RESUMO
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) represent a major threat to health and primary prevention outstands as the most effective instrument to face this issue, addressing multiple risk factors at a time and influencing behavioral patterns. Community nurses have been involved in many interdisciplinary prevention activities, resulting in effective control of CV risk factors. We conducted a pilot study aiming at describing the impact on the CV risk profile of an 18-month interdisciplinary intervention on lifestyle habits. From September 2018 to May 2020, four general practitioners (GPs) working in the Roman neighborhood of Torresina recruited patients having a cardiovascular risk score (CRS) equal to or higher than 3% and lower than 20%; those patients were included in a nutritional, physical, and psychological counseling program. Assessments of patients' health status were led at baseline, 6, 12, and 18 months by a nutritionist, a physiotherapist, a psychologist, their GPs, and a community nurse. The CRS was estimated at every examination, based on the Italian Progetto Cuore algorithm. A total of 76 patients were included (mean age of 54.6 years; 33 men and 43 women). Mean CRS showed a significant reduction between baseline and 12 months (from 4.9 to 3.8); both total cholesterol and systolic blood pressure (SBP) significantly decreased at 6 months of follow-up (respectively, from 211.1 to 192 and from 133.1 to 123.1). Nonetheless, the reduction was later maintained only for SBP. However, during the last 6 months of the intervention, the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, thus, it is not possible to know how much the results achieved at 18 months were influenced by the restrictive measures introduced by the Italian government. When stratifying according to the presence of hypertension/diabetes and physical activity, no differences in the CRS could be highlighted between the two groups. Our pilot study proved that an interdisciplinary counseling intervention program can improve CV risk profile and could be further spread to people that, according to their CRS, would benefit more from changes in lifestyles.
Assuntos
COVID-19 , Doenças Cardiovasculares , Masculino , Humanos , Feminino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Doenças Cardiovasculares/epidemiologia , Fatores de Risco , Projetos Piloto , Pandemias , COVID-19/complicações , Fatores de Risco de Doenças Cardíacas , Atenção Primária à SaúdeRESUMO
INTRODUCTION: Obesity is a major public health problem because it is a risk factor for various chronic diseases and its incidence is constantly increasing due to changes in diet and lifestyle. In Italy, studies show that 32% of the population aged between 18 and 69 years is overweight and 10% is obese. The aim of this study was to measure the anthropometric characteristics of a sample population of the city of Rome (Italy) and correlate these with dietary habits and socio-demographic characteristics of participants in order to evaluate their specific health and educational needs. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted in February 2015 by administering an ad-hoc questionnaire to subjects over 18 years of age attending a General Practitioner's practice in Rome (Italy). The questionnaire collected demographic, clinical and anthropometric data, and information regarding dietary habits. RESULTS: The sample consisted of 150 individuals with a mean age of 47,8 years. Fifty nine percent were women. The mean Body Mass Index (BMI) was 26.7. The average blood pressure was 131/80 mmHg. BMI values were higher in respondents with a lower educational level and BMI was significantly associated with the quality of the source of nutrition information used. CONCLUSIONS: Poor and unreliable information regarding proper nutrition can correlate with the risk of overweight and the consequent development of chronic diseases. The family or community nurse could play a critical role in prevention, by helping to provide correct information for specific populations and by planning training and prevention activities with the GP.
