ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Hypertension has been reported among young people worldwide. It is known to track from youth to adulthood, which makes it a useful predictor of essential hypertension in adulthood. This study determined the prevalence of hypertension and associated cardiovascular risk factors among secondary school teenagers in Kano, Nigeria. METHODS: A questionnaire was administered on a cross section of 1000 teenage students to inquire about cardiovascular risk factors. Participants' blood pressure, height and weight were measured. Relevant investigations were done for those with raised blood pressure.RESULTS: The participants' ages ranged from 13 to 19 years with a mean of 15.91.62 years. Seventy of the students had systolic blood pressure 140mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure 90mmHg giving a prevalence rate of hypertension of 7.2% [95% CI = 5.6-8.9%]. Specifically, 32 (6.7%) of the 476 males were hypertensive compared to 38 (7.7%) of the 492 female participants. This difference was not statistically significant (2 =1.6 df = 1 p > 0.05). The prevalence rate of hypertension rose from 4.3% (among the younger participants) to 11.8% among the oldest students. Of the 70, a majority (88.5%) had grade 1 hypertension, 10.0% had Grade 2 hypertension and 1.5% had Grade 3 hypertension. The hypertensives were about twice more likely to have a family history of hypertension compared to their normotensive counterparts. This difference was statistically significant [OR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.12-3.83] (2 = 6.4 df = 1 p = 0.01). CONCLUSION: Hypertension exists among teenage students in Kano, Nigeria. Early detection can reduce risk of cardiovascular changes and end organ damage