Awareness and treatment of cardiovascular disease risk factors among middle-aged Swedish men and women.
OBJECTIVE
To study awareness and treatment of risk factors for cardiovascular disease in a primary care district where a screening program for hypercholesterolaemia involving one third of the population had been conducted 7 years earlier.


METHODS
A semi-structured telephone survey on four risk factors; blood pressure, serum cholesterol, blood sugar, and smoking habits.


METHODS
The study was performed in a defined area in Blekinge county in Sweden.


METHODS
A random sample of the general population aged 40-49 years, in total 356 people.


METHODS
Awareness of individual risk factors, for cardiovascular diseases, on-going medication, and lifestyle changes in order to lower individual risks.


RESULTS
A total of 95% had had their blood pressure measured at least once, compared with 69% for serum cholesterol. Twenty-two per cent had at some time been told that they had high blood pressure, and, of these, almost half (44%) received pharmacological treatment. Among the 62 subjects who were informed about hyperlipidaemia only 5% were taking a lipid-reducing drug. Among present smokers, 38% had had at least one quitting episode during the previous 2 years with a median duration of 60 days.


CONCLUSIONS
In a general population there is a difference between blood pressure and cholesterol check-up and medicalization. Screening activities seem to raise the awareness of cardiovascular risk factors in a population, but when evaluating the tendency to change lifestyle the contagious effects of screening activities might be taken into account. Finding quick-relapsing former smokers among current non-smokers may be of importance when planning smoking cessation activities.
Ovhed
I
I
Lyckeby Primary Health Care Centre, Sweden.
Odeberg
H
H
Troein
M
M
Råstam
L
L
D000328:Adult; D001364:Awareness; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D048909:Diabetes Complications; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000150:complications; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D008571:Men / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden; D014930:Women / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology*