Prevalence of Hypertension among Adolescents in a Rural Area of Madurai District: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: Hypertension among adults is an important public health problem nowadays. Uncontrolled hypertension leads to certain complications such as chronic kidney diseases, heart failure, stroke, etc. Early screening of children and adolescents helps to identify those “at risk” of developing hypertension at a future date and also modify risk factors at earlier stage thereby preventing complications. Objectives: 1. To estimate the prevalence of hypertension among adolescents aged 10-19 years in Madurai district. 2. To determine the risk factors associated with development of hypertension among the study participants. Methods: A cross-sectional study comprising of 420 adolescents in the age group of 10-19 years in Madurai district were included by cluster sampling. Data was collected using a semi-structured questionnaire. Blood Pressure (BP) was measured and diagnosis of hypertension was made based on guidelines of American Association of Pediatrics and Indian Pediatrics. Results: The present study revealed a prevalence of elevated BP as 2.1% and hypertension as 10.2%. Educational status (p=0.004), screen time (p=0.026) and family history (p=0.000) were significantly associated with adolescent hypertension. There was a positive correlation between Age and Systolic, Diastolic BP and also between Body Mass Index (BMI) and Systolic BP. Conclusion: Based on study findings, around 10.2% of the adolescent population was having hypertension. Non modifiable risk factors like family history of hypertension, age and modifiable risk factors like screen time, BMI were some of the factors associated with hypertension.