The burden of risk factors for non-communicable disease in rural Bihar, India: a comparative study with national health surveys

BACKGROUND: The incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is increasing in rural India. The National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) provides estimates of the burden of NCDs and their risk factors in women aged 15–49 and men aged 15–54 years. The aim of this study is to estimate the prevalence of hypertension and body-mass index (BMI) in adults aged 35–70 years in rural India and to compare these estimates, where age ranges overlap, to routinely available data. METHODS: The Non-Communicable Disease in Rural India (NCDRI) Study was a cross-sectional household survey of 1005 women and 1025 men aged 35–70 conducted in Bihar in July 2019. Information was collected on personal characteristics, self-reported medical history and physical measurements (blood pressure, height and weight). Prevalence estimates for hypertension (systolic blood pressure ≥ 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure ≥ 90 mmHg, or diagnosed and treated for hypertension), and for underweight (body-mass index < 18.5 kg/m(2)), normal weight (18.5–25.0 kg/m(2)) and overweight (≥ 25.0 kg/m(2)) were calculated. Where age ranges overlapped, estimates from the NCDRI Study were compared to the NFHS-5 Survey. RESULTS: In the NCDRI Study, the estimated prevalence of hypertension was 27.3% (N = 274) in women and 27.6% (N = 283) in men aged 35–70, which was three-times higher in women and over two-times higher in men than in the NFHS-5 Survey. One-quarter (23.5%; N = 236) of women and one-fifth (20.2%; N = 207) of men in the NCDRI Study were overweight, which was approximately 1.5 times higher than in the NFHS-5 Survey. However, where age groups overlapped, similar age-standardized estimates were obtained for hypertension and weight in both the NCDRI Study and the NFHS-5 Survey. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of NCDs in rural India is higher than previously reported due to the older demographic in our survey. Future routine national health surveys must widen the age range of participants to reflect the changing disease profile of rural India, and inform the planning of health services. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-022-13818-1.