Prevalence of hypertension and prehypertension among doctors of different specialties in a tertiary-care teaching hospital in Eastern India and its correlation with body mass index

Abstract

Background: Hypertension is a very important risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The number of patients with hypertension is estimated to rise from 118 million in 2000 to 214 million in 2025. The prevalence study of hypertension and prehypertension among the doctors in India is lacking. Objective: To find out the prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension among doctors of different disciplines in a tertiary-care teaching hospital of West Bengal, India, and show any possible correlation between the mean blood pressures (BPs). Materials and Methods: After getting consent from the doctors, the following data were recorded: height, body weight, systolic and diastolic BPs, smoking history, drug history, and family history. Three recordings of BP were measured, and the average was taken. Definitions of prehypertension and hypertension were standardized from Joint National Committee 8 criteria. Result: One-fourth of the participant doctors were found to be normotensive, 14.82% of the doctors showed hypertension, and 60.49% of doctors showed prehypertension. This study also showed a significant positive correlation between body mass index and mean BP of the subject. This study also showed the impact of smoking and family history on the mean BP of the subject. Conclusion: This study indicates that the prevalence of prehypertension and hypertension is not at all less than the rest of the Indian population. Rather, the risk factors such as raised body mass index and smoking are very common among the doctors.