Jiang He

Validity of physicians' self-reports of cardiovascular disease risk factors

To determine the accuracy of self-reported risk factors in 78 physicians, self-reported information was compared to findings on a standardized examination. Measured weight (r = 0.98), height (r = 0.95), body mass index (r = 0.96), systolic blood pressure (SBP) (r = 0.72), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (r = 0.60) were highly correlated with self-reported values (all P < 0.0001). Mean self-reported SBP and DBP did not differ from measured values; measured weight was 1.5 kg greater and measured height 1.4 cm less than self-reported values (both p < 0.0001). Regression of measured on self-reported values indicated excellent agreement except for DBP and heart rate. Differences between measured and self-reported values were not associated with a variety of variables except for a greater difference in SBP at higher levels of SBP. None of the 60 self-reported nonsmokers had expired carbon monoxide levels greater than 10 ppm. These results indicate that physicians self-reports of height, body mass index, SBP, and smoking are extremely accurate and suitable for research purposes.

Alcohol use and blood pressure in an unacculturated society.

Alcohol intake has been associated with higher blood pressure in acculturated populations but not in unacculturated societies. We performed a cross-sectional survey of a random community sample of 5023 male Yi rural farmers and 1656 Yi and 2173 Han men living in an urban setting. Average alcohol intake among drinkers was 36.4 g/d in Yi farmers, 56.5 g/d in Yi migrants, and 38.7 g/d in Han men. Age-adjusted mean diastolic blood pressure was 66.9, 70.5, and 71.7 mm Hg, respectively. Diastolic blood pressure was higher at higher alcohol intakes in all three groups (all P < .001). After adjustment for age, body mass index, heart rate, smoking, and physical activity, the change (95% confidence interval) in diastolic blood pressure for each standard drink was 0.50 (0.38-0.62), 0.31 (0.18-0.43), and 0.24 (0.07-0.40) mm Hg for Yi farmers, Yi migrants, and Han men, respectively. The percentage of variance in diastolic blood pressure explained by alcohol intake was 5% for Yi farmers, 4% for Yi migrants, and 2% for Han men. In a random sample of 831 men, these associations were independent of urinary sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium and sodium-potassium ratio. In the Yi farmers, associations were less strong for systolic blood pressure and no longer significant after adjustment. Approximately 33% of hypertension could be attributed to daily alcohol use in the Yi groups compared with 9.5% in the Han people.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)