By: AJAY KUMAR AHIRWAR, RAJESH KUMAR GAUTAM, PRIYANKA AGRIYA
– Hypertension is a major health problem worldwide, killing 9.4 million people annually. Ignoring high blood pressure can lead to life-threatening complications. The present cross-sectional study surveyed 198 women (129 Bharia and 69 Gond) aged 20-74 from Patalkot, Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh, India. Data was collected via door-to-door survey. Healthy-looking women were measured and blood pressure and BMI were recorded. The results revealed that 97.1% of Gond and 88.4% of Bharia women were pre-hypertensive, and only 9.3% and 2.9% had normal systolic blood pressure. Similarly, 80.6% of Bharia and 84.1% of Gond women were pre-hypertensive for diastolic blood pressure, while 7% and 8.7% were hypertensive. None of the Bharia or Gond women had hypertension crises. Cross-tabulating subjects by category of hypertension and level of nutrition revealed that underweight individuals were more pre-hypertensive than normal-weight individuals. The study found that Patalkot tribal women were largely pre-hypertensive and underweight. A regression analysis was executed to understand the correlation between blood pressure and BMI. The regression coefficient was found insignificant.
