Alberti KGMM

Aspray TJ

Edwards R

Kissima J

Mugusi F

Rashid S

Unwin N

Whiting D

Objective. To describe the prevalence, detection, treatment and control of hypertension in an urban and rural area of Tanzania. Design. Two linked cross-sectional population-based surveys. Setting. A middle-income urban district of Dar es Salaam (Ilala) and a village in the relatively prosperous rural area of Kilimanjaro (Shari). Participants. Seven hundred and seventy adults (&gt; 15 years) in Ilala and 928 adults in Shari were studied. Results. Hypertension prevalence (blood pressure ≥ 140 and/or 90 mmHg, or known hypertensives receiving anti-hypertensive treatment) was 30% (95% confidence interval, 25.1-34.9%) in men and 28.6% (24.3-32.9%) in women in Ilala, and 32.2% (27.7-36.7%) in men and 31.5% (27.8-35.2%) in women in Shari. Age-standardized hypertension (to the New World Population) prevalence was 37.3% (32.2-42.5%) among men and 39.1% (34.2-44.0%) in women in Illala, and 26.3% (22.4-30.4%) in men and 27.4% (24.4-30.4%) in women in Shari. In both areas, just under 20% of hypertensive subjects were aware of their diagnosis, approximately 10% reported receiving treatment and less than 1% were controlled (blood pressure &lt; 140/90 mmHg). Hypertensive subjects were older, had greater body mass indices and waist:hip ratios, and had more risk factors for hypertension and its complications (smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, obesity and diabetes) than non-hypertensives. Conclusions. There is a high prevalence of hypertension in rural and urban areas of Tanzania, with low levels of detection, treatment and control. This demonstrates the need for cost-effective strategies for primary prevention, detection and treatment of hypertension and the growing public health challenge of non-communicable diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa. (C) Lippincott Williams and Wilkins

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Hypertension prevalence and care in an urban and rural area of Tanzania

Hypertension prevalence and care in an urban and rural area of Tanzania

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