Prevalence of stroke/cardiovascular risk factors in rural Hungary--a cross-sectional descriptive study.

Unlabelled: A multi-faceted survey was conducted in 1992-94 to ascertain the somatic, mental and socio-economic conditions of the residents of a village in eastern Hungary. Here we report data on prevalence of somatic disorders from the survey.
Objectives: a) To collect and compare prevalence of known cardiovascular disease, including stroke risk factors, in a specific population (a Hungarian village); b) to test a computer-based mass screening device ("Cerberus") designed to identify individuals in the test population at high risk for stroke; c) to compare results obtained with Cerberus with known stroke risk/cardiovascular disease factors and traditional medical records.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey (546 subjects) was conducted in Csengersima in the early 1990s, using the Cerberus screening system, which includes: 1. a questionnaire addressing the risk factors for stroke/cardiovascular disease; 2. amplifiers to record the pulse waves of cerebral (rheoencephalography) and peripheral arteries, electrocardiogram and electroencephalogram. Additionally, subjects were measured for carotid stenosis by Doppler ultrasound and 12-lead electrocardiogram; they were also screened for blood cholesterol, glucose, and triglyceride levels.
Findings: Prevalence of the following stroke risk factors was identified: overweight, 63.25%; sclerotic brain arteries by rheoencephalogram, 54.29%; heart disease, 37.92%; pathologic carotid flow, 34.24%; smoking, 30.55%; high blood cholesterol, 28.70%; hypertension, 27.83%; high triglyceride, 24.35%; abnormality of electrocardiogram, 20%; high glucose, 15.95%; symptoms of transient ischemic attack, 16.07%; alcohol abuse, 6.74%; and diabetes, 4.53%.
Conclusion: The study demonstrates a possible model for primary cardiovascular disease/stroke prevention. The simple, noninvasive test uses the bioimpedance method of measurement. This method offers a standardizable, cost-effective, practical technique for mass screenings by identifying the population at high risk for cardiovascular disturbances, especially cerebrovascular disease. In this model, the rheoencephalogram can detect cerebrovascular arteriosclerosis in the susceptibility/presymptomatic phase, earlier than the Doppler ultrasound technique. The method also provides a model for storing analog physiological signals in a computer-based medical record and the first steps of turning it into an expert system also tested.