There is uncertainty whether current strategies for providing CVD risk scores  affect CVD events .
Providing CVD risk scores may slightly reduce CVD risk factor levels and may increase preventive medication prescribing in higher-risk people without evidence of harm .
BACKGROUND The current paradigm for cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) emphasises absolute risk assessment to guide treatment decisions in primary prevention .
Although the derivation and validation of multivariable risk assessment tools , or CVD risk scores , have attracted considerable attention , their effect on clinical outcomes is uncertain .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of evaluating and providing CVD risk scores in adults without prevalent CVD on cardiovascular outcomes , risk factor levels , preventive medication prescribing , and health behaviours .
Accuracy of perceptions of heart attack risk: what influences perceptions and can they be changed?
Using perceived risk of a heart attack , we examined the relative importance of perceived risk factors and sociodemographic variables on subjects ' perception of heart attack risk , the relationship between perceived and objective ly measured heart attack risk , and the effect of health risk appraisal ( HRA ) feedback on risk perceptions . Data derive from a r and om sample of 732 Greater Boston , Massachusetts area men and women ages 25 - 65 years , who participated in a field trial of health risk appraisal instruments .  At baseline and approximately two months later , all respondents completed a question naire assessing their own health-related behavior , risk factors , and perception of heart attack risk . At baseline , respondents also completed one of four HRA instruments .  Physiologic measures of cholesterol , blood pressure , and weight were taken at either baseline or follow-up visit . Results showed that respondents used established risk factors in estimating overall risk ; that compared to objective measures of risk , a high percentage of respondents displayed an optimistic bias ; and that HRA feedback had some effect on perception of heart attack risk for those at high risk . Implication s of these results for health promotion are discussed
There is uncertainty whether current strategies for providing CVD risk scores  affect CVD events .
Providing CVD risk scores may slightly reduce CVD risk factor levels and may increase preventive medication prescribing in higher-risk people without evidence of harm .
BACKGROUND The current paradigm for cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) emphasises absolute risk assessment to guide treatment decisions in primary prevention .
Although the derivation and validation of multivariable risk assessment tools , or CVD risk scores , have attracted considerable attention , their effect on clinical outcomes is uncertain .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of evaluating and providing CVD risk scores in adults without prevalent CVD on cardiovascular outcomes , risk factor levels , preventive medication prescribing , and health behaviours .