Coronary heart disease: epidemiology of smoking and intervention studies of smoking.

Smoking is a strong risk factor for myocardial infarction (MI) and sudden coronary death, but not for angina pectoris that is not complicated by a MI. Even light cigarette and pipe and cigar smokers run an increased risk for MI and sudden coronary death. Smoking potentiates other risk factors such as lipid abnormalities and hypertension.

Early heart failure in the population. The study of men born in 1913.

A cross-sectional analysis of characteristics possibly associated with congestive heart failure (CHF) was performed among 644 men, all 67 years of age and randomly selected from the general population. A total of 13% had symptoms and signs of overt CHF. Another 10% had early or "latent" CHF.

Cardiovascular morbidity in relation to change in blood pressure and serum cholesterol levels in treated hypertension. Results from the primary prevention trial in Göteborg, Sweden.

The relationship of cardiovascular disease (CVD) to the control of blood pressure (BP) and serum cholesterol levels was studied in 686 treated, middle-aged hypertensive men whose condition was followed up for 12 years. Both mean in-study BP (P less than .001) and serum cholesterol levels (P less than .

Beta-blockers versus diuretics in hypertensive men: main results from the HAPPHY trial.

Men aged 40-64 years with mild to moderate hypertension [diastolic blood pressure (DBP) 100-130 mmHg] were randomized to treatment with a diuretic (n = 3272) or a beta-blocker (n = 3297), with additional drugs if necessary, to determine whether a beta-blocker based treatment differs from thiazide diuretic based treatment with regard to the prevention of coronary heart disease (CHD) events and death. Patients with previous CHD, stroke or other serious diseases, or with contraindications to diuretics or beta-blockers were excluded. If normotension (DBP less than 95 mmHg) was not achieved by monotherapy, other antihypertensive drugs were added, but the two basic drugs were not crossed over.

Cardiac and pulmonary causes of dyspnoea--validation of a scoring test for clinical-epidemiological use: the Study of Men Born in 1913.

Dyspnoea is one of the earliest symptoms in several conditions, such as heart disease and airway obstruction. However, the early phases of these two conditions are hard to distinguish in a reproducible way. In a population study of the natural history and epidemiology of congestive heart failure a scoring test to differentiate the two conditions was developed.

Dyspnoea in a cross-sectional and a longitudinal study of middle-aged men: the Study of Men Born in 1913 and 1923.

In a longitudinal population study, 855 men, born in 1913 and initially examined when 50 years old, were followed for 17 years with measurements of dyspnoea and other variables performed at ages 50, 54, and 67 years. In addition a sample of 226 men born in 1923 was followed from 50 to 57 years of age. At the latest examination, four different methods for measuring dyspnoea were used, one based on questionnaire, one on interview, and two on visual analogue scales.

Analysis of risk factors for stroke in a cohort of men born in 1913.

We analyzed parental death from stroke and other potential risk factors in relation to the incidence of stroke among 789 men, all 54 years old at the base-line examination. During 18.5 years of follow-up, 57 men (7.

Primary and secondary prevention.

Risk factors for myocardial infarction, sudden coronary death, angina pectoris, stroke and total mortality were analysed in a random population sample of men aged 47-55 years at entry, and followed for 11.8 years. Lipid disturbances, tobacco smoking, elevated blood pressure, diabetes mellitus, obesity, low physical leisure-time activity, psychological stress (for non-fatal events) and excessive alcohol consumption (for fatal events) were the main independent risk factors for coronary heart disease.

Relation of dyspnea to left ventricular wall motion disturbances in a population of 67-year-old men.

Dyspnea, a potential early symptom of coronary artery disease and congestive heart failure, was evaluated to establish its relation to left ventricular wall motion abnormalities. A group of 67-year-old men, drawn from the general population of Gothenburg, Sweden, was studied. Acceptable studies by 2-dimensional echocardiography were obtained from 42 of 49 men with dyspnea of presumed cardiac origin, and from 45 randomly selected nondyspneic control subjects.

Mortality and morbidity in relation to systolic blood pressure in two populations with different management of hypertension: The Study of Men Born in 1913 and the Multifactorial Primary Prevention Trial.

Total mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality and morbidity during 10 years of follow-up in relation to systolic blood pressure (SBP) at entry were compared between a random sample of 7455 men, aged 47-54 years at entry, in whom multifactorial risk-factor intervention including intense efforts to detect and treat hypertension had been performed [the Primary Prevention Trial (PPT)], and a similar population (from an observational study) in which intervention, on CVD risk factors was kept to a minimum (the Study of Men Born in 1913). Total mortality, CVD mortality, coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke incidence increased with SBP in both populations, but levelled off above the cut-off point for antihypertensive treatment in the population subjected to multifactorial CVD risk factor intervention. In this population total mortality was reduced by 30%, CVD mortality by 37%, CHD morbidity by 13% and stroke morbidity by 30% above the cut-off point for blood pressure intervention compared with the incidence predicted from the observational study.

Non-participants in a general population study of men, with special reference to social and alcoholic problems.

The bias introduced by non-participation in a study depends on the size and the composition of the non-participant group. Out of 10,000 men invited to a screening examination in a large primary prevention trial in Göteborg, Sweden, 25% did not come to the examination. The non-participants could be shown to be registered by the Board of Social Welfare for social problems and alcohol abuse to a greater extent than the participants in the study.

Angina pectoris, intermittent claudication and congestive heart failure in middle-aged male hypertensives. Development and predictive factors during long-term antihypertensive care. The Primary Preventive Trial, Göteborg, Sweden.

A group of middle-aged male hypertensives, derived from a random sample of a Swedish urban population, has been treated and followed for 10 years. The development of angina pectoris, intermittent claudication and congestive heart failure have been analysed. The initial prevalence and the average yearly incidence of angina pectoris was 3.

Risk factors for angina pectoris in a population study of Swedish men.

The Primary Preventive Trial in Göteborg, Sweden, a study of a random population sample of middle-aged men, made it possible to analyse the risk factor pattern cross-sectionally in 166 men with uncomplicated angina pectoris (AP) and compare with 5735 men without angina pectoris or myocardial infarction (MI). A prospective analysis was also performed concerning the risk factor pattern in 128 cases with uncomplicated AP and 34 cases with complicated AP (following an MI) respectively, appearing during a follow-up time of 4 years. At cross-sectional analysis, uncomplicated AP was related to elevated serum cholesterol, elevated systolic and diastolic blood pressure, increased relative body weight, smoking, diabetes mellitus, low physical activity during leisure time, dyspnea and mental stress.

Alcoholic registration and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality--a prospective study in middle aged Swedish men.

The consequences of alcoholic intemperance and economic problems on CHD mortality and morbidity were studied among the participants in a large primary preventive trial. Official register data were used. Subjects registered with the Board of Social Welfare were categorised with respect to increasing load of alcoholic intemperance.

Alcoholic intemperance, coronary heart disease and mortality in middle-aged Swedish men.

High alcohol consumption is one of the major risk indicators for premature death in middle-aged men. An indicator of alcohol abuse--registration with the social authorities for alcoholic problems--was used to evaluate the role of alcohol in relation to general and cause-specific mortality in a general population sample. Altogether 1,116 men (11%) out of a total population of 10,004 men were registered for alcoholic problems.

Platelet reactivity, fibrinogen and smoking.

40 young healthy male volunteers (20 habitual smokers and 20 non-smokers) were investigated with respect to platelet reactivity, plasma fibrinogen and coagulation factor VIII. Smokers had significantly lower systolic blood pressures and higher venous platelet counts. The results for ADP-induced platelet aggregation, plasma concentrations for the 2 alpha-granule proteins, beta-thromboglobulin and platelet factor 4, did not differ between the 2 study groups involved; nor was there any difference between serum thromboxane B2 formation or plasma factor VIII:C activity.

Is prevention of ischemic heart disease possible in hypertensives?

High blood pressure (BP) leads to myocardial hypertrophy, a process in which catecholamines, and probably other hormones, are involved. The increased BP also enhances coronary arteriosclerosis, and the combination of myocardial and coronary effects increases the risk of myocardial infarction and arrhythmias. The risk of ischemic heart disease (IHD) is also influenced by smoking and lipid disturbances, and the risk of IHD events increases already at moderate BP elevation.

The multifactor primary prevention trial in Göteborg, Sweden.

The effect of a multifactorial intervention programme on coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke incidence and total mortality was determined in a random sample of men, 47-55 years old at entry. The intervention group comprised 10 004 men, and the two control groups were of similar size. The intervention consisted of antihypertensive treatment in subjects with screening blood pressure above 175 mmHg systolic or 115 mmHg diastolic, dietary advice to men with serum cholesterol levels above 260 mg per 100 ml (= 6.

QRS-amplitudes during antihypertensive treatment: a comparison between beta-blocker and thiazide diuretic regimens.

QRS-amplitudes and other ECG variables have been studied in 168 middle-aged men with uncomplicated, mild-to-moderate untreated primary hypertension. They were randomized to treatment with either the beta-adrenoceptor blocker metoprolol (n = 88) or the thiazide diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (n = 80). Significant reductions in combined precordial voltages (S1 + R5-6, S2 + R4, Smax + Rmax) were achieved on both regimens, probably reflecting a regression of hypertensive cardiac involvement.

A study of the association between the prolongation of the QT interval in the resting ECG and myocardial infarction.

The relationship between the incidence of myocardial infarction in the 10 year follow-up period and the length of the QT interval and its two components (the time elapsing between the Q wave and the beginning of the T wave, and the duration of the T wave) was investigated in a study of the records of a group of men drawn from a random sample of all 55-year-old men living in Göteborg, Sweden. A significant association was found between the incidence of myocardial infarction and the first component but not with the second component or the QT interval itself. The two components were found to be independent and thus to have the potential to act as confounding factors if the QT interval is examined alone.

Clinical course and symptomatology of angina pectoris in a population study.

The clinical course of angina pectoris was studied in a follow-up study of 427 patients with angina from a general population sample. The subjects were men aged 56-65 years at the time of follow-up. After a mean follow-up time of 5.

The Multifactor Primary Prevention Trial in Göteborg, Sweden. Comparison with a previously untreated population sample.

All male inhabitants of the city of Göteborg, who were born between 1915-1922 and 1924-1925 were included in the trial, and were 47 to 55 years of age on entry to the study in 1970 to 1973. One-third of these men were randomly allocated to an intervention group, whilst the other two-thirds acted as controls. Men of all social classes, employed as well as unemployed, health conscious as well as careless, were invited, with 75% of these responding to the invitation.