Background: Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (LVH) has been shown to be a risk factor as well as a consequence of cardiovascular diseases. The importance of an early LVH diagnosis in the community has been desmontrated by many case studies. Objectives: (1) Find out the prevalence of electrocardiographic LVH. (2) Determine the risk factors of electrocardiographic LVH. Subjects and method: 3561 people (1410 men) over 25 years old were chosen from 3 provinces/cities (Ha Noi, Thai Binh, and Nghe An). All participants underwent electrocardiogram, and the Romhilt-Estes score on standard 12-lead electrocardiogram to measure LVH. Diagnosis of LVH was made when Romhilt-Estes score >=4. Data was analyzed by Epi-Info software version 6.04 and SPSS version 13.0. Results: According to JNC 7, there were 744 people with hypertension (352 men), accounted for 21.2%. The rate of hypertension was 24.9% in men and 18.2% in women. This difference was statistically significant (p <0.001). Overall prevalence of electrocardiographic LVH was 6.71% (95% CI: 5.94 \u2013 7.58%). Prevalence was 9.00% among men (95% CI: 7.62 \u2013 10.61%) and 5.21% in women (95% CI: 4.35 \u2013 6.23%). Risk factors of electrocardiographic LVH included male, elderly, hypertension, and obesity. Conclusion: The high prevalence of LVH in the population showed the importance of detection and early treatment for LVH patients, especially in those, who had no clinical symptoms.
Left ventricular hypertrophy ; electrocardiogram

Background: Echocardiography has provided the most valuable means in detecting Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (LVH), but electrocardiography (ECG) has a greater advantage due to its mobility, simplicity, and low cost. Objective: (1) To examine the sensitivity and specificity of electrocardiographic criteria for LVH and determinants. (2) To study the risk factors affected to sensitivity and specificity of electrocardiography. Subjects and method: ECG and echocardiography were performed in 374 adults. The Romhilt-Estes score was used to measure electrocardiographic LVH, whereas the Framingham criteria of the left ventricular mass index were used to detect LVH on echocardiography. Results: Using echocardiography as a gold standard, sensitivity of ECG was 35.8%, specificity was 90.3%. The overall probability of correct diagnosis was 82.6%. Older people and men had tended to increase the value of ECG in detecting LVH. Conclusion: The high specificity but low sensitivity suggested an adjusted ECG criterion for a better diagnosis of electrocardiographic LVH.
Left ventricular hypertrophy ; electrocardiography ; echocardiography