Prevalence of risk factors for coronary artery disease among adults in a rural area of Tamil Nadu

ABSTRACT

Background: Lifestyle changes have increased the epidemic of obesity, diabetes, hypertension (HTN), dyslipidemia, and cardiovascular diseases in the 20th century. In India, the estimated adult prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) is increasing which leads to a huge economic loss. Objectives: The objective of the study is to measure the prevalence of risk factors for CAD among population aged 30 years and above in a rural area of Tamil Nadu. Materials and Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was done in 16 villages under the field practice area of the Department of Community Medicine, Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences. 631 participants were selected by multistaged random sampling and interviewed using modified WHO-STEPS questionnaire. The variables studied were age, sex, socioeconomic status, smoking, alcohol, diet, physical activity, obesity, diabetes, and HTN. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 20. Results: Out of 631 participants interviewed in this study, the prevalence of smoking was 13.8%. 29.6% respondents had consumed alcohol once in their lifetime. Almost all the respondents (99.5%) did not consume fruits and vegetables adequately. Majority of the participants consumed salt dense foods and used unsaturated oil for cooking. Only 17.8% were sedentary workers. 32.5% were pre-hypertensives and 25.8% were hypertensives. 28.2% were overweight and 6.6% were obese. Conclusion: The prevalence of various risk factors for CAD such as unhealthy diet, obesity, alcohol consumption, and comorbidities was found to be high among our study population. Hence, concerted efforts should be taken by various stakeholders to reduce the risk of developing CAD.