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Review
. 2021 Sep 22;4(3):e372.
doi: 10.1002/hsr2.372. eCollection 2021 Sep.

Prevalence of and risk factors for hypertension in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Endalamaw Tesfa  1   2 , Dessalegn Demeke  3
Affiliations
Review

Prevalence of and risk factors for hypertension in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Endalamaw Tesfa et al. Health Sci Rep. .

Abstract

Background: A number of epidemiological studies were performed to know the prevalence of and the risk factors for hypertension. However, these studies reported inconsistent results. As a result, this systematic review and meta-analysis were planned to generate representative data on the prevalence of and risk factors for hypertension among the Ethiopian adult population.

Methods: Five electronic databases, namely, PubMed, Science Direct, Google Scholar, Hinari, and African Journals Online, were searched for studies published in English from 1 January 2010 to 31 August 2020. Joanna Briggs Institute Meta-Analysis of Statistics Assessment and Review Instrument and Newcastle-Ottawa scale were used for data extraction and quality assessment for this review. Stata version 14 statistical software was used for the analysis, and due to high heterogeneity a random effects model was used for meta-analysis at 95% confidence interval (CI).

Results: In this review, 35 observational studies were included. The pooled prevalence of hypertension in Ethiopia was 20.63% (95% CI [18.70, 22.55]) with the I 2 value of 96.1%. Older age (≥40 years) (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 3.46 [95% CI: 2.67, 4.49]), urban residence (AOR: 1.47 [95% CI: 1.28, 1.70]), educational status less than grade 12 (AOR: 1.67 [95% CI: 1.38, 2.01]), family history of hypertension (AOR: 4.33 [95% CI: 2.95, 6.34]), diabetes mellitus (DM) (AOR: 5.18 [95% CI: 3.01, 8.88]), body mass index (BMI) ≥25 (AOR: 3.79 [95% CI: 2.61, 5.50]), central obesity (AOR: 1.91 [95% CI: 1.09, 3.36]), and alcohol consumption (AOR: 1.72 [95% CI: 1.26, 2.34]) were the identified risk factors for hypertension.

Conclusion: The pooled prevalence of hypertension is relatively higher as compared to the previous reports in Ethiopia. Older age, urban residence, lower educational coverage, family history of hypertension, DM, BMI ≥25, alcohol consumption, and central obesity were the risk factors for hypertension. The governments and stakeholders should design an appropriate strategy to prevent and control the disease in the Ethiopian population.

Keywords: Ethiopia; hypertension; meta‐analysis; prevalence; risk factors.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding this research.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flow diagram showing the eligibility of studies included in the review of prevalence of and risk factors for hypertension
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Forest plot of pooled prevalence of hypertension in Ethiopia.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of age ≥40 years with hypertension.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of male sex with hypertension.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 5
FIGURE 5
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of residence, educational status, and salt intake with hypertension
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 6
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of BMI ≥25 with hypertension.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 7
FIGURE 7
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of physical inactivity with hypertension.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 8
FIGURE 8
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of alcohol drinking with hypertension.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 9
FIGURE 9
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of family history of hypertension with hypertension.Note: Weights are from random effects analysis
FIGURE 10
FIGURE 10
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of DM and central obesity with hypertension
FIGURE 11
FIGURE 11
Forest plot of odds ratio for the association of cigarette smoking and khat chewing with hypertension
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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