Patients Living With Arterial Hypertension in Mexico: First Insights of The Mexican Registry of Arterial Hypertension (RIHTA Study)

Abstract

Abstract BACKGROUND Arterial hypertension is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in Mexico. However, there is limited evidence to understand blood pressure management and cardiometabolic profiles. Here, we aim to assess the prevalence of controlled and uncontrolled blood pressure, as well as the prevalence of cardiometabolic risk factors among patients from the Mexican Registry of Arterial Hypertension (RIHTA). METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of participants living with arterial hypertension registered on RIHTA between December 2021 and April 2023. We used both the 2017 ACC/AHA and 2018 ESC/ESH thresholds to define controlled and uncontrolled arterial hypertension. We considered eleven cardiometabolic risk factors, which include overweight, obesity, central obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, hypertriglyceridemia, low HDL-C, high LDL-C, low-eGFR, and high cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. RESULTS In a sample of 5,590 participants (female: 61%, n = 3,393; median age: 64 [IQR: 56–72] years), the prevalence of uncontrolled hypertension varied significantly, depending on the definition (2017 ACC/AHA: 59.9%, 95% CI: 58.6–61.2 and 2018 ESC/ESH: 20.1%, 95% CI: 19.0–21.2). In the sample, 40.43% exhibited at least 5–6 risk factors, and 32.4% had 3–4 risk factors, chiefly abdominal obesity (83.4%, 95% CI: 82.4–84.4), high LDL-C (59.6%, 95% CI: 58.3–60.9), high CVD risk (57.9%, 95% CI: 56.6–59.2), high triglycerides (56.2%, 95% CI: 54.9–57.5), and low HDL-C (42.2%, 95% CI: 40.9–43.5). CONCLUSIONS There is a high prevalence of uncontrolled hypertension interlinked with a high burden of cardiometabolic comorbidities in Mexican adults living with arterial hypertension, underscoring the urgent need for targeted interventions and better healthcare policies to reduce the burden of the disease in our country.