Hypertension among rural Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites: the San Luis Valley Diabetes Study

IN THE SAN LUIS VALLEY DIABETES STUDY (SLVDS) researchers studied hypertension morbidity and risk factors in 1788 Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites (NHW) from the rural San Luis Valley in Colorado. Hypertension was defined by The Fifth Report of the Joint National Committee on Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC-V) criteria. In this population-based study, the prevalence, incidence, and risk factors for hypertension did not differ significantly between non-diabetic Hispanics and NHW participants. Hypertension risk increased with age, heart rate, serum triglycerides, insulin area, and obesity (in young participants). Compared with the prevalence rates in non-diabetic participants, the rates were significantly higher in people with diabetes and increased with the duration of diabetes and central obesity. The risk of hypertension in diabetic Hispanics appeared to be somewhat lower than that in NHW diabetics.