Coronary risk factors in Turkish schoolchildren: Randomized cross-sectional study

Background: There is a strong association between the extent of atheroscler otic lesions in aorta and coronary arteries and antemortem risk factors in children and young adults. Cardiovascular diseases are the most common caus e of death in adults in Turkey. However, the data about the extent of coron ary risk factors in Turkish children is very limited. The aim of this cross -sectional study was to investigate the prevalence of coronary risk factors in Turkish schoolchildren living in Eskisehir, Turkey. Methods: A randomly selected population of 4026 schoolchildren, aged betwee n 7 and 18 years, residing in urban and rural parts of Eskisehir were evalu ated for coronary risk factors, using previously predicted risk threshold v alues. Results: Hypertension was found in 4.8% of the girls and 3.8% of the boys, 14.9% of the girls and 10.8% of the boys had abnormal lipid values, 18.2% o f the girls and 26.4% of the boys had elevated total body fat percentages, 20.7% of the girls and 14.5% of the boys had physical inactivity and 3.8% o f the girls and 11.4% of the boys were regular smokers. Urban children had higher rates of hypercholesterolemia; however, rural children had higher ra tes of physical inactivity. When the modifiable risk factors were considere d, excluding family history, 47.7% of the children had at least one risk fa ctor and 11.7% of them exhibited two or more risk factors. Conclusions: Turkish schoolchildren living in Eskisehir had considerably hi gh levels of coronary risk factors. The interventional measures established in childhood, during which the lifestyle and habits responsible for corona ry heart diseases are acquired, will be very effective for preventing and m odifying the risk factors predisposing children to coronary heart disease.