Cardiovascular risk factors among staff of a private university in South-west Nigeria

BACKGROUND: Globally, the death rate arising from the cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) is high. This study assessed the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors (CRFs) among staff of the Babcock University. METHODS: This was a descriptive and cross-sectional study. Weight, height, waist circumference and blood pressure measurements were taken. Venous blood was collected for glucose and lipid profile analysis after an overnight fast. The prevalence of smoking, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidaemia, general and abdominal obesity were determined. RESULTS: A total of 140 participants were recruited into the study. The average age of the participants was 41.7 ± 9.4 years. The male: female ratio was 1:0.8. About 24% of the participants had no CRF, but 24.3%, 27.1%, 16.4% and 10% had 1, 2, 3 and 4 CRFs, respectively. Majority had abdominal obesity (48.6%) and dyslipidaemia (47.1%). The prevalence of hypertension, obesity and smoking was 32.9%, 31.4% and 11.4%, respectively. None of the participants had diabetes mellitus. More males smoked cigarette (20% vs. 0%) and had hypertension (50% vs. 10%) than that of females (P < 0.001), but a higher proportion of females (63.3% vs. 37.5%) had abdominal obesity (P = 0.002). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of CRFs among the apparently healthy staff of the Babcock University was high. Urgent measures are needed to prevent the development of CVD in this population.