Prevalence of Hypertension among Menopausal Women at a Selected Rural Area of Vaniyamkulam, Palakkad District

Abstract

Introduction: Menopause means permanent cessation of menstruation at the end of reproductive life due to loss of ovarian follicular activity. A variety of physiological changes take place in the body. Some of these are the result of cessation of ovarian function and related menopausal events, others are a function of the ageing process. Background of the Study: Menopause is the time of a woman’s life when reproductive capacity ceases. The ovaries stop functioning and their production of steroid and peptide hormones falls. A variety of physiological changes take place in the body. All these events lead to hypertension in menopausal women. Objectives: To find out the prevalence rate of hypertension among menopausal women at a selected rural area of Vaniyamkulam, Palakkad district. To identify the major risk factors for hypertension among menopausal women. Material and Methods Used: A cross sectional study with non experimental simple descriptive research design was used. The setting was rural community area of Vaniyamkulam, Palakkad district. Total Sample size was 100 post menopausal women. Sampling Technique: Purposive sampling. Samples from consecutive houses of a particular rural area of Vaniyamkulam. Menopause Women: 100. Study conducted at Vaniyamkulam, Palakkad district from 6^th–10^thJan 2020.Result: The present study revealed that overall prevalence of hypertension among rural menopausal women was 34%. As per systolic blood pressure, 32% women were found to be hypertensive. Similarly, according to diastolic blood pressure, 42% were found to be hypertensive. Risk factors identified for hypertension among menopausal women were obesity, family history of hypertension and lack of physical activity. Among total 85 women of obese category, 33 were hypertensive and 40 were prehypertensive. Among the total 80 women with positive family history, 24 women were hypertensive, 34 were prehypertensive. The physical activity data reveals that in mild physical activity group among total 73 women, 36 were hypertensive and 30 were prehypertensive. Conclusion: The study confirms that the prevalence of hypertension among menopausal women in a rural area is high, that is 34%. Even though there are many risk factors towards the hypertension in menopausal women, the researcher identified that obesity, family history of hypertension and lack of physical activity are the main risk factors for hypertension in menopausal women.