Relationship between risk level, risk perception and preventive behaviors of myocardial infarction and stroke in people aged 30 to 60 years of Jiroft city, south of Iran in 2022

Background: Among non-communicable diseases, myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke are the most common cause of death in the world. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between risk level and preventive behaviors of heart in people aged 30 to 60 years of Jiroft city in 2022. Methods: This research was a cross-sectional study. The population under study is 383 middle-aged individuals (30-60 year) of Jiroft city with the combined sampling method. The data collection tools was reseacher made, included demographic questions, risk perception questionnaires, and preventive behavior questions for MI and stroke. Information was analyzed by SPSSv21 software and further analyzed with descriptive statistics tests, chi-square test, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation test at level 0.05. Results: The participants' average age was 41.26 ± 8.32 years. The highest percentage (51.4%) of middle-aged individuals had a risk level between 10 and 20% for cardiovascular diseases. The study investigated a significant correlation (p < 0.01) between risk level, risk perception, and preventive behaviors for MI and stroke. Smoking and physical activity failed to reveal a significant correlation (p > 0.05), but other dimensions of preventive behaviors correlated positively and significantly with the total score of preventive behaviors (p < 0.01). Conclusion: According to study findings, risk perception plays a significant role in influencing preventive behaviors for MI and stroke. It is recommended to conduct educational interventions to enhance understanding of the actual risk of MI and stroke, particularly among individuals with a high-risk assessment level. This would encourage the adoption of preventive behaviors in this population.