Abstract:
Hypertension is a significant contributor to the global burden of
cardiovascular and related target organ diseases such as heart failure, coronary
heart disease, stroke and kidney failure, and their associated premature
morbidity, mortality and disability. Marital status is an important social char-
acteristic known to predict a range of health outcomes including cardiovascular
disease. However, little is known about its impact on hypertension in sub-
Saharan Africa. This study explored the relationship between marital status and
hypertension among women and men in Ghana. Drawing on data from the
2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS), descriptive statistics and
binary logistic regression models were used to analyse the link between marital
status and hypertension. About 13% of women aged 15–49 and 15% of men
aged 15–59 were found to be hypertensive. After controlling for lifestyle and
socio-demographic covariates, the logistic regression models showed significantly
higher odds of hypertension for married (OR = 2.14, 95% CI = 1.30–3.53), coha-
biting (OR = 1.94, 95% CI = 1.16–3.23) and previously married (OR = 2.23, 95%
CI = 1.29–3.84) women. In contrast, no significant association was found
between any of the marital status cohorts and hypertension for men. Other sig-
nificant predictors of hypertension were age, body mass index and wealth status.
The results demonstrate that marital status is an independent risk factor for
hypertension in Ghana for women, rather than men. This could have immediate
and far-reaching consequences for cardiovascular health policy in Ghana. In
particular, the findings could lead to better targeted public health interventions,
including more effective risk factor assessment and patient education in clinical
settings, which could lead to more effective patient management and improved
cardiovascular outcomes.
