Gender Differences in Prevalence and Risk Factors for Hypertension among Oyo State Civil Servants at Agodi Secretariat, Ibadan, Nigeria

Hypertension is a major public health challenge worldwide. It is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Hypertension is noted pathological conditions that predispose individuals to cardiovascular diseases and burdens in Nigeria and Africa. Hence this study aimed to assess the gender difference in the prevalence and risk factors of hypertension among Oyo State civil servants at the Secretariat Clinic. Proper surveillance of morbidity of hypertension in the Oyo state labour workforce helped in assessing the health strength of the Oyo state labour force and also helped in the formulation of health policy targeted at management and enhancing the performance of civil servants in Oyo state. A descriptive cross-sectional study was employed for this study among civil servants in Oyo state Ministries using both quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative study involved the use of an improvised register during the routine service at the clinic and free health mission. Qualitative data was obtained from 20 selected key informants for exit interviews. Any civil servant who comes for any complaint shall be tested for hypertension reading. The trained record officer was used to collect and collate the data from the register. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 was used to enter data and analyze using descriptive and inferential statistics. Ethical approval was received from the Oyo State Ministry of Health Ethical Review Committee. The outcome showed that the most prevalent form of hypertension was concluded to be the Stage 1 hypertensive form, making up 48.8% of females and 46.4% of males among the cases examined.