Risk factors for cardiovascular disease in workers at a district hospital

Abstract

Certain risk factors play an important role in a person’s chances of developing heart disease. The more risk factors a person has, the greater the likelihood of developing heart disease. Proactively addressing the modifiable risk factors reduces the chances for a person to develop a cardiovascular disease or die from its complications. The author wished to establish the prevalence of the risk factors for cardiovascular diseases in workers at a district hospital. From September 2007 to the end of October 2007, workers were invited, on a voluntary basis, to know their ‘numbers’ (measured levels) as far as the risk for cardiac disease was concerned. A total of 108 participants were recruited. Among them, 6% had a random glucose of between 7.8 to 11.0 mmol/l and 3% had a random glucose of more than 11.1 mmol/l. Of the participants, 12% had stage 1 hypertension, 14 % had stage 2 hypertension and 3% had severe hypertension. Among the participants, 47 % had a body mass index above the norm, hence being at risk of heart disease; 88% did not engage in any form of physical exercises and 7.5% were active smokers. The survey clearly established that the workers employed at a district hospital had risk factors for heart disease. Some of them had established conditions such as diabetes mellitus, overweight and hypertension.