Development and validation of a self-scoring test for coronary heart disease risk

Self-administered tests to assess an individual's coronary heart disease risk are common in the popular press. However, delusion and inaccuracy in self-scoring may impair their utility as educational tools. Self-assessment questions concerning dietary cholesterol, weight, cigarette smoking, and blood pressure were administered several days prior to risk measurement to 246 randomly selected adults aged twenty-five to sixty-four. A standard risk score combining measured blood pressure, cigarette smoking on blood cholesterol level was calculated for each participant using a multiple logistic equation. The self-scoring test was derived by multiple regression, using the standard risk score as the dependent variables and the self-assessment responses, age, and sex as independent variables. The multiple R² of the resulting equation was 0.48. For 86 percent of the participants, the decile of self-assessed risk was within two deciles of the decile of risk calculated from logistic equation. We tested the validity of the self-scoring test in a separate and independent population (n-247) with comparable results. We conclude that the test indicated risk status and sources of elevated risk for many individuals. Such a test can be a valid health education tool.