Hypertension remains a public health issue in Cameroon, though lifestyle and dietetic measures are the main approaches for the prevention and management of hypertension. The present study aimed at evaluating the impact of a Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet using local foodstuffs on the status of hypertensive patients at the Ngaoundere Regional Hospital. A case-control study was carried out with 160 hypertensive patients divided into two groups, a test and a control group. A food questionnaire was used to evaluate the food habits of patients and design the sheet of the DASH diet to provide a maximum of 2000 kcal/d. The DASH diet was administered to the test group (eighty-eight patients), while the control group (seventy-two patients) consumed their normal diet. Both groups were followed up for 8 weeks. The systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP, DBP), body mass index (BMI), triglycerides, HDL-c, LDL-c and total-cholesterol levels of patients of the two groups were measured before and after the intervention. The results indicate that the DASH diet improves all the markers of hypertension in the test group with significant decreases in BMI, SBP, DBP, LDL-c and total-cholesterol. Patients of the control group had fourteen and seven times more risk of having increased systolic and diastolic pressures, respectively, and are thus exposed to hypertension complications. The DASH diet established in this study is therefore effective for the management of hypertension.

A 35-year-old woman with history of cardiovascular disease presented with shortness of breath, lightheadedness, fatigue, chest pain, and premature ventricular contractions 3 weeks after her second COVID-19 vaccine. Symptoms subsided following catheter ablation and ibuprofen except for chest pain and fatigue, which persisted following ablation and subsequent SARS-CoV-2 infection. The case suggests causal associations between COVID-19 vaccine/infection and recurrence of cardiovascular disease, including long-COVID-like symptoms. (Level of Difficulty: Advanced.).

We report on a case of very rare autosomal recessive cholesteryl ester storage disease due to lysosomal acid lipase deficiency (LALD). LALD is caused by mutations in the lysosomal acid lipase A (LIPA) gene resulting in cholesteryl ester accumulation in liver, spleen, and macrophages. It can lead to liver failure, accelerated atherosclerosis and premature death. Until recently, treatment options were limited to lipid-lowering medications to control dyslipidemia. Presently, a long-term enzyme replacement therapy with Sebelipase alfa, a recombinant human lysosomal acid lipase, is available for patients with LALD. Our patient\'s condition became conspicuous at the age of two due to a xanthogranuloma of the chin together with increased lipid levels, elevated liver enzymes and hepatomegaly. It took another five years until our patient was diagnosed with LALD after genetic testing. A bi-weekly therapy with intravenous Sebelipase alfa was started at the age of 26 years. It led to normalization of lipid levels, reduction of liver enzymes and beginning regression of hepatomegaly in the absence of adverse drug reactions after 46 infusions. Since LALD can take a fatal course even in patients with a long-term stable condition, it is essential to identify affected patients early and to treat them appropriately by enzyme replacement therapy. LALD should be suspected in patients with low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in conjunction with elevated liver enzymes or hepatomegaly. A registry for LALD patients shall help to advance our understanding of the disease as well as improve patient care (NCT01633489).