title: Is the cardiovascular risk profile of people living in Roma settlements worse in comparison with the majority population in Slovakia?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Roma constitute a large minority in several Central European countries, with a mostly disadvantaged societal and health position. The aim of this study was to assess biological and other cardiovascular diseases (CVD) risk factors in people living in Roma settlements and to compare them with non-Roma.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used data from the cross-sectional Hepa-Meta study conducted in Slovakia. The sample consisted of 452 Roma (mean age = 34.7, 35.2 % men) and 403 non-Roma (mean age = 33.5, 45.9 % men). The effect of ethnicity was analysed using logistic regression adjusted for age and stratified by gender.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Roma were more likely to have obesity, low HDL cholesterol, normal total cholesterol, and to smoke than non-Roma. Moreover, Roma women were more likely to have abdominal obesity and Roma men to have normal LDL cholesterol than non-Roma. No significant differences by ethnicity were found regarding hypertriglyceridaemia, hyperglycaemia and hypertension.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study confirmed higher rates of some CVD risk factors in Roma compared with non-Roma. Our findings call for interventions aiming at decreasing CVD risks and improving health literacy among Roma, to reduce CVD morbidity and premature mortality.
authors.affiliation: Kosice Institute for Society and Health, Safarik University, Kosice, Slovak Republic. ingrid.babinska@upjs.sk
authors.forename: Ingrid
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Babinska
authors.forename: Zuzana Dankulincova
authors.initials: ZD
authors.lastname: Veselska
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bobakova
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pella
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Panico
authors.forename: Sijmen A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Reijneveld
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jarcuska
authors.forename: Pavol
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Jarcuska
authors.forename: Ivan
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Zezula
authors.forename: Andrea Madarasova
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Geckova
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000209:etiology; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D054525:Minority Health / Q000208:ethnology*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D018570:Risk Assessment; D006178:Romani People; D018154:Slovakia / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
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