BURDEN OF HYPERTENSION AMONG RURAL COMMUNITIES IN KWABRE EAST DISTRICT OF ASHANTI REGION

ABSTRACT Background: Hypertension continues to be one of the main risk factors of cardiovascular diseases in the world. Much effort has been done to reduce the incidence of hypertension in urban communities, this has not been the same among the rural dwellers. The study seeks to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors of hypertension among rural dwellers in the Kwabre East District of Ashanti region. Method: This is a community-based cross-sectional study that was carried out in the Kwabre East District of Ashanti Region with a study sample size of three hundred and thirty (330) respondents. The study included people aged 18 years and above living within the district. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data on sociodemographic profile, Blood Pressure assessment and risk factors of hypertension such as age, Body Mass Index (BMI), smoking status, alcohol intake, physical activities, family history and eating lifestyle of the respondents. Results: It is found from the study that 34.04% and 24.85% prevalence of prehypertension in both systolic hypertension and diastolic hypertension respectively among the rural inhabitants in the Kwabre East District. Increasing family history of hypertension (OR=8.039, P-value=0.041), consumption of fatty foods (OR=8.917, Pvalue=0.077), alcoholic drink intake (OR=5.33, P-value=0.010), BMI (OR=0.377, Pvalue=0.000), and age (OR=-0.132,P-value=0.047) were factors identified to be associated with hypertension. Conclusion: There is an indication of the high burden of hypertension among rural dwellers: priority should be given to its early detection, management and control to effectively reduce these burden. The findings indicate the appropriate need for urgent xii interventions on health education and promotion that would enhance prevention, early detection and proper management of hypertension.