Hyperuricemia and Other Risk Factors Associated with Systemic Arterial Hypertension: A Case-Control Study at a Tertiary Care Hospital

Background: Systemic hypertension is a major global public health issue and a leading contributor to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Hyperuricemia has been increasingly identified as a potential modifiable risk factor in the pathogenesis of hypertension, though the evidence remains inconsistent. This study aims to investigate the association between hyperuricemia and systemic hypertension while accounting for other established risk factors. Objectives: The primary objective is to assess the association between hyperuricemia and systemic hypertension. Secondary objectives include evaluating the relationships of other risk factors (age, gender, smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity, family history) with hypertension, comparing serum uric acid levels between groups, and determining the predictive value of hyperuricemia. Materials and Methods: A case-control study was conducted at the MTM clinic, Government Medical College, Nagapattinam. The study comprised 50 diagnosed hypertensive patients (cases) and 100 age- and gender-matched normotensive individuals (controls). Data on demographic and lifestyle factors were collected via structured interviews. Anthropometric measurements and blood pressure were recorded. Fasting serum uric acid and other biochemical parameters were measured. Statistical analysis involved descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, independent t-tests, and multivariate logistic regression to calculate adjusted odds ratios (aOR). Results: The prevalence of hyperuricemia was higher in cases (12.0%) than controls (6.0%), yielding a crude odds ratio (OR) of 2.14 (95% CI: 0.65–7.00). However, in multivariate analysis adjusting for biochemical confounders, hyperuricemia was not an independent predictor (aOR: 0.48, p=0.247). Similarly, other factors like dyslipidemia showed strong bivariate associations but did not remain significant in the adjusted model. Central obesity was highly prevalent and ubiquitous, especially among women (50.0% in both groups). Conclusion: The initial association between hyperuricemia and hypertension was confounded by other cardiometabolic factors. The findings highlight the critical role of central obesity as a pervasive public health issue and underscore the need for integrated management of the overall cardiometabolic risk profile rather than focusing on isolated biomarkers.