The Prevalence of Arterial Hypertension and associated factors in the Senegalese population in Dakar

Arterial Hypertension (AH) is considered as a public health problem due to its high prevalence and difficult control and it’s also described as one of the most important risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of AH, as well as characteristics related to the presence of its inherited aspect among individuals aging between 24 and 70 years from the urban region of Dakar. Transversal study from January 2010 to January 2011, population-based study, of 620 participants with random sampling. For classification of AH, criteria included blood pressure (BP) ≥ 140/90 mmHg or current use of antihypertensive drugs. Individuals were interviewed with standardized questionnaires previously tested. Arterial Hypertension has a prevalence of 51.6 % in this sample of Senegalese population in Dakar, which is composed of 620 individuals. Among hypertensive individuals (n= 320), mean age was 50.6 years, 73.33% was female hypertensive, 31.25% male hypertensive and  62.5% with a family history of Arterial Hypertension, among them : 46% with a maternal family history (FH), 31% with a fraternal FH, 20% with a paternal FH and 4% with a dead fraternal FH, 41% had a family history of cardiovascular disease where those with a stroke family history : 36.58% had a maternal FH, 12.19% with a paternal FH and 7.31% with a fraternal FH, 13.41% with a dead fraternal FH. This study showed that AH represents an important public health problem with its high prevalence within this population.