles from January 1960 to March 2018, using a range of search terms. Of 93 publications, 45 papers were shortlisted, and 21 reviewed articles on existing stroke services were included. Results: The literature on models of stroke services in Africa is sparse. We identified focused systems of care delivery in the hyperacute, acute, and rehabilitative phases of stroke in a few African countries. There is a continent-wide paucity of data on the organization of prehospital stroke services. Only 3 African countries (South Africa, Egypt, and Morocco) reported experiences on thrombolysis. Also, the uptake of dedicated stroke units appears limited across the continent. Encouragingly, there are large-scale secondary prevention models on the continent, mostly within the context of experimental research projects, albeit with promising results. We found only 1 article on the interventional aspects of stroke care in our review, and this was a single-center report. Conclusions: The literature on the organization of stroke services is sparse in Africa. Dedicated action at policy, population, community, and hospital-based levels is urgently needed toward the organization of stroke services to tame the burgeoning burden of stroke on the African continent.