title: Noncommunicable disease in rural India: Are we seriously underestimating the risk? The Nallampatti noncommunicable disease study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the prevalence of noncommunicable diseases in a true rural farming population in South India and compare the data with the landmark contemporary Indian Council of Medical Research-India Diabetes (ICMR-INDIAB) study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Local Ethics Committee approval and informed consent was obtained from all participants. Inclusion criteria were participants, aged ≥20 and ≤85 years, from Nallampatti, a classical farming village from Tamil Nadu state, India. All participants were administered a detailed questionnaire, had anthropometric measurements including height, weight, and waist circumference. Bloods were drawn for random blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), nonfasting lipid profile, Cystatin C, uric acid, and hemoglobin. All participants had carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) done by high-resolution B-mode carotid ultrasound.
  
  
  RESULTS
  More than 50% of the population had either diabetes or prediabetes based on HbA1c. Nearly, 40% of the population had hypertension with suboptimal control in those with known hypertension. Nearly, a third of the population had dyslipidemia, elevated cystatin C levels, and abnormal CIMT. The burden was higher than the comparable ICMR-INDIAB study in rural Tamil Nadu.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  One-third to one-half of this rural farming population is at risk of cardiovascular disease, with poor control of preexisting cardiovascular risk factors. Current Indian data may underestimate the risk in different ethnic populations and regions of India. Long-term follow-up of this cohort for the incident cardiovascular disease will shed light on the true cardiovascular risk in a typical South Indian rural farming population.
authors.affiliation: Kovai Medical Center and Hospital, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India; KMCH Research Foundation, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Krishnan
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Swaminathan
authors.affiliation: Kovai Medical Center and Hospital, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India; KMCH Research Foundation, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Ganesh
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Veerasekar
authors.affiliation: Social and Preventive Medicine, Coimbatore Medical College, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Sujatha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuppusamy
authors.affiliation: KMCH Research Foundation, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Mohanraj
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sundaresan
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, DST Unit of Nanoscience, IIT Madras, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Ganesan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Velmurugan
authors.affiliation: Kovai Medical Center and Hospital, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India; KMCH Research Foundation, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
authors.forename: Nalla G
authors.initials: NG
authors.lastname: Palaniswami
keywords: Cystatin C; Nallampatti noncommunicable disease; noncommunicable disease; prediabetes