Evidence on harms was limited , but direct harms seemed minimal ( for resting ECG ) or small ( for exercise ECG ) .
BACKGROUND Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in adults .
Screening for abnormalities by using resting or exercise electrocardiography ( ECG ) might help identify persons who would benefit from interventions to reduce cardiovascular risk .
PURPOSE To up date the 2004 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force evidence review on screening for  resting or exercise ECG abnormalities in asymptomatic adults .
Predictors of congestive heart failure in the elderly: the Cardiovascular Health Study.
OBJECTIVES We sought to characterize the predictors of incident congestive heart failure ( CHF ) , as determined by central adjudication , in a community-based elderly population . BACKGROUND The elderly constitute a growing proportion of patients admitted to the hospital with CHF , and CHF is a leading source of morbidity and mortality in this group . Elderly patients differ from younger individuals diagnosed with CHF in terms of biologic characteristics . METHODS We analyzed data from the Cardiovascular Health Study , a prospect i ve population -based study of 5,888 elderly people > 65 years old ( average 73 + /- 5 , range 65 to 100 ) at four locations . Multiple laboratory measures of cardiovascular structure and function , blood chemistries and functional assessment s were obtained . RESULTS During an average follow-up of 5.5 years ( median 6.3 ) , 597 participants developed incident CHF ( rate 19.3/1,000 person-years ) . The incidence of CHF increased progressively across age groups and was greater in men than in women . On multivariate analysis , other independent predictors included prevalent coronary heart disease , stroke or transient ischemic attack at baseline , diabetes , systolic blood pressure ( BP ) , forced expiratory volume 1 s , creatinine > 1.4 mg/dl , C-reactive protein , ankle-arm index < 0.9 , atrial fibrillation , electrocardiographic ( ECG ) left ventricular ( LV ) mass , ECG ST-T segment abnormality , internal carotid artery wall thickness and decreased LV systolic function . Population -attributable risk , determined from predictors of risk and prevalence , was relatively high for prevalent coronary heart disease ( 13.1 % ) , systolic BP > or = 140 mm Hg ( 12.8 % ) and a high level of C-reactive protein ( 9.7 % ) , but was low for subnormal LV function ( 4.1 % ) and atrial fibrillation ( 2.2 % ) . CONCLUSIONS The incidence of CHF is high in the elderly and is related mainly to age , gender , clinical and sub clinical coronary heart disease , systolic BP and inflammation . Despite the high relative risk of subnormal systolic LV function and atrial fibrillation , the actual population risk of these for CHF is small because of their relatively low prevalence in community-dwelling elderly people
Evidence on harms was limited , but direct harms seemed minimal ( for resting ECG ) or small ( for exercise ECG ) .
BACKGROUND Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of death in adults .
Screening for abnormalities by using resting or exercise electrocardiography ( ECG ) might help identify persons who would benefit from interventions to reduce cardiovascular risk .
PURPOSE To up date the 2004 U.S. Preventive Services Task Force evidence review on screening for  resting or exercise ECG abnormalities in asymptomatic adults .