Impact of Hypertension and Other Comorbidities on Stroke Subtypes among Patients in Anambra State Teaching Hospital Awka, Nigeria

Nnabude Chinelo Ijeoma

doi:10.64060/JASR.v1i3.7

Authors

Nnabude Chinelo Ijeoma Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Anambra State, Nigeria Author https://orcid.org/0009-0005-2320-2064

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.64060/JASR.v1i3.7

Keywords:

Ischemic stroke, Haemorrhagic stroke, Hypertension; Risk factors, Multinomial logistic regression, Epidemiology

Abstract

Stroke continues to be a major cause of illness and death. Its occurrence is greatly affected by modifiable risk factors. This study aimed to describe the demographic and clinical characteristics of stroke patients and to explore the relationship between hypertension and stroke subtype. A retrospective cross-sectional analysis of 264 stroke patients was conducted. Continuous variables using means, medians, and interquartile ranges were summarized. Categorical variables were described with frequencies and percentages. The prevalence estimates with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Fisher’s Exact Test assessed the simple association between hypertension and stroke subtype (ischemic, haemorrhagic, transient ischemic attack [TIA]). A multinomial logistic regression model, adjusted for age and gender were applied, to estimate adjusted odds ratios (aORs) with 95% CIs, using ischemic stroke as the reference category. The average age was 59.1 years (SD = 16.3), and mean BMI was 29.9 (SD = 6.36), indicating a predominance of overweight and obesity (BMI ≥ 25). Hypertension was the most common comorbidity (91.3%, 95% CI: 87.2–94.4), followed by hyperlipidaemia (97%) and high cholesterol (35%). Type 2 diabetes (11%) and heart disease (26.9%) were less common. Fisher’s Exact Test showed no statistically significant association between hypertension status and stroke subtype (p = 0.362). Stroke subtype distribution was as follows: ischemic stroke (58.7%), haemorrhagic stroke (39.0%), and transient ischemic attack (TIA) (2.3%). In logistic regression analysis, hypertension was not significantly related to haemorrhagic stroke (aOR = 1.47, 95% CI: 0.58–3.76) or TIA (aOR = 0.55, 95% CI: 0.06–5.22) compared to ischemic stroke. Stroke patients in this group were mostly older, obese, and had high blood pressure. Although hypertension was quite common, it did not significantly vary by stroke subtype, highlighting its role as a universal risk factor across different types of strokes.

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