PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS OF HYPERTENSION IN A RURAL COMMUNITY

BACKGROUND Hypertension is an important public health problem in both economically developed and developing nations. In many patients, the condition causes no symptoms until the occurrence of major cardiovascular complications. The aim of the study is to know the prevalence of hypertension among adults (18 years and above) in a rural community and to identify the risk factors of hypertension. MATERIALS AND METHODS It was an observational study carried out among all the 1151 adults aged 18 years and above residing in Raghunathapalem village of Khammam district, Andhra Pradesh. STEP1 and STEP2 of WHO’s step wise approach was used for collecting data. RESULTS The prevalence of hypertension among study subjects was found to be 11.37%. The prevalence of hypertension was significantly higher in individuals aged 35 years and above than those less than 35 years. Prevalence of hypertension was significantly associated with age, educational status, occupation, type of family, socioeconomic class, smokeless form of tobacco use, extra salt intake, level of physical activity, BMI and waist–hip ratio. CONCLUSION Overall, this study determined a high prevalence of hypertension as well as its associated factors in the study population. Therefore, community-based preventive approaches like lifestyle modification and early detection and treatment of hypertension might bring a substantial change in tackling the burden effectively