Evaluation of Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Diseases in Haitian Adults

This study aims to understand the prevalence and development of cardiovascular risk factors and diseases in Haiti. It focuses on a group of about 3,000 adults living in Port-au-Prince. The study is important because it helps to identify common cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, kidney disease, smoking, alcohol use, lack of physical activity, poor diet, and inflammation. It also looks at cardiovascular diseases like chest pain, heart attacks, heart failure, stroke, and heart-related death. The study's findings could help improve heart health care and address current challenges in Haiti. Participants in this study will be selected randomly and will be introduced to the study by community health workers. They will visit the research center for study enrollment and follow-up visits at 12 and 24 months, and then annually. During these visits, they will answer a study questionnaire, have their blood pressure measured, and be checked for heart symptoms and events. Some tests and an electrocardiogram will be done at the start of the study, at the 24-month visit, and every two years after that. Participants will also provide blood, urine, and stool samples for storage and future research. Community health workers will visit participants at home every six months to update contact information, measure blood pressure, and ask about heart symptoms and events. Any participant who reports a heart symptom or event will be referred to a clinic or hospital for care.