Association of hypertension with generalized and central obesity in rural adults: A cross-sectional study in Bangladesh

Background and aim: Obesity and hypertension are public health concerns. An increase in body weight is typically followed by an increase in blood pressure. This study aimed to investigate the association of general and central obesity with hypertension in Bangladeshi adults using WHO classification.
Methods: A Cross-sectional study of Bangladeshi adults (both males and females) aged (20-65 years). General obesity was determined by BMI in kg/m2. WHO classification for BMI for Asian population are underweight (BMI <18.5), normal (BMI 18.5-23.5), overweight (BMI 23.5-27.5) and obese (BMI ˃27.5). Central obesity was defined as a WC≥80 cm for females and ≥90 cm for males. Hypertension was defined by systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥140mmHg and/or, diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥90mmHg and/ or, intake of anti-hypertensive drugs at the time of data collection. Prehypertension was defined as SBP 120–139mmHg; and/or DBP 80–89mmHg. Multinomial logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the association of general and central obesity with hypertension.
Results: In this study, the overall prevalence of hypertension in Bangladeshi males and females was 15.3% and 6.0% respectively. The males had a higher prevalence of general obesity (13.3%), central obesity (35.3%) and hypertension (15.3%) compared to the females (13.0, 28.5, and 6.0%, respectively). The odds of having hypertension for general and central obesity were 2.18 95% CI (1.12-4.23), 1.53 95% CI (0.94-2.5) while adjusted odds ratio (aOR) were 1.31 95% CI (0.76-2.27) and 1.67 95% CI 0.97-2.87 respectively.
Conclusion: Thus, not only general obesity but also central obesity should be used to assess obesity in Bangladeshi adults.