FACTORS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE RISK SCREENING UPTAKE AMONG POPULATIONS WITH LOW SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

• Published in: Value in health 2017-05, Vol.20 (5), p.A381
• Main Authors: Lim, KK, Lim, C, Kwan, YH, Tan, CS, Chan, SY, Fong, W, Tay, HY, Ostbye, T
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cardiovascular disease; Cardiovascular diseases; Community centers; Disease management; Health beliefs; Health status; Low income groups; Medical screening; Morbidity; Mortality; Outreach programs; Policy making; Reviews; Risk assessment; Risk factors; Socioeconomic factors; Socioeconomic status; Systematic review; Uptake
• ISSN: 1098-3015; 1524-4733
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jval.2017.05.005

OBJECTIVES: Populations with low socio-economic status (SES) are at higher risks of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. This systematic review aimed to identify, classify and present factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk screening uptake into appropriate themes. METHODS: We systematically searched and screened articles from databases, complemented with hand-searching of references in included articles. We included full-text articles of studies which identified factors associated with CVD risk screening uptake among the adult population with low SES. We excluded review articles, book chapters and those not published in English. We extracted study characteristics, classified the factors and recorded the magnitude and direction of association for each factor with screening uptake, as well as the strength of the evidence for the association. RESULTS: Five out of 1363 articles were included which examined screening conducted in healthcare facilities, participants' homes or nearby community centers, as well as screening conducted as an outreach program. We identified and categorized 33 factors positively or negatively associated with screening uptake into 6 themes. Besides lack of awareness and poor health beliefs, the factors influencing the screening uptake of low SES population include opportunity cost from missing work, concerns about judgmental screening staff and absence of companion to attend screening together. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings provide a comprehensive overview of factors associated with CVD risk screening uptake among population with low SES. The findings are particularly useful for clinicians, researchers and policy makers who are developing interventions and screening programs targeting the low SES group. Studies are required to identify other unique factors associated with CVD risk screening in this group.