ABSTRACT
Present study is the first announcement of the prevalence of hypertension among Basrah population and it estimates for the first time the percentage of awareness among the hypertensives to their high blood pressure. The distribution of hypertension was determined by age, Sex and body weight. In addition, risk factors such as smoking and family history were also evaluated. The WHO recommended diagnostic criteria were followed so that hypertension is defined as blood pressure measured greater than or equal to 140/90 mm Hg at the age of 20's and 160/95 mm Hg at the age of 50's or self-reported taking antihypertensive medication. Hypertension in turn was classified into mild, moderate and severe categories. The prevalence of hypertension among the total subjects [750] studied was found to be 32% and it is higher in males than in females [37% vs 27% respectively]. Blood pressure was increased with age and body weight in both males and females. Only 19% of the hypertensives were aware of their high blood pressure and the percentage of awareness correlated positively with age and severity of hypertension and it was higher in females [31%] than in males [12%]. However, only 5% of the aware hypertensives were on regular antihypertensive medications. This study estimates the size of the problem in Basrah which can provide a data base for a further epidemiological studies of hypertension in Basrah