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Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factor Profiling of Group C Employees in JIPMER, Puducherry
K Aswin1, Arun G Ghorpade2, Sitanshu Sekhar Kar1
1Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Puducherry, India.
Insights
Cardiovascular disease risk factors are prevalent among hospital employees in South India. Implementing an employee wellness program is recommended to address this high burden.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
- Cardiovascular Health
Background:
- Settings-based health promotion necessitates risk factor surveillance.
- This study aimed to assess cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in Group C employees at a tertiary care hospital in South India.
Purpose of the Study:
- To estimate the prevalence of major CVD risk factors.
- To identify independent predictors of hypertension.
- To assess the 10-year risk of major cardiovascular events.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional survey utilized the WHO STEPwise approach (STEPS) methodology.
- Data collected included behavioral risk factors and physical characteristics from 400 employees (aged ≥20).
- Multivariate analysis and WHO/ISH risk prediction charts were employed.
Main Results:
- High prevalence of overweight (74.5%), central obesity (78.7%), and hypertension (38.8%) was observed.
- Significant behavioral risk factors included smoking (12.3% of men) and alcohol consumption (33.2% of men).
- Age, gender, physical inactivity, obesity, and family history were independently associated with hypertension; 4% had >10% 10-year CVD risk.
Conclusions:
- The study reveals a high prevalence of CVD risk factors in the surveyed hospital employee population.
- There is a critical need to implement employee wellness programs to mitigate the impact of cardiovascular diseases.
Background:
Settings-based approach for health promotion includes conducting risk factor surveillance as one of its component. It was aimed to estimate the prevalence of CVD risk factors among group C employees of tertiary care hospital in south India.
Materials And Methods:
A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 400 group C employees aged ≥20 years using the WHO "STEPwise approach to surveillance of non-communicable diseases" (STEPS) methodology. Standardized international protocols were used to measure behavioral risk factors (smoking, alcohol consumption, fruit and vegetable consumption, physical activity) and physical characteristics (weight, waist and hip circumferences, height, and blood pressure). Multivariate analysis was done to predict the factors, which carry independent risk of hypertension. Risk factor profiling of the staff was done using WHO/ISH risk prediction chart to calculate the 10-year risk of a fatal or non-fatal major cardiovascular events (myocardial infarction or stroke), according to age, gender, blood pressure, smoking status, and presence or absence of diabetes mellitus.
Results:
Mean age in years was 40.9 (±10.4), and men constituted 81.3% of study population. Prevalence of major cardiovascular risk factors was as follows: Current smokers 12.3% men, regular alcohol intake 33.2% among men, overweight (≥23 kg/m(2)) 74.5%, central obesity 78.7%, hypertension 38.8%, and history of diabetes mellitus 13.2%. Age, gender, physical inactivity, obesity, and family history of hypertension were found to be independently associated with hypertension. Four percent participants had a >10% risk of developing CVD in next 10 years.
Conclusion:
The prevalence of CVD risk factors is high in the sample population. Employee wellness program should be started in the institute to combat the burden of cardiovascular diseases.