engleski

Risk factors for cardiovascular disease in rural area of Croatia

Rural areas, where 47.6% of the Croatian population lives are not generally the focus of research ; yet there are chal-lenges which affect the rural population that often go unreported. These communities often exhibit disadvantages inmany areas of health. The aim of this study is to examine the specific health needs and related determinants of rural pop-ulations influenced by transition that were affected by the consequences of war. The focus of the research is rural lifestyle, behaviour and cardiovascular risk factors in three villages of Sisa~ko-moslava~ka County. Results show that partici-pants generally understand that their own lifestyles influence their health, but they often neglect to change their behav-iour to improve their health. This can be explained through complex socio-economic conditions and traditional values oftheir heritage. These results suggest a need for further research on health status, attitude, and behaviour of Croatia’s ru-ral population. Specific public health intervention and services for rural populations must be promoted.

cardiovascular disease, risk factors, rural population, health care, health status

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