Prevalence of cardiovascular diseases in elderly Chinese people in Taiwan

In order to study the health status and prevalence of diseases in elderly C hinese people in Taiwan, a hospital-based, physician-conducted epidemiologi cal survey was undertaken. Study subjects were people aged greater than or equal to 65 years who were randomly selected from four regions of Taiwan. A total of 2600 subjects were studied. Most of the study subjects visited th e hospitals for detailed history taking, physical examination and laborator y tests, including urinalysis, blood chemistry, electrocardiography, and ch est and lumbar spine radiography. The cardiovascular data of 2518 subjects (males 1283) comprised this report. The prevalence of hypertension in the a ged Chinese in Taiwan was high in both males and females (males 33.2%, fema les 40.9%, combined 37%). Coronary artery disease was also common (11.4%), but the prevalence was relatively low compared with Western people. Other c ardiovascular diseases such as aortic aneurysm and valvular heart disease w ere rare. About 70% of the electrocardiograms were found abnormal. This wel l-organized, large-scale epidemiological survey not only presents useful in formation for local medical care for the elderly but also provides importan t data for comparison between different people in the world. (C) 1998 Elsev ier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.