Population Attributable Fraction of Hypertension Associated with Obesity in Iran

Introduction: Prevalence of obesity has been increased in Iran over the recent decades. Little is known about fraction of hypertension attributable to obesity in Iran. This study aimed to determine the population attributable fraction (PAF) of hypertension due to obesity across different provinces of Iran. Materials & Method: Data on prevalence of hypertension, were extracted from Iranian Ministry of Health Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor InfoBase. Measure of association between hypertension and obesity was extracted from Tehran Lipid and Glucose Study, for men and women separately. The extracted relative risks were used to calculate PAF of hypertension associated with obesity after age standardization of the reported prevalence of obesity across different provinces of Iran. Results: In this study, PAF of hypertension associated with obesity was observed in females; 25.6 (95% CI:18.9-30.1) more than males 24.6 (95% CI: 18.1-29.2), in males across different provinces, North-Khorasan had the highest PAF of hypertension due to obesity 24.6 (95% CI: 18.1-29.2), following by Gilan 22.3 (95% CI: 16.5-26.3) Semnan, 21.5 (95% CI: 15.8-25.5) In females, North-Khorasan province had the highest PAF 25.6 (95% CI: 18.9-30.1) followed by Semnan 22.3 (95% CI:16.5-26.3 ), Hormozgan and Qom 20.9 (95% CI:15.5-24.6) and Fars 19.6 (95% CI: 14.5-23.1). Conclusion: Prevalence of hypertension is relatively high in Iran.  A sizable share of hypertension in Iranian provinces is associated with obesity. It is recommended that health promotion programs focus on obesity in these provinces.