Prevalence of Conventional Risk Factors and Evaluation of Baseline Indices Among Young and Elderly Patients with Coronary Artery Disease.

Introduction: Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, manifesting in a variety of clinical spectrums such as an asymptomatic disease or acute coronary syndrome. It has become highly prevalent in Southeast Asia, including Pakistan. There has been little work done on the prevalence of traditional risk factors in different age groups and genders and there is a dire need to gauge the importance of baseline indices in CAD patients.

Aim: To determine the prevalence of conventional risk factors and evaluate the variations in lipid profiles, electrolyte levels and haematological indices among patients with CAD in different age groups and gender.

Materials And Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan from January to June 2016, among patients with CAD. We recorded the presence of conventional risk factors and baseline indices within the first 24 hours of admission. Continuous variables were compared using Independent t-test or Mann-Whitney test and categorical variables were compared using chi-square or Fisher's exact test.

Results: The most frequent risk factor was dyslipidemia (91.2%), followed by hypertension (70.4%), diabetes (51.2%), family history of CAD (40.0%) and smoking (29.2%). Total of 98.4% of patients had at least one risk factor. Diabetes and hypertension were found to be common in females; whereas, smoking was predominantly present in males. Diabetes and dyslipidemia were mostly encountered in elderly patients. The most frequent lipid alteration was low levels of High Density Lipoprotein (HDL). Cholesterol and HDL levels were found to be higher in females than males. Elderly patients had lower levels of HDL and higher levels of Cholesterol. The levels of haematological indices were found to be higher in males and younger patients. The median levels of serum sodium and potassium were found to be higher in elderly patients.

Conclusion: Our study findings corroborate with the findings from previous studies regarding the significance of risk factors in causing cardiovascular pathology. Medical interventions and dietary control to improve body's lipid status would be indispensable in the prevention of CAD. Deranged electrolyte levels necessitate correction of body electrolyte parameters as an adjunct in prevention strategies.