Prevalence of prehypertension among medical students and its correlation with anthropometric indices

Abstract

Background: Hypertension is one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Prehypertension acts as a warning sign, in younger age group which indicates the risk of developing hypertension in later life. Obesity is another important public health problem that has assumed epidemic proportions in developing countries and acts as a major independent risk factor for the development of hypertension. Objectives: The objective of the study was to identify the prevalence of prehypertension and its relation with body mass index (BMI) and neck circumference (NC) among young medical students. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional was conducted among 192 medical students. The participants were examined for various anthropometric parameters such as height, weight, and NC. BMI was calculated. Blood pressure (BP) was recorded using a standard mercury sphygmomanometer. The correlation between BMI, NC, and BP was assessed by calculating the Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r) and P > 0.05 was taken as statistically significant. Results: The overall prevalence of prehypertension among the participants was 21.35%. The prevalence was higher among the overweight medical students (45.48%). Mean BMI and mean NC were higher among prehypertensives compared to normotensives. A positive significant relation was found between BPs and both BMI and NC. Conclusion: Our study revealed a high prevalence of prehypertension among medical students which was significantly associated with BMI and NC.