The main objectives of this study are to:

• assess the role of potential CVD risk factors (highly prevalent in Bangladeshis) that are yet to be characterized in detail, including: long-term arsenic and other toxic metal contaminations (both separately and in combination), indigenous tobacco consumption; sub-optimal nutrition and genetic variation.

• estimate the impact of modifiable conventional vascular risk factors (eg, smoking, history of hypertension, diabetes, physical inactivity, obesity, lipid fractions) on vascular disease in Bangladesh.

• evaluate the important local lifestyle, socioeconomic and nutritional exposures on CVD risk, such as diet (eg, local intake patterns of various oil, spices, dairy and fish) and different socio-economic groups;

• collect reliable information on knowledge, perception and practice to prevent CVD among participants in order to better understand public health awareness of vascular disease in Bangladesh; and

• collect detailed information on the economic burden of CVD events in Bangladesh better understand health economic impact of vascular disease in Bangladesh.

A copy of the published study protocol can be found by clicking here. BRAVE has received extensive media coverage: Dhaka Tribune,BDnews24, Prothom Alo, Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal.