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.

Risk of mental disorders, their changes and somatic consideration in rural Hungary.

OBJECTIVE: Although the primary purpose of the study reported here was to identify stroke risk factors among the residents of a village in eastern Hungary, the study also included a multi-faceted survey conducted in 1992-94 to ascertain the somatic, mental and socio-economic conditions of the residents. Here we report data from the survey on prevalence of mental disorders (a cross-sectional descriptive study). METHOD: The screenings included the following tests administered to 535 subjects: anxiety, depression, dementia, neurosis were measured; recent medical records were compared to survey data for 330 of the same subjects. FINDINGS: The summary of prevalence of mental disorders measured in this study was as follows: anxiety 34.7% (severe), dementia 44.68% (mild), depression 66% (mild), 15.94% (medium), 7.88% (severe), neurosis 66.73% (mild, medium, and severe). Medical records maintained by village physicians since 1960 differed from the results obtained in the present study. A treatment gap was observed between mental health treatment for neurosis, as indicated by medical records, and the diagnostic prevalence of neurosis as measured by the survey instruments: there were three times as many people diagnosed as neurotic in the survey as had been noted in village medical records. Additionally, the unique position of cerebrovascular alteration was established between the mental and somatic factors. CONCLUSION: The study demonstrates the successful simultaneous collection of a wide spectrum of data on somatic conditions, mental disorders, and socio-economic status of the subjects. The study showed that 1. patient-centered medical care can simultaneously address both somatic and mental factors; 2. it is possible to decrease the treatment gap in mental health; 3. there is value in systematic collection of data in order to optimize the planning of prevention, health care costs and decision making.