Prevalence and associated factors of pre-hypertension and hypertension in Nepal: Analysis of the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2016

Abstract

Objectives: Hypertension is the leading risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and develops faster among pre-hypertensive individuals. However, there is a lack of nationally representative studies that investigate the prevalence and determinants of these two conditions in many developing countries, including Nepal. This study investigates the prevalence and determinants of pre-hypertension and hypertension in Nepal.

Methods: The present cross-sectional analysis used data from the 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey, collected from June 2016 to January 2017. After calculating the weighted prevalence (with 95% confidence interval [CI]), simple and multivariable analyses were performed to estimate odds ratios.

Results: A total of 14 857 individuals (6247 males and 8610 females) aged ≥15 years who had their blood pressure measured during the survey were included in this study. The prevalence for pre-hypertension and hypertension were 26.0% (95% CI: 25.3-26.3, n = 3856) and 19.5% (95% CI: 18.8-20.2, n = 2899), respectively. The prevalence of both conditions was greater among males. In multivariable analyses, older age, male sex, higher body mass index, and residents of Provinces 4 and 5 had significantly increased odds of pre-hypertension and hypertension (P < .05). Additionally, higher education level was found to be positively associated with hypertension.

Conclusions: The combined higher prevalence of pre-hypertension and hypertension indicates that nearly half (45.5%) of the respondents are at a greater risk of cardiovascular and other non-communicable diseases due to these two conditions. Older people, males, obese people, and individuals living in Provinces 4 and 5 require more awareness to control blood pressure levels.

Keywords: NDHS 2016; Nepal; determinants; hypertension; prevalence; pre‐hypertension.