Journal article

Publication year: 2003

Pages: 660-667

Journal: Tropical Medicine & International Health

Volume number: 8

Issue number: 7

ISSN: 1360-2276

Open access status: Bronze

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3156.2003.01057.x

Publisher: Wiley

Abstract: 

STUDY OBJECTIVE To assess the prevalence of risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD) in a lower middle-class urban community of Turkey.

DESIGN Cross-sectional study in an age- and sex-stratified random community sample with equal sample size per stratum. Direct age-standardization using the standard world population to allow international comparison of findings. Logistic regression modelling to identify risk factors for obesity.

SETTING Golveren, a residential area in Ankara, total population 23 000 persons.

PARTICIPANTS A total of 1672 adults aged 25-64 years and resident in the study community were interviewed, 1272 (76.1%) of those came for physical examination.

MAIN RESULTS The age-standardized prevalence of hypertension according to WHO MONICA criteria was 18.6% (95% confidence interval: 16.1-21.1%) among women and 12.3% (9.7-14.9%) among men; of obesity (body mass index, BMI greater than or equal to 30 kg/m(2)) 51.0% (47.6-54.3%) among women and 15.1% (12.0-18.2%) among men; of current smoking 20.1% (17.5-22.6%) among women and 64.8% (61.4-68.2%) among men; of hypercholesterolaemia 20.1% (17.4-22.9%) among women and 13.8% (10.8-16.8%) among men; and of low high density lipoprotein (HDL) 48.4% (44.8-52.1%) among women and 40.6% (36.0-45.2%) among men. In the regression model, age, female sex, non- and ex-smoking were associated with obesity.

CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of smoking, obesity and low HDL is high in this urban, lower middle-class population, even in comparison with industrialized countries. Unexpectedly, women have less favourable CHD risk profiles than men, except for smoking. Preventive action should be community-wide and address the common risk factors simultaneously to avoid replacement effects such as becoming obese after quitting smoking.

Harvard Citation style: Tezcan, S., Altintas, H., Sönmez, R., Akinci, A., Dogan, B., Çakir, B., et al. (2003) Cardiovascular risk factor levels in a lower middle-class community in Ankara, Turkey, Tropical Medicine and International Health, 8(7), pp. 660-667. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3156.2003.01057.x

APA Citation style: Tezcan, S., Altintas, H., Sönmez, R., Akinci, A., Dogan, B., Çakir, B., Bilgin, Y., Klör, H., & Razum, O. (2003). Cardiovascular risk factor levels in a lower middle-class community in Ankara, Turkey. Tropical Medicine and International Health. 8(7), 660-667. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-3156.2003.01057.x