Prevalence of Hypertension and Associated Factors Among Diabetic Patients at Lira Regional Referral Hospital

Abstract

Background: Hypertension is common among diabetes mellitus patients and contributes to increased morbidity and mortality than the patients who only have diabetes mellitus alone. The contributing factors associated with hypertension in diabetes mellitus are not exhaustively known hence this study. Objective: To determine the prevalence of hypertension and associated factors among diabetic patients at Lira Regional Referral Hospital. Methods: In this cross-sectional study design a quantitative data collection method was conducted between July to October 2024, a systematic random sampling of 340 participants with confirmed diabetes mellitus were enrolled at Lira Regional Referral Hospital. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire adopted and modified from the WHO STEPS 2022 version. Patient charts and registers were used to verify information. Data was analyzed using STATA version 16 at univariate, bivariate (chi-square), and logistic regression at multivariate levels with p-value<0.05. Results: There was a high prevalence of hypertension of 67.1% among diabetic patients. Factors associated with hypertension include; Patients aged 61+ years (AOR=5.55, p=0.018), Overweight (AOR=3.77, p=0.042), Diabetes for more than five years (AOR=2.51, p=0.002), being widowed patients (AOR=8.04, p=0.005), and earning UGX 50,001–100,000 were less likely to have hypertension (AOR=0.35, p=0.037). Conclusion: The findings suggest that older age, overweight, longer diabetes duration, and marital status significantly increase hypertension risk, while moderate-income may offer a protective effect.