Abstract

This study aimed to identify trends in hypertension among patients at Kampala International
University Teaching Hospital (KIU-TH) Ishaka. A descriptive cross-sectional design was used,
with 327 outpatient clients enrolled. Hypertension was defined as the presence of one or more
conditions, such as mean SBP ≥ 140 mmHg, mean DBP ≥ 90 mmHg, or the participant reports
taking medication for hypertension. Data was coded and entered into SPSS version 22.0 for
analysis. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were computed to determine
factors associated with hypertension. Variables with a p-value of < 0.2 during univariate
analysis were incorporated into a multivariate logistic regression model to control for
confounding. AOR with a corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) was computed to assess
the strength of the association. The study found that alcohol consumption, cigarette smoking,
consumption of branded herbal products, a BMI above 25 kg/m2, and age above 44 years were
significantly associated with hypertension