Influence of Risk Factors and of Risk Factor Trends on Coronary Heart Disease Incidence in North and South European Cohorts

Abstract

The association between the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) and various personal characteristics (risk factors) has often been shown. It is well-known that incidence rates for North and South Europe are markedly different. The CHD risk factor most often studied so far, however, do not account for more than part of this difference in incidence. Therefore it is reasonable to suggest that major risk factors other than the standard widely-used blood pressure, smoking habits, serum cholesterol and age must exist, and that they should be able to explain the observed incidence differences. The focus here is on examining changes in the levels of factors to explain part of the differential incidence between North and South Europe.