Prevalence of Cardiovascular Risk Factors among the Nurse Population in the East of Iran

Abstract

<strong>Introduction: </strong>The present study was planned to assess the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among nurses. <br/><strong>Methods: </strong>This descriptive-analytical study was done on employed nurses in Birjand in 2011. At first, complete clinical examinations were done; including height, weight, waist circumference, and blood pressure in standard ways. Then, 5cc blood of each subject, after a 12 hour fasting, was taken in order to measure FBS and lipid profile. A questionnaire inquiring demographic information and history of previous cardiovascular risk factors was filled out. At the end data were analyzed by T test in SPSS software (V.15). <br/><strong>Results: </strong>The mean age of the subject was 40.6±7.2 yrs. The most prevalent risk factor were dyslipidemia, overweight, and central obesity (70.4%, 40%, and 37.7% respectively). Dyslipidemia and smoking in men, and obesity in women were more prevalent. <br/><strong>Conclusion:</strong> The prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors were high in nurses despite the adequate specialized knowledge about these risk factors.