Association of low knowledge about cardiovascular disease and lack of lifestyle changes after the COVID-19 pandemic with higher cardiovascular risk in Peruvian residents

Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) worldwide. This study aimed to evaluate the association between low knowledge about cardiovascular disease, the absence of lifestyle changes after the COVID-19 pandemic, and cardiovascular risk among Peruvian resident. Design and methods: Analytical and cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of 371 participants. The Knowledge about Cardiovascular Diseases questionnaire, the Pocket Guide for estimating and managing cardiovascular risk, and the Changes in lifestyle during the quarantine period scale were used. Moreover, to establish independent associations of the variables of interest, the PRc and PRa of each factor were determined through Poisson regression models with robust variance. Results: About 60.4% of participants had changes in lifestyle after the pandemic, 69.8% had a low level of knowledge about the risk of cardiovascular disease, and 18.6% had a moderate-high cardiovascular risk. The bivariate analysis found that the population that did not change their lifestyles after the pandemic had a significantly higher cardiovascular risk than those who did make changes. Likewise, low knowledge about cardiovascular risk and disease was associated with a higher level of cardiovascular risk. The multivariate model showed that participants who did not have changes in lifestyle after the pandemic were 3.34 times more likely to have a higher level of cardiovascular risk (95% CI 2.09-5.34). Conclusions: Residents who did not have changes in lifestyle after the COVID-19 pandemic and expressed low knowledge about cardiovascular disease have a higher cardiovascular risk.