Population-level interventions for coronary heart disease prevention: what have we learned since the North Karelia project?

Purpose of review The prevalence of coronary heart disease (CHD) risk factors in the population necessitates investment in the design and delivery of effective population-level interventions to prevent and enhance the management of CHD. This review examines the approaches that have been central to the design and delivery of previous, seminal population-level CHD prevention programs; it offers recommendations for the design and evaluation of the next generation of population-level CHD prevention trials. Recent findings Almost 50% of the decline in the rates of CHD mortality in the developed world can be attributed to population-level declines in CHD risk factors, including cholesterol, hypertension, and smoking. There is evidence that community-based CHD prevention interventions can have a positive impact on these risk factors within a distinct population. More recent community-based CHD trials have focused on discrete populations including the socioeconomically deprived, ethnic minorities, and rural communities. Summary There has been large variability in the success experienced by population-level CHD prevention trials. Best practices have emerged which may be used to inform the design of future trials. These include the need for multisectoral partnerships, coordination of multi-level interventions (programs and policy), and delivering a sufficient intervention dose to targeted populations.