Pulmonary heart disease in Ibadan.

There is an extensive literature on various disorders of the cardiovascular system in the African (Davies, 1948; Abrahams, 1959; Brock and Gordon, 1959; Higginson, Isaacson, and Simson, 1960; Phillips and Burch, 1960). There is, however, little reference to cor pulmonale defined as right-sided heart disease secondary to disease of the lungs or pulmonary vessels. This no doubt stems from a dearth of information on the occurrence and prevalence of respiratory diseases in the tropics, where respiratory disease has been almost synonymous with pulmonary tuberculosis. Further, it has been conjectured that the warm climate in the tropics, minimal air pollution, and, possibly, differences in smoking habits are all responsible for the apparently lower prevalence of chronic respiratory diseases such as chronic bronchitis compared with temperate countries.