Dyslipidemia is a chronic disease with a steadily increasing prevalence and is a risk factor for cardio-cerebrovascular disease. Currently, it has been raised as a problem in Korea because the recognition and proper management of the disease has not b...
Dyslipidemia is a chronic disease with a steadily increasing prevalence and is a risk factor for cardio-cerebrovascular disease. Currently, it has been raised as a problem in Korea because the recognition and proper management of the disease has not been made even though it can treat dyslipidemia through medication and improvement of lifestyle. Socioeconomic status, including education, income, and occupation, is an important factor in determining the health of an individual and managing disease, so it is necessary to understand the relevance of dyslipidemia to awareness and treatment. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the difference in the management of dyslipidemia according to socioeconomic status in patients with dyslipidemia over the age of 19 in Korea, and to determine the associations between awareness and treatment of dyslipidemia.
Data from the 7th Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2016-2018) were used. A total of 5,907 dyslipidemia patients over 19 years old were included as final subjects. As a result of the analysis, only 35.9% (2,119 people) of dyslipidemia patients were aware that they were suffering from dyslipidemia, and 26.8% (1,518 people) were taking lipid-lowering drugs for more than 20 days a month. As a result of multivariable logistic regression analysis to determine the associations between socioeconomic status and awareness of dyslipidemia, in the case of house income quartiles, the odds ratio in 'Middle' group was 1.283 (95% CI=1.022-1.61) compared to 'Low' group. The odds ratio in the 'High' group was 1.339 (95% CI=1.027-1.745) higher than that of the ‘Low’ group. There were no significant associations between education level and employment status with awareness of dyslipidemia.
As a result of multivariable logistic regression analysis to determine the relationship between socioeconomic status and treatment of dyslipidemia, in the case of house income quartiles, 'Middle' group showed higher odds ratio of 1.328 (95% CI=1.041-1.694) compared to 'Low' group. The odds ratio was higher at 1.4 (95% CI = 1.05-1.865) in the ‘High' group than in the 'Low' group. The results of analysis on treatment of dyslipidemia, education level and employment status showed no statistically significant associations.
This study used data representing the Korean people. Unlike existing domestic studies to identify influencing factors, This study analyzed the awareness and treatment status of dyslipidemia according to socioeconomic status, unlike existing domestic studies to identify influencing factors. Through the results of the study, it was confirmed that the proportion of people who were aware of and treated the disease among the patients with dyslipidemia was very low. And it was confirmed that the income level and awareness and treatment of dyslipidemia were highly correlated. In the future, it is necessary to educate about the severity of dyslipidemia and the importance of drug treatment, and to seek strategies for managing dyslipidemia for groups with low socioeconomic status. For the proper management of dyslipidemia, there is a need to actively promote the national examination project.