Prevalence of Uncontrolled Hypertension at a Secondary Health Care Center in South-Western Nigeria

Abstract

There has been an upsurge in prevalence of hypertension worldwide and a drift towards poor control despite the development of new guidelines for treatment. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of uncontrolled hypertension at the State hospital Oyo. The study was a cross-sectional one and was conducted over a period of three months at the Medical Outpatient Clinic of the State Hospital, Oyo. The study population was composed of 403 adults aged between 18years and 70years. There were 321 females (79.7%) and 82 males (20.3%). The mean age of the consenting patients was 59.3 years (SD± 9.44). One hundred and sixty-four (40.7%) respondents had systolic blood pressure of less than 140mmHg. The prevalence of uncontrolled systolic blood pressure was 59.3%. Two hundred and ninety-seven (73.7%) respondents had diastolic blood pressure of less than 90mmHg. The prevalence of uncontrolled diastolic blood pressure was 26.3%.The prevalence of uncontrolled blood pressure was 245/403= 60.8%.The majority of hypertensive patients assessed in this study had poor control of hypertension hence they might have been exposed to development of heart disease, renal failure and stroke.