Open AccessComparing the Trends of Elevated Blood Pressure in Appalachian and Non‐Appalachian Regions
Author(s) -
ShanderaOchsner Anne L.,
Han Dong Y.,
Rose Danny,
Aroor Sushanth R.,
Schmitt Frederick,
Bellamy Lisa M.,
Dobbs Michael R.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
the journal of clinical hypertension
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.909
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1751-7176
pISSN - 1524-6175
DOI - 10.1111/jch.12397
Subject(s) - appalachia , appalachian region , medicine , blood pressure , west virginia , stroke (engine) , demography , gerontology , environmental health , archaeology , geography , physical geography , mechanical engineering , paleontology , sociology , engineering , biology
As an established risk factor for cardiovascular disease and stroke, hypertension risks are often thought to be more prevalent in A ppalachian mountain ranges when compared with other neighboring counterpart regions. This study evaluated blood pressure (BP) readings among 2358 K entucky residents attending community stroke risk screening events held in 15 counties, including nine A ppalachian counties (n=1134) and six non‐ A ppalachian counties (n=1224). With high BP being operationally defined as ≥140/90 mm Hg, 41.5% of A ppalachian county residents had elevated BP compared with 42.6% among those from non‐ A ppalachian counties. Although the counties with the highest rates of elevated BP did tend to reside in the A ppalachian region, there was no significant difference between rates of elevated BP in A ppalachia vs non‐ A ppalachian counties. This dataset is proposed as a pilot project to encourage further pursuit of a larger controlled project.