The Malaysian HEalth and WellBeing AssessmenT (MyHEBAT) Study Protocol: An Initiation of a National Registry for Extended Cardiovascular Risk Evaluation in the Community

• Published in: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Main Author: Firus Khan A.Y.; Ramli A.S.; Abdul Razak S.; Mohd Kasim N.A.; Chua Y.-A.; Ul-Saufie A.Z.; Jalaludin M.A.; Nawawi H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI 2022
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85138388651&doi=10.3390%2fijerph191811789&partnerID=40&md5=341a2e0bf7dbeb5942858ab38eafe6eb

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) has been a burden to many developing countries for decades, including Malaysia. Although various steps have been taken to prevent and manage CVD, it remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. The rising prevalence of CVD risk factors such as hypertension, hypercholesterolaemia, diabetes, overweight and obesity is the main driving force behind the CVD epidemic. Therefore, a nationwide health study coined as the Malaysian Health and Wellbeing Assessment (MyHEBAT) was designed. It aimed to investigate the prevalence of CVD and the associated risk factors in the community across Malaysia. The MyHEBAT study recruited participants (18–75 years old) through community health screening programmes from 11 states in Malaysia. The MyHEBAT study was further divided into two sub-studies, namely, the Cardiovascular Risk Epidemiological Study (MyHEBAT-CRES) and the MyHEBAT Familial Hypercholesterolaemia Study (MyHEBAT-FH). These studies assessed the prevalence of CVD risk factors and the prevalence of FH in the community, respectively. The data garnered from the MyHEBAT study will provide information for healthcare providers to devise better prevention and clinical practice guidelines for managing CVD in Malaysia. © 2022 by the authors.