Background of Study

The incidence of coronary artery disease in India is increasing among urban Indians; estimated to be 9.65% in 1995¹. Cardiovascular deaths in India will be 2.5 million by 2020 and will be the leading cause of death in India^1,2. Hypertension is emerging as a major health problem and is more common in urban Indians. Risk factors for young MI in India include smoking (74%), hypertension (18.8 %), obesity (18%), hypercholesterolemia (18%), diabetes mellitus (16.4%), and family history (13.4%).³ Framingham coronary prediction algorithm provides estimates of total coronary artery disease risk over a course of 10 years. Separate score sheets are used for men and women. Factors used to estimate risk include age,serum cholesterol, LDL, HDL, blood pressure,cigarettesmoking and diabetes mellitus. Relative risk for coronary artery disease is estimated by comparison to low risk Framingham participants.