Factors associated with awareness, treatment and control of hypertension among 3,579 hypertensive adults in China: data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey

Background: Hypertension prevalence is high and rising in China, but it is inadequately controlled. This study investigated hypertension awareness, treatment, and control and their associated factors among Chinese adults. Methods: Data collected from the 2011 China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) from 12,991 Chinese adults were used. Hypertension was defined as systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mm Hg, diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mm Hg, self-reported prior diagnosed hypertension, or taking antihypertensive medications. Hypertension awareness, treatment, and control were defined as a self-reported diagnosis of hypertension, current use of antihypertensive medication, and blood pressure < 140/90 mm Hg, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to examine factors associated with hypertension awareness, treatment, and control. Results: Overall, 3,579 (27.6%) of the CHNS adult participants had hypertension, of whom 55.7% were aware of their diagnosis, 46.5% were treated with antihypertensive medications, but only 20.3% had their blood pressure controlled. Higher hypertension treatment rate was associated with older age (OR, 2.57; 95%CI, 1.65-4.02), urban residence (1.50; 1.14-1.97), living in the Eastern region (1.52; 1.14-2.01), and having overweight/obesity (1.99; 1.39-2.84); Awareness rate showed the same association as treatment rate with an additional protect factor of being female (1.37, 1.12-1.66). Lower control rate was associated with obesity (0.56; 0.42-0.76) and minority ethnicity (0.52; 0.31-0.86). Conclusion: Hypertension is a major public health burden in China. Rates of hypertension awareness, treatment, and control are still low despite efforts that have been made. More intensive screening and treatment intervention programs are needed in the future.