Prevalence of ischaemic heart disease: the Caerphilly and Speedwell surveys.

Mortality from ischaemic heart disease remains high in the United Kingdom, and the present report describes the prevalence of the various epidemiological manifestations of the disease in two recent community studies with a common core protocol, each containing samples of over 2000 men, carried out in South Wales (Caerphilly) and the West of England (Speedwell, Bristol). The prevalence of electrocardiographic evidence of ischaemia was similar in the two communities--8.7% of men aged 45-49 years rising to 18.6% in men aged 55-59 years in the samples from South Wales, and 8.0% and 17.2% respectively in the Bristol population. The overall prevalence of angina was 7.7% in Caerphilly and 7.8% in Speedwell in men aged 45-59 years, but symptoms of severe chest pain were more commonly reported in South Wales than in Speedwell (10.1% compared with 6.3%). The data, however, suggested that the overall prevalence of ischaemic heart disease was very similar in the two areas. The prevalence of ischaemic heart disease was compared with that found in other population studies carried out in the United Kingdom and was higher than that found when employed men only were studied. There were substantial differences in mortality between the two areas; possible reasons for this are differences in community or medical services, smoking habit, or unemployment rates.