OBJECTIVE: Dyslipidaemia is one of the main modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Therefore, it is crucial to examine the prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypercholesterolemia and its associated factors among adults in Malaysia. METHODS: We used data from 19,935 respondents aged 18 years and above who responded to the cholesterol module in the National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2015. The survey employed a two-stage stratified sampling to select a representative sample of Malaysian adults. Descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyse the data.RESULTS: The overall prevalence of hypercholesterolemia was 47.7%. Among those who were diagnosed to have hypercholesterolemia, only 19.2% were aware of their hypercholesterolemia status. Only a mere 12.7% (95% CI: 12.4 -13.1) among those who were aware were on treatment and out of which only 53.7% (95% CI: 50.1-57.2) had their cholesterol levels controlled. The prevalence of hypercholesterolemia was associated with gender, age, ethnicity, education level, occupation, marital status, obesity, hypertension and diabetes. Awareness and treatment of hypercholesterolemia saw a similar pattern (except for gender and locality). For control of hypercholesterolemia, the female gender and secondary education levels were the only significant associated factors. CONCLUSION: The overall high prevalence of hypercholesterolemia in addition to poor awareness, treatment and control are significant public health problems. Intensified health campaigns and programmes especially among high-risk groups should be implemented in order to reduce or prevent complications of hypercholesterolemia in the near future.

Hypertension is a chronic medical condition and a global public health issue. According to Malaysia's National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS) 2006, the prevalence of hypertension among adults aged 18 years and above was 32.2% and had increased slightly in 2011 to 32.7%. However, not much study was done on the prevalence of young adult hypertension in Malaysia. Hence, the aim of this study was to determine this prevalence as well as its associated factors. Data was obtained from the NHMS 2011 study, which utilized a two stage stratified sampling design to conduct a nationwide household survey involving 28,650 individuals. Systolic and diastolic blood pressures, height, weight and blood glucose levels were measured. Binary logistic regression was used to investigate the relationship between prevalence of hypertension and its associated factors. The prevalence of young adult hypertension was 17.3%. After adjusting for other confounding variables, significant association were found in gender [aOR : 1.72 (95% CI : 1.52 - 1.96)], age [aOR : 1.08 (1.07 - 1.09)], ethnic groups (Other Bumiputera vs Malays [aOR : 1.55 (1.27 - 1.88)], obesity (aOR 4.43 95%CI 3.83 - 5.12) and diabetic status [aOR : 1.75 (95%CI 1.43 - 2.15)]. Early screening, detection and treatment of hypertension among the high risk young adults group is recommended to reduce the long-term risk of complications.