Prevalence and predictors of pre hypertension and hypertension among school going adolescents (14–19 years) of Tripura, India

Uncontrolled hypertension during adolescence is an established risk factor for future development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The study determined prevalence of pre hypertension and hypertension and the predictors of high blood pressure among adolescents. The study included 530 Tripuri tribal and 363 Bengali adolescents from Tripura, India. Anthropometric measurements, adiposity status, systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of the subject were evaluated. Subjects were classified as normotensive, pre hypertensive and hypertensive using National high blood pressure education program (NHBPEP) criteria. Multiple logistic regression was applied to study the strength of association between blood pressure and socieconomic correlates. Prevalence of normotension, pre-hypertension and hypertension was 89.47%, 7.73% and 2.80% respectively. Overweight or obese subjects were highly susceptible for pre-hypertension and hypertension. SBP showed significant positive correlation with body mass index (BMI), waist-hip ratio (WHR), waist circumference (WC) and waist-height ratio (WHtR). While DBP correlated significantly with BMI, WHR and body fat of subjects. Risk factors like age, parental literacy status, socioeconomic class, physical activity level, WHR, WC, WHtR; and percentage body fat showed significant association with hypertension. Prevalence of pre hypertension and hypertension varies according to ethnicity, locality, adiposity and socioeconomic correlates of the subjects.