TITLE:
Prevalence, Awareness, and Control of Hypertension in Health Workers of Two Teaching Hospitals of Yaounde-Cameroon: The Hypertension Awareness Initiative (THAI) Pilot Survey
AUTHORS:
Sylvie Ndongo Amougou, Karen Kamgoum Tchokote, Ba Hamadou, Ahmadou Musa Jingi, Chris Nadège Nganou-Gnindjio, Marie Ntep Ngwet, Liliane Mfeukeu Kuaté, Bonaventure Jemea, Lucie Ebah Epok, Dieudonné Danwé, Samuel Kingue
KEYWORDS:
Hypertension, Health Workers, Prevalence, Yaounde
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.5 No.8,
August
31,
2018
ABSTRACT: Introduction: High blood pressure is a public problem worldwide because of its high morbidity and mortality. The greatest burden is in low-income set-tings. The burden of disease has not been studied in health workers in our setting. Methods: Between December 2016 and June 2017, we carried out a cross-sectional descriptive and analytic study in two teaching hospitals in Yaounde, using the WHO STEP wise approach. Participants were consenting Physicians, Nurses, Midwives, and Nursing assistants of both sex, aged ≥ 21 years. Results: A total of 266 health workers were screened—31 Physicians, 144 Nurses, 80 Nursing assistants, and 11 Midwives. Their mean age was 41.1 ± 7.6 years (25 to 66 years), and 84.6% were females. The prevalence of Hypertension was 13.9%, of which 54.1% were newly diagnosed—Awareness rate of 45.9%. The control rate of known cases of hy-pertension was 64.7% (64.3% in those on monotherapy, and 66.7% in those on bitherapy). Age > 40 years, and adiposity were significantly associated with hypertension. Conclusion: Compared to the general population, the prevalence of hypertension amongst health workers was low, but with a high rate of un-awareness.