Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) account for almost half of all non-communicable disease related deaths and are now the leading cause of death in low-and middle-income countries including India. There is no published data on multivariable risk prediction for cardiovascular disease from rural India. Aims & Objective: Determine the cardiovascular risk profile and the 10 year risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular event in a rural population. Materials and Methods: A community based cross sectional study was done in 47 villages of Karnataka over a period of 3 years. A total of 3780 adults were screened for CVD risk factors. Various risk stratification criteria including the WHO 10 year risk of fatal/ non-fatal CVD event were used to study the magnitude of individual and aggregated risk factors for CVD. Results: The study reveals a high prevalence of CVD risk factors despite using three different risk stratification methods. The prevalence of at least one modifiable CVD risk factor in the population was 98.5%. An alarming 15.2% of the population had a high risk (>30%) of getting fatal or non-fatal MI or stroke in 10 years. Older age, lack of education, physical inactivity and family history of MI/ stroke were associated with high risk for CVD. Conclusion: The prevalence of CVD risk factors as well as the probability of a fatal or non-fatal cardiovascular event is very high in this rural population. This warrants strategies that would improve awareness and promote healthy lifestyles to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in this population.
Aim: Hypertension and diabetes mellitus are important problems in the elderly. They can largely be avoided through appropriate lifestyle modification. We implemented an ongoing education program for the elderly in the villages near Bangalore, Southern Karnataka, India. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and practice regarding hypertension and diabetes among elderly residents in the study area with and without exposure to the education program. Materials and Methods: Elderly residents of three villages who attended the educational sessions (exposed) and two similar villages without educational exposure (unexposed) were identified, matched with regard to age and gender, and interviewed to assess the knowledge and practice regarding hypertension and diabetes. The responses were scored, and mean scores were calculated in the two groups. Results and Discussion: A total of 130 elderly persons, 65 exposed and 65 unexposed to the education program were interviewed. Overall, the exposed group scored significantly higher than the unexposed group with respect to knowledge (11.17 vs 4.97, P < 0.05) and practice (1.35 vs 0.40, P < 0.05) regarding hypertension. Knowledge (14.85 vs 6.57, P < 0.05) and practice (1.49 vs 0.34, P < 0.05) scores regarding diabetes were also higher in the exposed group. However, the scores were less than 50% of the maximum attainable score even in the exposed group showing the need for further educational input. Conclusion: Regular health education sessions by physicians, nurses, and community health workers for the elderly are a useful strategy in improving the knowledge and practice for preventing and managing chronic disease. This is a model of health promotion in the elderly.
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