1. Explaining the variability in cardiovascular risk factors among First Nations communities in Canada: a population-based study
- Author
-
Sonia S Anand, ProfMD, Sylvia Abonyi, PhD, Laura Arbour, ProfMD, Kumar Balasubramanian, MSc, Jeffrey Brook, PhD, Heather Castleden, PhD, Vicky Chrisjohn, Ida Cornelius, RN, Albertha Darlene Davis, RN, Dipika Desai, MSc, Russell J de Souza, ScD, Matthias G Friedrich, ProfMD, Stewart Harris, ProfMD, James Irvine, MD, Jean L'Hommecourt, Randy Littlechild, Lisa Mayotte, RN, Sarah McIntosh, MSc, Julie Morrison, Med, Richard T Oster, PhD, Manon Picard, BSc, Paul Poirier, ProfMD, Karleen M Schulze, MMath, and Ellen L Toth, ProfMD
- Subjects
Environmental sciences ,GE1-350 - Abstract
Summary: Background: Historical, colonial, and racist policies continue to influence the health of Indigenous people, and they continue to have higher rates of chronic diseases and reduced life expectancy compared with non-Indigenous people. We determined factors accounting for variations in cardiovascular risk factors among First Nations communities in Canada. Methods: Men and women (n=1302) aged 18 years or older from eight First Nations communities participated in a population-based study. Questionnaires, physical measures, blood samples, MRI of preclinical vascular disease, and community audits were collected. In this cross-sectional analysis, the main outcome was the INTERHEART risk score, a measure of cardiovascular risk factor burden. A multivariable model was developed to explain the variations in INTERHEART risk score among communities. The secondary outcome was MRI-detected carotid wall volume, a measure of subclinical atherosclerosis. Findings: The mean INTERHEART risk score of all communities was 17·2 (SE 0·2), and more than 85% of individuals had a risk score in the moderate to high risk range. Subclinical atherosclerosis increased significantly across risk score categories (p
- Published
- 2019
- Full Text
- View/download PDF