Background: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are considered major health and economic burdens throughout the world. This study was conducted to estimate the magnitude of three major CVD (hypertension, ischemic heart diseases (IHD) and stroke), their risk factors, prevention and, control plan. Methods: The study design was cross-sectional. Multi-stage random sampling technique was used at different schools in Benghazi, Libya. A sample of 1200 teachers was randomly selected. Three formats were used for data collection. These included a self-administered questionnaire, a standardized Rose CVD interview questionnaire, as well as a special form for collecting data on the following: anthropometric measurements, blood pressure, clinical examination, as well as results of laboratory findings, and ECG tracings. Results: The prevalence of hypertension and IHD were 15.1% and 2.7% respectively while no cases of stroke could be detected in the study-sample. The selected CVD were found to be independently predicted by age, gender, family history of hypertension, BMI, smoking index, fasting blood sugar level, and HDL (CI 95%). Conclusion: Risk factors for hypertension & IHD among schoolteachers in Benghazi, Libya included age, BMI, fasting blood sugar, gender, smoking index, HDL, & family history of hypertension. There is thus an urgent need for intensive health education interventions for this group. There is also a need to initiate an implementation of a national program for CVD risk factors assessment, as well as promotion of an overall healthy lifestyle for school teachers through the use of health education which should be directed to smoking health related problems.
Key-words:
Prevalence - hypertension - IHD - school teachers - Libya - and risk factors.
