scholarly journals Association between behavioural risk factors for chronic liver disease and transient elastography measurements across the UK: a cross-sectional study

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. e000524
Author(s):  
Ceyhun Aksel Oztumer ◽  
Rayhan Mehmood Chaudhry ◽  
Laith Alrubaiy

ObjectiveChronic liver disease (CLD) is a largely preventable condition with increasing burden on National Health Service resources. We aimed to determine the prevalence of behavioural risk factors for CLD and their association with liver stiffness and socioeconomic status in the UK.DesignIn this cross-sectional study, adults aged ≥18 years were invited to complete a liver health screener and have a liver stiffness measurement (LSM) by transient elastography (TA) to screen for alcohol intake, obesity and viral hepatitis risk across different areas in the UK. Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) scores were used as a measure of socioeconomic status. We performed binary logistic regression, adjusting for age, gender, alcohol consumption, body mass index, diet and viral hepatitis risk to determine the factors associated with LSM and IMD.ResultsWe analysed the data from 2150 individuals across 25 UK areas. Of those, 24.1% had high-risk alcohol consumption, 29.6% had high-risk diets, 24.7% were obese and 32.7% had risk factors for viral hepatitis. LSMs were available for 1043 participants, of which 16.2% were ≥7 kPa. Independent predictors of an LSM≥7 kPa were an age≥40 years (OR, 1.986; 95% CI, 1.280 to 3.081), male gender (OR, 1.599; 95% CI, 1.128 to 2.266), obesity (OR, 2.526; 95% CI, 1.383 to 4.614) and high-risk diet (OR, 2.197; 95% CI, 1.000 to 4.826). Five-unit increases in IMD score were an independent predictor of obesity (OR, 1.110; 95% CI, 1.028 to 1.200), but not high-risk alcohol consumption (p=0.88) or viral hepatitis risk (p=0.05).ConclusionsWe identified a high prevalence of risk factors for CLD, most of which are addressable through raising public awareness to inculcate healthy habits. More studies are needed to assess longitudinal outcomes of liver screening using TA, accounting for societal factors and comorbidities, to help inform resource allocation and policy-making in the future.

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 205031212110245
Author(s):  
Getu Mosisa ◽  
Bikila Regassa ◽  
Bayise Biru

Introduction: Hypertension remains an emerging public health problem globally, particularly in developing countries. Age, income level, obesity, alcohol consumption, smoking, vegetables and fruit consumption, physical activity and chat chewing were some risk factors of hypertension. However, there are limited data on the epidemiology of hypertension in Ethiopia. This study aimed to assess Epidemiology of Hypertension among the community of selected towns of Wollega zones. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from 1 to 30 June 2019 in selected towns of Wollega zones. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 840 study participants. Data were collected using the WHO STEP wise approach. The data were coded and entered into EpiData 3, and exported to SPSS version 20.0 for analysis. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted. Statistical significance was declared at p-value < 0.05. Results: The study included a total of 838 respondents with a response rate of 99.7%. The prevalence of hypertension was found to be 189 (22.6%) (95% confidence interval = 19.9%–25.2%). Of this, 108 (12.9%) and 81 (9.7%) of female and male were hypertensive, respectively. Age groups of 30–44 years (adjusted odds ratio = 2.65 (1.43, 4.89)), 45–59 years (adjusted odds ratio = 3.55 (1.79, 7.04)), above 60 years (adjusted odds ratio = 2.97 (1.43, 6.18)), having history of alcohol consumption (adjusted odds ratio = 4.29 (2.4, 7.66)), involving in vigorous physical activity (adjusted odds ratio = 0.096 (0.028, 0.33)), not walking to and from the work (adjusted odds ratio = 13.12 (8.34, 20.67)), being overweight (adjusted odds ratio = 1.98 (1.21, 3.25)), inadequate fruits serving per day (adjusted odds ratio = 2.93 (1.75, 4.88)) were significantly associated with hypertension. Conclusion: The prevalence of hypertension was found to be high in the study area. Older age, alcohol consumption, not engaging in vigorous activity, physical inactivity, being overweight and inadequate intake of fruits were found to be risk factors for hypertension. Therefore, health care providers should provide extensive health education and promotion on recommended lifestyle modification to tackle the burden of hypertension.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Husain Al-Qattan ◽  
Hamad Al-Omairah ◽  
Khaled Al-Hashash ◽  
Fahad Al-Mutairi ◽  
Mohammad Al-Mutairat ◽  
...  

Background: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects a considerable proportion of adults globally and is associated with elevated morbidity and mortality. Given the lack of epidemiologic data on the burden of OSA in Kuwait, this study sought to estimate its prevalence, associated risk factors, and comorbid conditions among a working population in Kuwait.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of a sample of working adults (n = 651) from public institutions in Kuwait. High/low risk for OSA was ascertained according to the Berlin Questionnaire criteria. Participants self-reported their coexisting health conditions. Associations were assessed using Poisson regression with robust variance estimation; adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were estimated.Results: Overall, 20.0% (130/651) of participants were classified as being at high risk for OSA, with more male than female subjects being at high risk (24.0% [56/233] vs. 17.7% [74/418], P = 0.053), though this difference did not gain statistical significance. Moreover, a high risk for OSA was more common among older and obese subjects. Factors associated with increased prevalence of a high risk for OSA included current smoking status (aPR = 1.58, 95% CI: 1.02–2.06), longer hours spent watching television (1.76, 1.10–2.81), and lower self-perceived physical health (2.11, 1.15–3.87). However, decreasing trends in the prevalence of high risk for OSA were observed with frequent engagement in vigorous physical activity and longer nightly sleep duration. Compared to those at a low risk for OSA, the subjects at high risk for OSA were more likely to have insomnia disorder (2.83, 1.81–4.41), diabetes (1.94, 1.15–3.27), hypertension (3.00, 1.75–5.16), and depression (4.47, 1.80–11.08).Conclusion: This study estimated that 1/5 of working adults in Kuwait were at high risk for OSA, and the prevalence varied according to personal characteristics and lifestyle factors. Also, a high risk for OSA classification was associated with multiple comorbid health conditions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Huiqing Yao ◽  
Juhua Zhang ◽  
Yanmei Wang ◽  
Qingqing Wang ◽  
Fei Zhao ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Stroke is a leading cause of mortality and disability worldwide. Most stroke risk studies focused on more established biological and pathophysiological risk factors such as hypertension and smoking, psychosocial factors such as quality of life are often under-investigated and thus less reported. The current study aims to estimate stroke risk and explore the impact of quality of life on stroke risk among a community sample of urban residents in Shanghai. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in Fengxian District of Shanghai City from December 2018 to April 2019. 4030 representative participants were recruited through a multistage, stratified, probability proportional to size sampling method and completed the study. Stroke risk was assessed using the Rapid Stroke Risk Screening Chart that included 8 risk factors for stroke. Quality of life was measured using the World Health Organization Quality of Life-brief version (WHOQOL-BREF). Results One-third of residents were at risk for stroke, including 14.39% at high risk, and 18.68% at middle risk. The top three most commonly reported risk factors were physical inactivity (37.30%), hypertension (25.38%), and smoking (17.32%). Quality of life and its four domains were all independently and significantly associated with stroke risk. Multinominal logistic regressions showed that a one-unit increase in the quality of life was associated with a decreased relative risk for middle-risk relative to low-risk of stroke by a factor of 0.988 (95% CI:0.979, 0.997, P = 0.007), and a decreased relative risk for high-risk relative to low-risk of stroke by a factor of 0.975 (95% CI:0.966, 0.984, P < 0.001). Conclusions Our findings showed an alarmingly high prevalence of stroke risk among the sample, which may require future intervention programs to focus on improving both biological and behavioral risk factors such as increasing physical activity, early diagnosis and treatment of hypertension, and smoking cessation, as well as improving psychosocial factors such as quality of life.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suddeys Abdulbasat ◽  
Method Kazaura

Abstract Background: Currently, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are among the global health problems accounting for more than 70% of deaths. Yet, healthcare, workers, university and college students who are key educators to the public are at high risk of NCDs. The objective of this study was to assess modifiable risk factors for NCDs among medical and non-medical university students in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.Methods: A cross-sectional study included respondents from six universities; split equally between medical and non-medical programmes. From universities with medical programmes, we randomly selected students in clinical track. We administered a modified WHO STEP-1 questionnaire to collect data on modifiable risk factors of NCDs.Results: A total of 574 students participated in the study. Of these, 315 (54.9%) undergraduates were in medical programmes. Few, 7 (3.1%), of the non-medical undergraduates and 14 (4.7%) of the non-medical undergraduates had none of the NCDs risk factors. The proportion of harmful alcohol consumption among medical and non-medical university students was 15 (4.8%) and 6 (2.3%) respectively. Students reporting sedentary lifestyle was significantly (p < 0.01) higher among non-medical undergraduates, 97 (37.5%), as compared to 82 (31.2%) students in non-medical universities. Undergraduates in non-medical programmes have 10% significantly increased prevalence ratio of high modifiable risk as compared to medical university students, (aPR=1.1, 95%CI: 1.0–1.2) independent of age and sex.Conclusion: Tobacco and armful alcohol consumption among students in medical and non-medical universities is low. Reported physical inactivity and unhealthy diet are high. We suggest broader communication strategies targeting university students in medical and non-medical programmes on dangers of NCDs and awareness of their modifiable risk factors.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. e0229329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hein Htet ◽  
Yu Mon Saw ◽  
Thu Nandar Saw ◽  
Nang Mie Mie Htun ◽  
Khaing Lay Mon ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
I Sulska ◽  
L Mishchenko ◽  
A Sorokolietova ◽  
M Hordina ◽  
S Zhulinska

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: None. Background. There is a little information on the prevalence of cardio-metabolic risk factors in the Ukrainian medical staff. The aim of investigation was to determine the abundance of certain risk factors for cardiovascular (CV) diseases among the medical personnel in the six cities of Ukraine, a study dedicated to World Heart Day 2020. Purpose. To establish the presence of cardio-metabolic risk factors among medical workers in Ukraine. Materials and methods. A hospital-based cross-sectional study including 471 participants (415 female and 56 male) between the age of 19 and 79 years surveyed. The cardio-metabolic risk markers assessed were non-modifiable risk factors (family history) and modifiable risk factors (obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes, prediabetes, smoking status). The prevalence of hypertension (HTN) estimated by ESC 2018 recommendations, diabetes and prediabetes by ADA 2019, ESC 2019 and body mass index WHO criteria for obesity classifications. Using standard methods were assessed: fasting glucose concentration, glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and blood lipids (total cholesterol, LDL-C, triglycerides, HDL-C). Results The median age of participants was 53,3 ± 11,77 years. Positive smoking status reported by 66 persons (14,0%). Analysis of family history showed that 51,4% of the participants had of HTN, 14,9% of myocardial infarction and 25,1% of stroke. The prevalence of modifiable risk factors: HTN registered in 51,4% cases. Around 34,8% of participants were overweight, and 34,6% were obese, 70,7% had waist circumference more than 94 cm (men) and &gt; 80 cm (woman). Prediabetes glycemic levels and diabetes incidence were 42,8% and 12,6%, accordingly. Atherogenic dyslipidemia estimated by increased level of LDL-C more than 4,9 mmol/l, which determinate high risk of CV disorders, estimated in 13,6% participants. Also high triglycerides levels were defined as those of at least 2,3 mmol/l were in 14,9%. Low level of aerobic activity (less than 150 min in week) had 33,4% participants. 30,7% of participants older than 40 years presented high CV risk and 23,9% were in very high risk. Conclusion. Cardio-metabolic risk factors prevail among medical workers in Ukraine. The results point to the relevance of public health recommendations to contribute lifestyle changes and early identification of risk factors for prevention of CV outcomes.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document