%0 Journal Article %T Prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in an African, Urban inner city community %A TO Lawoyin %A MC Asuzu %A J Kaufman %A C Rotimi %A E Owoaje %A L Johnson %A R Cooper %J West African Journal of Medicine %D 2002 %I %X With the epidemiological transition phenomenon, more countries are expected to move from a disease pattern dominated by infectious diseases to one characterized by non-communicable diseases. Many developing countries are contending with infectious diseases as well as non-communicable diseases, yet little is known about the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in poor urban communities in developing countries. The object of this community based study was to determine the prevalence of selected cardiovascular risk factors in an urban inner city community which had been followed up prospectively from 1993 to 1998. Results show that the prevalence of hypertension (Blood Pressure BP > 160/95 mm Hg) was 12.4 percent with an age adjustment rate of 7.4 percent. This is higher than what is found in the rural part of the country but much lower than what is generally observed in industrialized countries of the world. Though there was no significant difference in the proportion with hypertension by gender (p>0.05), the mean systolic BP was significantly higher for men (123.9 ¡À 23.9 mm Hg) than for women (120.6¡À26.8 mm Hg) t + 2.93, p<0.01. The mean diastolic BP was similarly higher for men (75.8 ¡À 14.9) mm Hg than women (74.0 ¡À 14.9) mm Hg t = 2.76 p< 0.01. Eight percent of the study population was obese (BMI >30), and generally, more women than men were obese. However, at ages 15-19 significantly more males than females were obese (X2 + 7.3, p<0.01). Both mean systolic and diastolic BP increased with increasing weight. When adjusting for gender, the association between hypertension and other CVD risk factors remained similar for males and females and gender was not a modifier of the factors. Of the CVD factors studied, Age > 40 years and obesity, were significantly associated with the presence of hypertension in this community (p<0.0001 and p<0.0001), smoking, alcohol, intake and gender were not (p>0.05). It is necessary to implement a national plan for the control of cardiovascular diseases in order to reduce and keep to minimum cardiovascular diseases and its complications in the country. R¨¦sum¨¦ Avec le courant de l'opinion publique ¨¤ l'¨¦gard du ph¨¦nom¨¨ne portant sur la transition ¨¦pid¨¦miologique, on entend que la plupart de pays tendents ¨¤ s'¨¦carter d'une ambiance en proie de la maladie ¨¤ travers des maladies contagieuses vers celle typiquement sans des maladies communicables; n¨¦anmoins, on ne sait pas grand-chose ¨¤ l'¨¦gard de la fr¨¦quence des donn¨¦es de risques sur le cardiovaculaire dans les agglomerations urbaines dans les pays en voie de d¨¦veloppement. L'objet de cette ¨¦tude bas¨¦e sur la communaut¨¦ citadine ¨¦tait de determiner la fr¨¦quence de quelques donn¨¦es de risques de cardiovasculaires dans une communaut¨¦ citadine urbane ¨¦tudi¨¦e prospectivement de 1993 en 1998. Il s'ensuit que la fr¨¦quence d'hypertension (Tension art¨¦rielle, BP> 160/95mm Hg) ¨¦tait 12,4% avec age moyen proportion de 7,4%. Ceci avait la fr¨¦quence ¨¦lev¨¦e par rapport ¨¤ ce qui s %U http://www.ajol.info/index.php/wajm/article/view/28031