Modifiable cardiovascular disease risk factors among residents of Sokoto Metropolis, Nigeria

Abstract

Background Majority of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is caused by risk factors that can be controlled, treated or modified, however, there are also some major CVD risk factors that cannot be controlled. The study aimed to assess and profile the modifiable risk factors of cardiovascular diseases among residents of Sokoto metropolis, Nigeria. Methods This is a population‐based study and a descriptive cross‐sectional survey design was utilized for the study. A multi‐stage sampling technique was used to select a total of 902 respondents for the study. A closed‐ended questionnaire was used to collect data on the following: arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, obesity, dyslipidemia, smoking, physical activity, and sociodemographic parameters. These were analyzed with SPSS version 17.0 and result presented with simple table. Results Middle‐aged adult made up 39% of the total respondents followed by those aged between 25 and 39 years that accounted for 35% while the elderly aged 65 years and above constituted just 3.7%. Ten percent were obese (7% of men were obese as compared to 13.6%) and almost one third reported engaging in some physical activities while 7% reported smoking cigarette. Out of 12 respondents that had deranged total cholesterol, 7 were male while 5 females, and while 14 of the men had deranged HDL, 10 women’s HDL was abnormally high. Only two of the men out 88 that had lipid profiling were found to have Dyslipidaemia as against five out 112 women. Conclusion Generally the study reveals the rising prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors however they were more prevalent among elderly respondents aged 65 years and above. There is urgent need of programme that will focus on life style and eating habit in order to reverse the emerging trend of non‐communicable diseases