title: The Prevalence of Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors among Employees in the Kingdom of Bahrain between October 2010 and March 2011: A Cross-Sectional Study from a Workplace Health Campaign.
abstract: Background. High prevalence of CVD risk factors has been reported in Bahrain. Objective. This study aims to estimate the CVD risk factors prevalence among government employees in Bahrain. Design. A cross-sectional study design. Setting. Different government workplaces in Bahrain. Method. Data was collected from 1139 employees between October 2010 and March 2011 through interviews, including physical measurements, patient blood testing, and expired carbon monoxide (CO) levels as particles per million (ppm) for smokers. A summary of composite CVD risk factors was identified. Results. The following overall prevalence rates were reported: overweight and obesity 78.4% and reported hypertension 36.9% (included both those who were on and not on treatments), with an estimated prevalence of 21.6% for measured systolic blood pressure (Sbp) ≥ 140 mmHg and 23.3% for diastolic blood pressure (dbp) ≥90 mmHg. The prevalence of total cholesterol levels ≥5.2 mmol/dl was 24.2% and LDL levels >3.3 mmol/dl 10.8%. Prevalence of HDL-C levels (≤1.03 mmol/dl) was 47.55% and (≥1.5 mmol/dl) in 12.31%. The low HDL level (<1.03 mmol/dl) among males was 64.1%, while it was 26.6% among females. Half the participants (50.8%) do not engage in any type of physical activity. Moreover, 24.3% were not eating daily servings of fruits and vegetables. About 16.1% of them were current smokers. The majority of the participants (95.35%) had either no or less than 3 CVD risk factors. Only 4.65% had 3-5 risk factors. Conclusions. Among the employees in Bahrain, the high CVD risk factors prevalence is evident. CVD risk factors prevention and control are a priority.
authors.affiliation: Consultant Family Physician-, NCD Unit-, Public Health Directorate, Ministry of Health, Manama, Bahrain ; Department of Cardiovascular Medicine (NHLI), Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
authors.forename: Ameera Ali
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Al-Nooh
authors.affiliation: Consultant Family Physician/Public Health Directorate, Head of Noncommunicable Disease Unit, Ministry of Health, Manama, Bahrain.
authors.forename: Abdulhussain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Abdulabbas Abdulla Alajmi
authors.affiliation: The International Center for Circulatory Health, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, St. Mary's Hospital, Praed Street, London W2 1NY, UK ; Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, St. Mary's Hospital, Praed Street, London W2 1NY, UK.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wood
references.citation: Circulation. 2001 Nov 27;104(22):2746-53
references.pmid: 11723030
references.citation: BMC Public Health. 2009 Jun 16;9:186
references.pmid: 19531260
references.citation: Iran Red Crescent Med J. 2011 Sep;13(9):610-23
references.pmid: 24069531
references.citation: Saudi Med J. 2008 Aug;29(8):1173-8
references.pmid: 18690314
references.citation: Metab Syndr Relat Disord. 2008 Sep;6(3):187-95
references.pmid: 18774906
references.citation: East Mediterr Health J. 2004 Jul-Sep;10(4-5):663-70
references.pmid: 16335660
references.citation: Am J Public Health. 2012 May;102(5):909-14
references.pmid: 21940918
references.citation: Circulation. 2007 Oct 23;116(17):1942-51
references.pmid: 17965405
references.citation: J Egypt Public Health Assoc. 2007;82(1-2):21-42
references.pmid: 18217323
references.citation: Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis. 2010 Jul;20(6):412-8
references.pmid: 20554171
references.citation: J Hypertens. 2008 Mar;26(3):419-26
references.pmid: 18300850
references.citation: J Hypertens. 2007 Aug;25(8):1578-82
references.pmid: 17620952
references.citation: East Mediterr Health J. 2008 Sep-Oct;14(5):1070-9
references.pmid: 19161079
references.citation: Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil. 2009 Jun;16(3):268-80
references.pmid: 19398913
references.citation: East Mediterr Health J. 2003 Sep-Nov;9(5-6):893-903
references.pmid: 16450519
references.citation: Prev Chronic Dis. 2008 Jan;5(1):A17
references.pmid: 18082006
references.citation: Metabolism. 2010 Dec;59(12):1730-5
references.pmid: 20580780