Assessment of Cardiovascular Disease Risk among Perimenopausal Women: A Cross-sectional Study in a Rural Area of West Bengal

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has become the leading cause of mortality in the world, more so in the perimenopausal age group due to decreased levels of estrogen and diminished ovarian function because of ageing.Objective:To find out the magnitude of CVD risk amongperimenopausal women residing in rural Bengal and its associated determinants.Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted in a rural area of Barasat block I during April-July 2021 on 150 peri-menopausal women selected by cluster sampling. A pre-designed pretested questionnaire was used for data collection and a 10-year probability of CVD risk was assessed using Framingham Risk Score. Logistic regression analysis was done to find out the associated factors.Results: Intermediate & high CVDrisk was present in 28 (18.7%) and 63 (42%) participants respectively. Among 150 participants, 62% were hypertensive, 44.7% were diabetic, 51.3% with borderline high total cholesterol and 76% had low HDL cholesterol. Factors significantly associated with intermediate to high CVD risk were high mental stress [AOR=6.96, 95%CI=2.17-22.31], family history of chronic illness [AOR=14.46, 95% CI=4.26-49.06] and presence of chronic morbidities [AOR=6.84, 95%CI=1.93-24.22].Conclusion: A significant proportion of perimenopausal women were at risk of developing CVD. Thus, awareness campaigns in the community would help in empowering women in maintaining their health through regular screening and timely intervention when deemed necessary.