Diagnosis and Treatment of Hypertension Among People Aged 45 Years and Over in India: A Sub-national Analysis of the Variation in Performance of Indian States

Introduction: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the single largest contributor to non-communicable disease (NCD) deaths, with hypertension contributing to a significant proportion of these deaths. This study aims to provide estimates of the prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension at sub-national levels in India and identifies well and under-performing states with respect to the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. Methods: The study utilises data from the Longitudinal Study of Ageing in India (LASI), a nationally representative survey of more than 72,000 individuals. Age-sex adjusted prevalence rates of self-reported hypertension was calculated using the direct standardisation method. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to assess the association of self-reported hypertension with the various individual co-morbidity, lifestyle, and household factors. Self-reported prevalence was compared with an objective measure of hypertension for each state, and funnel plots were constructed to assess the performance of states. Results: Our findings suggest that the overall prevalence of age-sex adjusted self-reported hypertension was 25.8% in India with significant variation among states. Results based on logistic regression confirm that those individuals who are elderly, obese, belong to a higher socio-economic group and have associated co-morbidities are at increased odds of reporting hypertension. Overall, 4 out of 10 adults over 45 years of age in India are not aware of their hypertensive condition, and of those who are aware, 73% are currently taking medication, and only 10% of these have their hypertension under control. Based on the performance, states were classified into high and low performing categories. States with an increased proportion of population below the poverty line had significantly lower performance with respect to the diagnosis of hypertension, whereas states with higher literacy rates and greater availability of specialist doctors at community health centres (CHCs) had significantly better performance with respect to treatment-seeking behaviour. Conclusion: The findings of this study and its policy implications are discussed. Based on state performance, strategies are proposed in terms selective targeting vs. population-based strategies. High impact states and sub-groups are identified where intense efforts are needed to tackle the growing menace of hypertension in India.