Introduction:

Atherosclerosis is a gradual process that progresses from the first or second decade of life until the onset of clinical manifestations in further decades. Research aimed at identifying atherogenic risk factors in children and adolescents shows that the events previous to consequent diseases in atherosclerosis in adults are established from an early age of life.

Objective:

To identify the presence of early atherosclerotic signs in apparently healthy adolescents between 10 and 19 years of age.

Method:

A cross-sectional study was carried out between the months of October 2016 and June 2017 in three family medicine offices belonging to Raúl Gómez García, Turcios Lima, and Louis Pasteur Polyclinics. 307 adolescents were studied.

Results:

The most prevalent atherosclerotic risk factors were low fruit consumption (53.5% in males, 59.5% in females), low vegetable consumption (47.8% in males, 52.02% in females), and being a passive smoker (51.6% in males, 56.08% in females). A sedentary lifestyle was also highlighted in the female sex. Adolescents with two or three early atherosclerotic signs predominated in both sexes (77 males, accounting for 48.4%, and 71 females, accounting for 47.9%).

Conclusions:

There was a predominance of adolescents with two or three early atherosclerotic signs.

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