[Screening for and treatment of risk factors of cardiovascular diseases: need for a strategy?].

A major reduction in ischemic cardiovascular diseases depends on prevention of risk factors (RF) for atherosclerosis. To assess how screening and treatment of these RF were undertaken in an outpatient setting, we reviewed 300 charts of Swiss men (age 17 to 86, mean 50) who were compliant with medical follow-up. We noticed that the six RF taken into account were insufficiently investigated among young people. Furthermore, hypercholesterolemia was largely underinvestigated, even in the presence of other RF for atherosclerosis. These findings indicate that both the importance of early detection and the clinical significance of dyslipidemia are underestimated by physicians. This situation would be improved by a health policy adapted to Swiss medical practice which defined rules of screening and treatment of RF for atherosclerosis.