This is the first research effort investigating cardiovascular risk in Paraguay. We report results of our ongoing cross-sectional prevalence study of riskfactors for coronary heart disease in the first 497 of 2,000 adult volunteers recruited from a population-based sample of households selected by a random process from the catchment area of 10 public outpatient health care facilities in grater Asunción. Consenting adults were interviewed, received a physical examination and grave blood specimens after a 12-huor fast at the corresponding facility to measure glycemia, cholesterol, triglycerides, insulinemia and 2-huor glucose tolerance. Specimens were processed at the IICS according to international standards. Although there is a preponderance of female subjects in this first group studied, results are similar to those obtained in population elsewhere, particulary with respect to high blood pressure (about 24 percent), diabetes mellitus (8 percent) and glucose intolerance (11 percent), diagnosed according to WHO criteria.Almost one half of diabetic and about one fifth of hypertensives had not known of their diagnosis. In accordance to body mass index, over 27 percent of women and about 32 percent of men were found obese, but 28 percent of obese women hes extreme obesity in comparison to only 17 percent of men. Hypercholesterolemia compatible with a moderate risk for CVD ranged from 7.5 to 9.8 percent, but the cholesterol level associated with a high risk for CVD was almost double (13 percent) in individuals over 40 years of age. About 13 percent of the population had a triglyceride level superior o igual a 200 mg/dl.About 2 percent of subjects studied were smokers