[Risk factors for transmissible cardiovascular diseases].

Atherosclerosis is a multi-factor disease representing a real plague for developed countries, and spreading at an increasing rate in third world nations. In industrialized countries, coronary pathology occupied the first place in terms of morbidity and cardiovascular mortality, affecting more and more frequently younger people, thus constituting a serious problem of public health. Therefore, it seems absolutely necessary to carry out systematic screening for atherosclerosis amongst all high cardiovascular risk families groups, from infancy onwards. Lacking knowledge about the exact cause of atheroma, we had to determine what are commonly called the factors of cardiovascular risk. Among these, some are transmissible. Transmission may be direct: genetic and hereditary factors (sex, race, antecedents, dyslipemia, high blood pressure, diabetes) but it may also concern the transmission of a way of life. To prevent ischaemic heart disease, it is necessary to bring out change in behaviour from infancy onwards to detect high risk subjects and to correct every factor of cardiovascular risk upon which an action is possible.