Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra has launched its 2026 World Heart Awareness Month, calling on Ghanaians to make cardiovascular health a priority, according to Ghana News Agency.
The launch comes amid mounting concern over heart disease in the country. A cardiologist has reported rising deaths from heart disease among people under 50 in Ghana, and another has said stroke and heart disease account for nearly half of all deaths nationwide, Ghana News Agency and other outlets reported.
Screening gaps are a central part of the problem. More than 70 percent of Ghanaians living with hypertension are unaware of their condition, according to Professor Doku, as reported by CitiNewsroom.com. A fellow at the Centre for Democratic Development (CDD) has argued that Ghana must actively screen healthy people for hypertension and other chronic diseases rather than waiting for symptoms to appear, Adomonline.com reported.
Together, the reports point to a condition burden that is both widespread and largely undetected, with the under-50 group increasingly affected.
What to watch next: whether the awareness month translates into wider screening programmes and earlier detection of hypertension across Ghana.
