Abstract
BackgroundHypertension remains one of the most important preventable risk factors for diseases and death. Identifying clustered patterns of modifiable lifestyle risk factors for hypertension and demographics factors related to these clustered patterns allows for targeting health prevention interventions. Therefore, this study aims to identify latent classes of hypertensive patients’ lifestyle risk factors based on the clustering of four modifiable lifestyle risk factors: eating, physical activity patterns, smoking habits, and blood pressure control.MethodsA total of 750 patients (Mage = 65.38 years, SDage = 9.2 years) with diagnosed hypertension in urban and rural primary health care centers in Takab (Iran) were recruited randomly from August 2016 to February 2017. Latent class analysis was performed by using proc. LCA in SAS 9.2.ResultsThree classes of lifestyle patterns were identified. About 14.4% of hypertensive patients were categorized in a low-risk class (I), 54.6% in an intermediate-risk class (II), and 31% in a high-risk class (III) of lifestyle. A one-year increase in age significantly increases the risk of membership in classes II and III. Similarly, being widowed or divorced increases the risk of membership in classes II and III. Also, having a higher education level decreases the risk of membership in classes II and III.ConclusionsThis study contributes to the literature on lifestyle behaviors among older adults and provides evidence that there are considerable differences in lifestyle behaviors between subgroups of older adult patients. The three profiles of hypertensive patients’ conditions suggest that because behaviors often occur simultaneously within an individual level, a latent-class approach helps cluster co-occurrence risk behaviors and focuses on interventions targeted to several healthy behaviors among high-risk patients.
Highlights
Hypertension remains one of the most important preventable risk factors for diseases and death
Recent evidence of the Framingham Heart Study indicates that systolic blood pressure is the most prevalent type of hypertension in patients aged 50 or above, so that by increasing the age, SBP increases by 10% per decade [10]
The pattern of diastolic blood pressure, differs with ageing, i.e. it increases until people are in the fifth decade, and slowly declines when people are over 60 years old [11]
Summary
Hypertension remains one of the most important preventable risk factors for diseases and death. Identifying clustered patterns of modifiable lifestyle risk factors for hypertension and demographics factors related to these clustered patterns allows for targeting health prevention interventions. The prevalence of hypertension is increasing with age, and by the age of 60–69 years, more than half of a population has high blood pressure [1, 2]. The World Health Organization estimates that about one billion people suffer from hypertension worldwide and accounts for Ghanbari et al BMC Medical Research Methodology (2018) 18:127 non-modifiable risk factors, such as age, gender, and heredity [8]. Recent evidence of the Framingham Heart Study indicates that systolic blood pressure is the most prevalent type of hypertension in patients aged 50 or above, so that by increasing the age, SBP increases by 10% per decade [10]. The pattern of diastolic blood pressure, differs with ageing, i.e. it increases until people are in the fifth decade, and slowly declines when people are over 60 years old [11]
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