Abstract 18112: National Trends of Lifestyle Modification Counseling for Hyperlipidemia - Analyses from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Databases 1999-2010

Abstract

Hyperlipidemia is a well known risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. There is limited data regarding national trends of physician-provided counseling for diet and physical activity in patients with hyperlipidemia. This study evaluated lifestyle modification counseling trends by utilizing 12 year data from National Health And Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from year 1999 to 2010. NHANES surveys are major program of the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NHANES data is collected every 2 years; hence 6 datasets were analyzed in this study. All patients who reported being diagnosed with hyperlipidemia were included in the analysis and were asked 3 questions whether they were told to: 1) reduce fat intake 2) reduce weight 3) exercise more. Baseline characteristics were assessed. Data was analyzed to determine the percentage of patients who were counseled for none, one, two, or all three factors. Cross-tabulation analysis was then done using Chi square tests to assess significance of change in trends across years. Various demographic factors were assessed for association with lower counseling rates. More than 9000 patients were analyzed across 12 years. It was found that counseling rates for all 3 factors initially remained <50%, but have been on the rise with 52.6% and 55.7% rates reported in 2007-08 and 2009-2010. The rates of no counseling initially increased, but have been decreasing with 13.5% and 10.1% rates in 2007-08 and 2009-2010. The counseling rates for 2009-2010 for one and two factors were 18.7% and 15.5% respectively. Chi-square analysis revealed p value <0.0001 for counseling trends across all years. The cross tabulation analysis is detailed in attached Figure 1. Lifestyle modification counseling rates for hyperlipidemic patients have been increasing in recent years but still remain well below expectations.