CARDIOVASCULAR DISORDERS IN BARBADOS.

Chest X-rays of 727 men and 857 women between ages 35 and 64 years attending hospital Out-patients clinics and the Enmore Health Centre in Barbados were classified with respect to aortic and /or cardiac enlargement. The prevalence of these radiological abnormalities was high. It was highest in the 50 - 64 year age groups. The results of clinical and serological examination of subjects aged 50 - 64 years who showed such radiological abnormalities and of age and sex-matched control groups, chosen from subjects with normal X-rays, were compared. This analysis showed the following results: 1. Mean blood pressure levels were high in patients with aortic dilatation and were highest in subjects in whom the dilatation was most marked. 2. The prevalence of clinical aortic incompetence was also highest in subjects with the most marked degrees of aortic dilatation. 3. The role of syphilis in the aetiology of aortic dilatation and aortic incompetence was confirmed. 4. There was evidence which indicated that another factor, probably hypertension, played a role in their aetiology. 5. There was a high prevalence of unexplained cardiac enlargement. Syphilis plays no apparent role in its aetiology. The results of other epidemiological studies in the West Indies show that there is a widespread distribution of these cardiovascular disorders in this area. Clinical studies suggest that their significance in terms of morbidity and mortality is considerable (AU)