Changes in blood pressure and risk factors for cardiovascular disease among older Mexican-Americans from 1982-1984 to 1993-1994.

Objective: To determine the 10-year changes in blood pressure and cardiovascular risk factors among older Mexican-Americans.

Design: Comparative analyses of the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES) and the Hispanic EPESE (Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly). Both of these were population-based studies using a multistage stratified probability sampling design of noninstitutionalized persons.

Setting: Five US states in the southwest: Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas.

Participants: A total of 216 Mexican-Americans aged 65 to 74 from the 1982-1984 HHANES and 3050 Mexican-Americans aged 65+ from the 1993-1994 Hispanic EPESE.

Measurements: Mean systolic and diastolic blood pressure; cigarette smoking; high levels of alcohol use; body mass index and obesity; self-reported heart attack, stroke, and diabetes; hypertension.

Results: Among 65- to 74-year-old Mexican-Americans, there was a decrease over time in the percent of those who smoked cigarettes from 27.60% to 13.96% and a decrease in mean systolic blood pressure level. The percent of subjects categorized as obese or severely obese increased significantly, as did the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes, increasing from 20.06% in 1982-1984 to 29.82% in 1993-1994. Mean diastolic blood pressure increased from 77.15 mm Hg in 1982-1984 to 81.21 mm Hg in 1993-1994.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest major changes in cardiovascular risk factors between 1982-1984 and 1993-1994 among older Mexican-Americans.