Background: Although the prevalence of hypertension has been well studied in middle age and elderly populations, few studies have systematically investigated the prevalence of hypertension and its association with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular risk factors in young populations.
Objective: This study examined the prevalence of hypertension in college students and its correlation with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular risk factors, such as neck circumference and body mass index (BMI).
Methods: This population-based study recruited a total of 1719 students (723 were junior, 502 were sophomore, and 494 were freshman), including 996 males (average age: 20.8 years) and 723 females (average age: 20.4 years). Hypertension was defined by the 2018 revised edition of the Chinese Guidelines for Prevention and Treatment of Hypertension. Blood and pulse pressure were measured using standard protocols. Circulating levels of lipids, glucose, glycosylated hemoglobin (GHb), leptin, and adiponectin were determined using standard methods. The Chi-squared (χ²) test was used for comparison of significant differences between groups. Linear and logistic regression analyses were used to explore risk factors that significantly influence hypertension.
Findings: The prevalence of hypertension was 10.59% in the total cohort, and sophomores had a higher prevalence of hypertension than freshmen and juniors (χ² = 19.372; P < 0.001). In addition, male students had a significantly higher prevalence of hypertension (10.24%) and abnormal pulse pressure (8.13%) than female students (1.4% and 0.83%) (χ² = 327.424, P < 0.001 for high SBP and χ² = 60.49, P < 0.001 for high DBP, respectively). Correlation analysis revealed that hypertension was significantly correlated with neck circumference and BMI (r = 0.509, P < 0.001; r = 0.474, P < 0.001), but not significantly correlated with the other parameters examined.
Conclusion: The prevalence of hypertension in college students is closely correlated with two obesity indicators, neck circumference and BMI.
Keywords: cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events, college students, correlation, hypertension, risk factors