Abstract
IntroductionHypertension has been identified as a significant predictor of many chronic health conditions. Body Mass Index (BMI) and Quality of Life (QoL) are key determinants of hypertension especially among elderly populations. In this study, we examined the effect of self-reported hypertension (SRH) on chronic health conditions and quality of life among older adults in Ghana.MethodsThe WHO Study on Global Ageing and Adult Health Wave 2 data for Ghana, collected from 2014 to 2015 was applied in this study. Data for older adults aged 50 years and above were analyzed. Weighted descriptive and inferential analyses were performed using Stata 14. We predicted any potential associations between SRH and chronic health conditions using a corrected chi-square and Coarsened Exact Matching with adjusted odds ratios.ResultsThe prevalence of SRH among older adults in Ghana was 15.8%. This was significantly associated with sex, marital status, religion, place of residence, working status, location/region, health status BMI, and QoL. In all, older adults with poor health status, obese state and high QoL had 3.15, 2.17 and 2.76 odds of SRH respectively [AOR(95%CI)p-value=3.15(1.65-6.02)0.001, 2.17(1.31-3.59)0.003 and 2.76(1.04-7.31)0.041)]. In addition, older adults with SRH were at increased risk of reporting chronic conditions such as stroke, angina, diabetes and cataract.ConclusionOverall, a key observation from this analysis is that SRH (and not only clinically diagnosed hypertension) is significantly associated with co-morbidities. In Ghana, older adults with SRH have increased risk of co-morbidities including diabetes, stroke, angina, and cataract. Interventions to improve the awareness and early detection of hypertension at the population level is key. Controlling hypertension at the population level will reduce prevalence of chronic conditions and increased protection.
Highlights
Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases worldwide [1]
Rural-urban disparities existed in the prevalence of self-reported hypertension (SRH) and was relatively higher among urban residents (23.1% vs. 8.1%), while unemployed older adults had relatively higher SRH, than those who were working (19.8% vs. 13.2%) In terms of geographical location, older adults living in the Volta region had the highest risk of SRH (51%), compared with those living in the other nine administrative regions in Ghana
Poor perception of health status was associated with a higher SRH among the older adults (28.7%) and SRH was highest among obese individuals (34.2%) as compared with other BMI categories (Table 2)
Summary
Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases worldwide [1]. The 2017 Global Burden of Disease (GBD) indicated that hypertension was an important public-health challenge worldwide and was estimated to affect 1.56 billion individuals by 2025 with an increased global prevalence of 60% [1, 2]. Hypertension is a chronic multifactorial disease whose detection is often delayed due to its slow and silent progression [2]. This asymptomatic chronic disease in most people requires optimal control usually through disciplined adherence to prescribed medications. Ghana Population 2020 (Live) (Demographics, Maps, Graphs).
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