Background: Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), mainly cardiovascular diseases, are a substantial cause of mortality in the country of Georgia, accounting for approximately 93% of all deaths (standardized mortality rate 630.7 deaths per 100,000 persons per year) and an important threat to health security. We conducted a nationally representative survey examining the prevalence of NCDs and their risk factors as part of a 2015 Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) and Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) serosurvey.
Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional serosurvey among adults aged ≥18 years using a stratified, multi-stage cluster design (n = 7000). We asked participants standardized questions from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey and the WHO STEPwise approach to Surveillance (STEPS) Survey. We also measured blood pressure and Body Mass Index for each participant. Weighted frequencies were computed for NCD and risk factor prevalence and compared to 2010 STEPS results.
Results: Georgians reported high rates of smoking, alcohol use, elevated blood pressure, obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. An estimated 27.1% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 25.3, 28.8%) of adults (51.5% of men and 6.0% of women) reported daily use of tobacco products and 27.5% (95% CI: 25.7, 29.2%) of adults (52.1% of men and 7.0% of women) reported binge drinking within the last 30 days. Physical measurements revealed that 37.5% (95% CI: 35.8, 39.3%) of adults had elevated blood pressure and 33.4% (95% CI: 31.8, 35.0%) had obesity. 5.4% (95% CI: 4.6, 6.2%) of adults had self-reported diagnosed diabetes and 15.3% (95% CI: 14.1, 16.6%) had self-reported diagnosed cardiovascular disease. From 2010 to 2015, the prevalence of obesity increased by 8.3 percentage points (95% CI: 5.9, 10.7%; p < 0.01) and the prevalence of elevated blood pressure increased by 4.1 percentage points (95% CI: 1.4, 6.8%; p < 0.01).
Conclusions: Georgia has a high NCD burden, and results from the survey showed an increase in obesity and elevated blood pressure since 2010. The prevalence of other major NCDs have remained near levels reported in the 2010 STEPs survey. Comprehensive public health interventions are needed to control the heath security threats of major NCDs and their risk factors in the future.
Keywords: Georgia; Global Health; Global health security; Non-communicable disease; Risk factors; Survey.