ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: In middle age people, hypercholesterolemia (HC) has been included as a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. OBJECTIVES: The main objective of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of HC and some related factors in the north of Iran. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a population-based cross-sectional study that enrolled 1995 subjects (997 males and 998 females) in 25-65 year age using stratified cluster sampling. Interviewers recorded the data using a multidimensional questionnaire including anthropometric indexes. Plasma cholesterol was measured in the morning after a 12-hour fast and determined by an auto-analyzer. HC was defined by a total plasma total cholesterol level over 200 mg/dl. The SPSS.16 software was used to analyze data. RESULTS: The mean age of the participant was 44.2 years and mean ± SD plasma total cholesterol level in men and women was 196.7 ± 39.11 and 209.4 ± 42.9, respectively. Generally, the prevalence of HC was 50.4% with a significant differences between men (44.7%) and women (57%) (P < 0.05). The mean plasma total cholesterol levels were significantly differenced among age groups, location area, BMI, and waist circumferences (P < 0.001). Women gender (OR = 1.64), 55-65 years old (OR = 2.79), BMI ≥40 kg/m(2) (OR = 10.0), and abdominal obesity (OR = 2.47) were associated with increased risk of HC (P = 0.001 and 95%CI for all). CONCLUSION: HC is one of the most health problems in the northern Iran and it is more common in women than in men. General and abdominal obesity are the most common risk factors for HC.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The main aim of this study was to evaluate the association between serum cholesterol level and body mass index (BMI) in northern Iran. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study carried out on the 1995 subjects (997 males and 998 females) aged 25-65 years that were selected using multistage cluster sampling method. Plasma cholesterol was measured in the morning after a 12-hour fasting and was determined by auto-analyzer. Hypercholesterolemia (HC) was defined by a total plasma cholesterol level over 200 mg/dl. Weight and height were measured and BMI 25-29.9 kg/m2 and ≥ 30 kg/m2 was classified overweight and obesity, respectively. RESULTS: Mean of age was 44.2 ± 11.5 years (44.3 ± 11.5 in men and 44.1 ± 11.2 in women) and plasma total cholesterol level was 203.1 ± 41.8 mg/dl. The HC was detected in 49.1% with higher rate in women (57.0%) than men (44.7%). In men at age 25-35 years, the odds ratio was 3.42 (1.60-7.29) in obese group and 1.90 (1.03-3.50) in overweight group compared to normal weight. In women, at age 35-45 years, the risk of HC in obese group was 3.01 (1.58-5.73) and in overweight group it was 2.06 (1.58-5.73), while in men aged 35-45 years the relative risk was 4.03 (2.22-7.34) in overweight and 3.58 (1.77-7.25) in obese group. In women after age 45 years, higher BMI was not a risk factor for HC. CONCLUSION: There was a positive association between BMI and serum cholesterol level. In early middle age, obese individuals were at risk of HC more than overweight subjects. In men, after age 35 years, the risk of HC increased in overweight group while in women there was no statistically significant association between BMI and HC.
