Socioeconomic Status and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Vermont Adults

Objectives. To investigate the connection between socioeconomic status (SES) and cardiovascular disease in Vermont adults through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) data. Methods. Data from 4,231 participants from the BRFSS 2019 Vermont survey was used. Education level, income level, federal poverty status, and employment status were used to represent overall socioeconomic status. The study investigated the connection of those variables with a history of coronary heart disease (CHD) and myocardial infarction (MI) to represent overall cardiovascular disease (CVD). Simple and multiple logistic regressions were used. Results. People aged 65 years or above, who smoke, have high blood pressure, are not employed, are men, and have high cholesterol are more likely to experience a history of MI event or CHD. There is no significant association between education level or being overweight and history of MI event or CHD (P \u3c .05). Conclusions. The results showed a significant association between socioeconomic status and CVD. Income and employment status were especially significantly associated with CVD. Limitations regarding education level within our sample may explain a disparity between our results and the previous literature