Unveiling Cardiovascular Risk Among Older Adults in Eastern India: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Background Cardiovascular disease (CVD) poses major public health challenges in low-resource settings like India, where it contributes significantly to premature mortality and morbidity. This study assessed 10-year CVD risk and its associated factors among community-dwelling older adults in Eastern India. Methods This cross-sectional study, conducted in rural and urban areas of Deoghar, Jharkhand, in 2023, assessed 477 adults (aged 40-74 years) using the World Health Organization/International Society of Hypertension (WHO/ISH) South Asian Region (SAR) non-laboratory risk chart. Multinomial logistic regression identified predictors of moderate-to-high CVD risk. Results Among participants, 75.8% had a low 10-year CVD risk (< 10%), 22.2% had moderate risk (10% to <20%), and 1.9% had high risk (≥20%). Predictors of moderate-to-high CVD risk (≥10%) identified through multinomial logistic regression included increasing age (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 2.0; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.8-2.3), male gender (AOR: 16.0; 2.4-106.3), lower per capita monthly income (PCMI) (AOR: 3.0; 1.0-8.9), family history of hypertension, diabetes, or heart disease (AOR: 5.7; 1.8-18.4), central obesity (AOR: 11.9; 3.5-40.9), and tobacco use (AOR: 8.2; 2.0-33.6). Regular physical activity (≥30 minutes/day) was a protective factor (AOR: 0.2; 0.1-0.8). The model accounted for 81.8% of the variability in cardiovascular risk outcomes. Conclusions About one-fourth of older adults were identified as having moderate-to-high 10-year CVD risk. Central obesity and tobacco use emerged as significant predictors, while regular physical activity offered protective benefits. Implementing targeted interventions to address modifiable risk factors is the need of the hour to mitigate CVD risk.