Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome and Cardiovascular Risk Factors among Community Health Workers in Selected Villages in the Philippines

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors and metabolic syndrome among community health workers (CHWs) in selected villages in the Philippines. It also determined the association of urbanization and socio-demographic characteristics with hypertension, diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome among CHWs. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional study was conducted among CHWs who were actively rendering service from selected communities at the time of the study. Standardized interviews were conducted and clinical measurements were collected. RESULTS: Of the total of 457 CHWs who participated, 96% were females with a median age of 50 years. The prevalence of hypertension in this population was 32.4%. Hypertension was found to be associated with older age [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 5.3, 95% CI: 3.2 to 8.8, p<0.001], obesity (aOR 2.4, 95% CI: 1.4 to 4.0, p=0.002) and alcohol consumption (aOR 1.7, 95% CI: 1.0 to 3.0, p<0.040). The prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) was 13.6%. It was found to be more prevalent among CHWs who were at least 50 years old (aOR 2.7, 95% CI: 1.4 to 5.1, p=0.002), and those who spent at least 5 hours a day in sedentary activities (aOR 3.8, 95% CI: 1.1 to 12.7, p<0.033). Borderline to high total cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) and triglycerides (TG) were seen in 41%, 37% and 20%, respectively. Sixty percent had low high density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c). The overall prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 52.3%. CONCLUSION: Metabolic syndrome is prevalent among CHW participants, with obesity, hypertension and low LDL-c as the most common components present. The prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in this population was not found to be significantly different between rural and urban areas after adjusting for other factors.