Jennifer Sacramento-Pacheco

Background: Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in Europe. The cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) with the greatest clinical impact are high blood pressure (HBP), type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2), smoking, overweight, obesity, dyslipidaemia, and sedentary lifestyle. The objective of this review was to compare the prevalence of the different CVRFs according to population-based studies conducted in the European Union. Methods: This systematic review aimed to assess the prevalence of CVRFs in the European Union. A comprehensive search strategy was employed, including databases such as PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science, using specific keywords related to cardiovascular risk factors, prevalence, and European countries. The quality of the reviewed studies was assessed using established criteria, categorising them as low, moderate, or high quality. Results: A total of 26 studies from Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, and Sweden were included. The findings revealed considerable variability in the prevalence of CVRFs across the European Union, with overweight, hypercholesterolemia, and hypertension being the most frequently reported. Prevalence rates varied notably by country, age group, and sample characteristics. The majority of the included studies were of moderate methodological quality, underscoring the need for more rigorous research to better support evidence-based policies and targeted health interventions. Conclusions: There are differences between the studies presented, ranging from the sex ratio, the age studied, to even the CVRFs included. This also means that the prevalence of each CVRF varies by country.

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in Spain, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics, with the lack of control of cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) being the main contributing factor. The CVRFs of greatest clinical interest are high blood pressure (HBP), smoking, diabetes mellitus (DM2), overweight, obesity, hypercholesterolaemia, and sedentary lifestyle. The main objective of this review was to compare the prevalence of the different CVRFs according to population-based studies carried out in Spain. For this, a systematic review based on publications assessing CVRFs in the adult population and estimating their national prevalence was conducted. Pubmed and Dialnet databases were consulted, and the selected articles were analysed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme Español (CASPe) tool for cohort studies and the Berra et al. tool for cross-sectional studies. A total of 33 studies were obtained from the autonomous regions of Andalusia, the Canary Islands, Castilla-Leon, Castilla-La Mancha, Catalonia, Extremadura, the Balearic Islands, Madrid, Murcia, and Navarra. In all the population-based studies, there was a greater representation of women in the sample. The most prevalent CVRFs differed across the studies according to the autonomous region targeted, with dyslipidaemia, sedentary lifestyle, high blood pressure, hypercholesterolaemia, overweight, and obesity standing out. Numerous differences exist between the studies included in this review, such as the age range, the CVRFs analysed and their prevalence, and remarkable aspects such as the over-representation of the female sex in all cases. It can be concluded that, based on the presented results, the prevalence of CVRFs in Spain varies according to the autonomous region, the sex of the individual, and the studied age range.