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Vascular disease risk factor management 4 years after carotid endarterectomy: are opportunities missed?
Author(s) -
Middleton Sandy,
Harris John,
Lusby Robert,
Ward Jeanette
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
anz journal of surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.426
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1445-2197
pISSN - 1445-1433
DOI - 10.1046/j.1445-1433.2002.02570.x
Subject(s) - medicine , carotid endarterectomy , overweight , blood pressure , risk factor , cohort , disease , obesity , surgery , pediatrics , carotid arteries
Background: Because a large percentage of patients surviving carotid endarterectomy (CEA) subsequently die from a vascular cause, the aim of the present paper was to determine risk factor management for a cohort of patients 4 years after their CEA. Methods: Surviving patients who had a CEA within the region administered by the Central Sydney Area Health Service in 1995 were asked to complete a self‐administered questionnaire to determine vascular risk factors. Results: Of the 181 patients eligible to participate, 162 returned questionnaires (response rate: 90%). While 106 (65.4%) patients recalled that they had been diagnosed with high blood pressure either before or after their CEA, only 79.2% recalled that their latest blood pressure reading was ‘about right for my age’. Nearly one in five (16.7%) who had had their cholesterol level checked in the last 12 months ( n = 120) indicated that the reading was ‘too high’. Only 76.5% reported taking medications to ‘thin the blood’. Almost one‐fifth of patients (17.3%) were current smokers. Only 35.2% of patients participated in a level of physical activity sufficient to confer a health benefit. Further, 30.2% of patients were overweight and 14.8% were obese. The majority of patients (98.1%) reported having a regular general practitioner (GP). Of these, 98.7% had visited their GP at least once within the previous 6 months. Conclusions: Vascular risk factor management following CEA is suboptimal, inviting the implementation and evaluation of strategies to improve outcomes.