Evidence on the prevalence and geographic distribution of major cardiovascular risk factors in Italy

Bibliographic Data

ID15094274
AuthorsRoberta Laccetti (University of Naples Federico II, corresponding author), Andrea Pota (University of Naples Federico II), Saverio Stranges (0000-0001-5226-8373, University of Warwick), Claudio Falconi, Bruno Memoli (University of Naples Federico II), Leopoldo Bardaro (Lyon 1 Université), Bruna Guida (0000-0002-1670-7719)
Year2013
Volume16
Issue2
Pages305-315
Publication date2013-02-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePublic Health Nutrition (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1368-9800 • E-ISSN: 1475-2727
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s1368980012002716
PMID22647342
OpenAlexW2131849686
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited28

Objective To assess the prevalence and geographic distribution of major cardiovascular risk factors in a large community-wide sample of the Italian population. Design A cross-sectional survey. Standardized methods were used to collect and measure cardiovascular risk factors. Data were adjusted for survey weightings. Qualitative and quantitative variables were compared with parametric and non-parametric tests, as appropriate. Setting Towns ( n 193) across different Italian regions. Subjects Unselected adults ( n 24 213; 12 626 men; 11 587 women) aged 18–98 years (mean age 56·9 ( sd 15·3) years), who volunteered to participate in a community-wide screening programme over a 2 d period in 2007. Results Overall, the prevalence of major cardiovascular risk factors was: obesity, 22·7 % (women 18·9 %, men 26·1 %); overweight, 44·7 % (women 31·6 %, men 56·7 %); hypertension, 59·6 % (women 48·3 %, men 70·0 %); dyslipidaemia, 59·1 % (women 57·7 %, men 60·3 %); diabetes, 15·3 % (women 11·2 %, men 19·0 %) and smoking, 19·8 % (women 14·0 %, men 25·2 %). We found a high prevalence of unhealthy eating habits; fruit and vegetable consumption was below the recommended range in 60 % of the study population. Ninety per cent of the study population had more than one cardiovascular risk factor and 84 % had between two and five cardiovascular risk factors. There were differences among Italian macro-areas mainly for obesity, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and diabetes. Conclusions The study provides alarming evidence on current prevalence data for major cardiovascular risk factors in a large sample of the Italian population. Particularly, obesity and hypertension represent a relevant public health problem. There is a pressing need for effective preventive health measures which must also take into account the differences among Italian macro-areas

Cross-sectional study · Diabetes mellitus · Environmental health · Obesity · Overweight · Population · Risk factor · Cardiovascular Health and Risk Factors · Demography · Medicine · Nutritional Studies and Diet · Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet · Endocrinology · Internal Medicine

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