Advances in the management of hypertension in the community over four years of intervention of the North Karelia project.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to P Puska.
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The relationships of symptoms and blood pressure were studied in a population sample of 1926 individuals. Analysis of covariance showed that none of the 13 symptoms was significantly related to systolic or diastolic BP. Symptoms were more strongly associated with confounding variables.
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The design, implementation and the major results of a study for measuring the prevalent CHD risk indicators in Eastern Finland are presented. The study formed the baseline survey of the North Karelia Project and was conducted in 1972 for a representative random sample of the population aged 25-59 in the county of North Karelia and a matched reference area. Altogether 11.992 persons were examined with a participation rate of 93% in North Karelia and 90% in the reference area. The prevalence rates of the "hard" CHD risk indicators (blood pressure, cholesterol, smoking and triglycerides) are presented and reference is made to the prevalence rates of some other "softer" risk indicators. In general, the level of the "hard" risk indicators is high and this is especially true for the younger males. The two areas resemble each other closely in these respects as was anticipated. In the discussion the results are reviewed from the point of view of the primary preventive programme.
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1. One major subprogramme of the North Karelia Project was the hypertension programme which aimed at lowering of the high blood pressure among the whole population, and expecially among middle-aged men. The hypertension programme consisted of intervention integrated with the existing health care structure of the county of North Karelia. 2. The hypertension register, which was the major tool of the programme, aimed to maintain patients in treatment and to get information about the development of the programme. Registration of hypertensive subjects was continuous between 1972 and 1977 and registered patients had annual follow-up examinations. 3. After 5 years of the programme, there were approximately 17 000 registered patients which is 9.7% of the total population. 4. Proportion of drop-outs at the annual follow-up examinations was less than 10%. 83% of the registered hypertensive subjects were under drug treatment after 3 years intervention. The percentage of normotensive subjects increased significantly year by year. 5. Preliminary results from the stroke register of the North Karelia Project indicate that the incidence of stroke decreased as hypertension control was improved.
A re-examination after 3 years was done in 1975 in a 20% random subsample (n = 1683) of the representative population sample (males and females, 25-59 years) that was examined in 1972 in North Karelia (NK), and a matched reference county as the baseline survey for the community programme in NK. The changes in smoking habits, serum cholesterol, dietary fat consumption and systolic BP were more favourable among the subjects in the NK sample than among the reference sample, although the differences were generally small. Results from multivariable analyses are presented to show the variables that predict a favourable risk factor change in the individual. Living in NK is associated in the analysis with a favourable change in each of the three risk factors. The limitation of this method in the evaluation of a community programme is discussed.
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In this article the background and principles of the intervention and evaluation of the North Karelia Project are presented. The project is a comprehensive community control programme concerning cardiovascular diseases in the province of North Karelia, Eastern Finland. In the baseline survey of the project (1972), 25-59-year-old males had a particularly high of CVD level risk factors; there were 54% current smokers, the mean cholesterol was 269 mg% and the mean casual blood pressure was 147/90 mmHg. According to the myocardial infarction register the incidence rate of acute myocardial infraction was, during the first year of the project (1972), 13.8 per thousand among 30-64-yearold males. During the first 2 1/2 of the intervention the percentage of current smokers decreased among males from 54 to 42. The percentage of males using low-fat milk increased from 17 to 48. The percentage of males who had had their blood pressure measured during the previous half year increased from 28 to 56 and those under antihypertensive drug treatment from 3.1 to 9.1. Local groups for secondary prevention of myocardial infarction were established all over the province. On the basis of the accumulated experience and theoretical considerations, the project plan has futher been elaborated.
The present article describes the background and principles of a programme for community control of hypertension, which is part of the North Karelia project--a comprehensive community programme for the control of cardiovascular diseases. The hypertension programme also forms part of an international co-operative study by WHO. The programme consists of a community intervention integrated with the service structure. The methods used include health education of the public, education of health service personnel, organization of a service for the spreading of information and also for screening, treatment and follow-up. Every hypertensive person in the community is registered in the hypertension register and checked on annually. The evaluation is made mainly on baseline and terminal survey data from the intervention area and a reference area, the hypertension register, a myocardial infarction register and a stroke register in the intervention area.
A myocardial infarction (mi) register was started on May 1, 1972 in the county of North Karelia in Eastern Finland as a part of the North Karelia project. Information about all cases with a suspected acute MI among the North Karelian population are collected by the register. The principles of the register follow the recommendations of the WHO expert working group. Altogether 713 cases were registered between May 1, and Dec. 31,1972. The distribution of them into diagnostic categories was: "definite" 57%, "possible" 30%, "no acute MI" 8% and "insufficient information" 5%. Patients with no acute MI have been excluded in the results. About 47% of the male patients below 65 years had a history of previous MI. Most of the patients in the group had been heavy cigarette smokers, eating mainly butter as the fat in their diet. Overweight was rare among the male patients but not among the females. During the years preceding the attack, most of the patients had visited a physician and a pathological ECG had been recorded. The average time delay before hospital treatment was internationally relatively short. The 4 week fatality rate among patients below 65 years was 37% for males and 35% for females. These rates were slightly lower than those in the register material in Helsinki. The annual incidence rate per thousand for the age group 30-64 in North Karelia was 13.8 among males and 2.6 among females. The incidence rate increased continuously with age among males,among females it increased markedly only after the age of 60. The risk ratio between North Karelia and Helsinki for the age standardized incidence rates of males in the age group 30-64 was 1.38, and for respective mortality rates 1.21. Within North Karelia the highest incidence rate for males aged 30-64 was recorded in the rural area of Ilomantsi-Tuupovaara in the East.
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