Kebadnew Mulatu and Tensaykahsay*
Background: Hypertension is one of the major noncommunicable chronic diseases in the globe which is now changed from a relative rarity to a major public health problem. Because now a day's, globally cardiovascular disease accounts for approximately 17 million deaths a year, nearly one-third of the total death. Of these, complications of hypertension account for 9.4 million deaths worldwide every year. Hypertension is responsible for at least 45% of deaths due to heart disease, and 51% of deaths due to stroke. The study aimed to assess the magnitude and associated factors of hypertension among the age group of 18 years and above in Southwest, Ethiopia, 2020.
Method: A community based cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 356 adults were recruited for the study. A pre-tested and structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Both bivariate and multivariate logistic regressions were carried out to assess the association of independent variables with hypertension and P-value <0.05 was considered as significant.
Result: A total of 351 participants were included in the analysis. About 17.7% of the respondents had elevated their Blood pressure. Sex (AOR = 6.7, 95% CI 2.10-21.53), age (AOR= 2.6, 95% CI.1.07-7.40), and body mass index (BMI), (AOR=2.8, 95% CI. 1.14-6.93 and AOR=8.5, 95%CI.1.68-42.45), and vigorous physical exercise (AOR=3.9, 95% CI. 1.40-11.13) were significantly associated with hypertension.
Conclusions and recommendation: The study showed that the overall prevalence of hypertension was higher in the study area which was comparatively higher in men than females. The study also showed that BMI, sex, age, and engaging in vigorous physical exercise were found to be significant factors that influence hypertension in the study area. Community-based screening programs should be established for hypertension in this community.
