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HIGH PREVALENCE OF CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS IN ADOLESCENTS OF THE GENERAL POPULATION
Abstract
Background and Aims
A significant proportion of the burden of non-communicable disease in adults has its roots in adolescence and this is particularly true for cardiovascular disease and stroke. Detection of risk factors, early stages of disease and laboratory abnormalities at young ages may aid disease prevention and management.
Methods
We systematically assessed the frequency of yet unknown medical conditions that require further diagnostic work-up or intervention (life-style counselling or pharmacotherapy) in 2088 adolescents sampled from the general population considering previously diagnosed physician-confirmed diseases. The easy-to-administer health screening included medical history taking, fasting blood analysis, and blood pressure and body measurements, and was performed at schools.
Results
Adolescents were on average 16.4 (SD 1.1) years old and 56.4 percent were female. The health screening newly detected relevant medical conditions in 45.4 [95% CI, 43.3–47.6] percent (55.8 [95% CI, 52.5–59.0] percent in boys and 37.4 [95% CI, 34.6–40.2] percent in girls). The most prevalent previously unknown medical conditions were vascular risk factors like elevated blood pressure (16.7%) and hypertension (10.2%), metabolic syndrome (3.0%), hypercholesterolemia (7.6%) and hypertriglyceridemia (9.6%). On the other hand, impaired fasting glucose and pre-diabetes were rare in this community-based sample of adolescents as were endocrine and other abnormalities (all <1.0%) except for subclinical hypothyroidism (5.7%) and hyperuricemia (7.8%).
Conclusions
Health screening in adolescence has a high diagnostic yield for previously unknown vascular risk factors, is feasible in the school setting, and may provide an opportunity for guideline-recommended targeted prevention in the young.