Novel Strategies for Reducing Heart Disease Risk Disparities

This Western Pennsylvania-based study will (1) improve cardiovascular risk stratification to identify high-risk populations, (2) identify differences in cardiovascular risk, (3) evaluate mechanisms for population differences in cardiovascular risk, and (4) implement a multidisciplinary community-based intervention program to decrease cardiovascular risk in high-risk populations. This is a prospective cohort study of 2,000 residents of the state of Pennsylvania. All participants will undergo assessments of traditional and nontraditional risk factors to identify and determine the mechanisms of population disparities in cardiovascular risk. 800 participants who are at intermediate or high risk of cardiovascular disease will be randomly assigned to either (1) usual care/"advice only"; or (2) a multidisciplinary behavioral modification program to determine the most effective approach to reduce or eliminate differences in cardiovascular risk among high risk populations. All participants will undergo long-term follow-up for cardiovascular events.