Cardiovascular Risk Factors Among Lower Silesian Students of the Faculty of Medicine: Knowledge and Distribution

Background. Cardiovascular disease is a major contributor to the global burden of disease. Further reduction of cardiovascular mortality will require multidirectional prevention. Popularizing prevention measures requires the involvement of qualified and well-educated personnel. Before any modifications of educational programs it is necessary to assess the level of knowledge of future physicians. Objectives. The aim of the study was to evaluate medical students' knowledge of cardiovascular (CV) risk factors. The paper presents the outcomes of a study investigating the knowledge of CV risk factors and the prevalence of those risk factors in the study population. Material and Methods. The study was conducted between 2007 and 2012 and the study population was comprised of 1406 students (497 men and 909 women) from South and South Western Poland. A survey designed by the authors, based on the Framingham survey, was used for the interviews. Results. The students correctly identified 4.38 +/- 0.91 CV risk factors. The most frequently listed risk factors for cardiovascular diseases were a lack of physical activity and a fat-rich diet. The study participants who identified CV risk factors more or less accurately do not follow the recommendations aimed at prevention. Awareness, even relatively high awareness, does not correlate with a healthy lifestyle. Extreme examples of this are people who are aware of the negative effects of cigarette smoking but continue to smoke. Conclusions. The study revealed an insufficient level of awareness of CV risk factors among medical students.