Trends in Prevalence, Awareness, Treatment, and Control of Hypertension in Rural Northeast China: 2008 to 2018

OBJECTIVE: This study is aimed at exploring the trends in the prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control of hypertension in rural northeast China from 2008 to 2018. METHODS: Two successive cross-sectional surveys were conducted in Liaoning rural areas in 2008 and 2018, which included 131520 and 10926 representative participants aged ≥ 40 years, respectively. RESULTS: Overall, the age-standardized prevalence of hypertension increased from 44.7% to 53.6%, and male residents showed a faster pace of increase and a 2.1-fold increase than female residents (25.5% vs. 10.6%) from 2008 to 2018. Moreover, the mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures increased by 9.0% and 4.1%, respectively, and the increase rates were greater in men than in women (9.2% vs. 8.9% and 5.3% vs. 3.5%, P < 0.05). Additionally, the prevalence of stage 2 and above hypertension was significantly higher in men than in women. However, the awareness, treatment, and control rates showed no improvement and remained unacceptably low. Control rates were 3.7% in 2008 and 3.6% in 2018. Even among individuals who received medical treatment, only 8.7% and 10.1% had controlled hypertension in 2008 and 2018, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of hypertension and mean blood pressure increased steadily in the past 10 years in rural northeast China, especially in men. However, the awareness, treatment, and control rates of hypertension remained extremely low. Therefore, long-term comprehensive strategies are urgently needed to prevent further development of cardiovascular diseases in these areas.