According to the death factor statistics issued by the Department of Health from year 1993 to 2004, heart disease, brain vessel disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure rank high among the common disease. Their collective number of death is greater than the number one killer-cancer. While chronic diseases are not foreign to most people, few are aware that hyprelipidemia is common cause of such diseases.
Measures to prevent hyperlipidemia are seen critical to health prevention task. This research aims at analyzing data from the 2001 National Health Interview Survey and probes the status of hyprelipidemia and its related diseases so as to indirectly estimate the proportion of hyperlipidemia and its characteristics. Meanwhile, those who self-report having hyperlipidemia are further analyzed in terms of their self-preventive measures and medical services.
Preliminary results show that it is statistically significant that those with hyperlipidemia are related to other diseases individually, but not collectively. Male chronic disease is related to hyperlipidemia. Aging is related to higher number of related diseases. Those lived alone with divorce status have a higher percentage of unawared hyperlipidemia. BMI value correlates positively with related diseases and number of diseases. Job holders reported less related diseases. Those who report having hyperlipidemia also register a higher percentage of diabetes. Population in Tauyuan, Shinchu, Miali, Taichung, Chunghua and Nantou counties have higher awareness of self-reporting hyperlipidemia, while population in Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Penhu counties (in southern Taiwan) have much lower self-awareness. Furthermore, those having self-reporting hyperlipidemia are statistically significant with their conditions in heart-disease, high-blood pressure, diabetes and kidney disease. It is suggested that concerned agencies can follow up on those who are unaware of or uninformed of their health status with mass screening to prevent outbreak of related diseases and unnecessary medical spending.
