article · BMC Women s Health
A case-control study evaluated multidimensional risk factors for hypertension among 430 Moroccan women, split equally between hypertensive cases and normotensive controls. The investigation integrated sociodemographic, reproductive, clinical, dietary, anthropometric, biological, and quality-of-life measures. Multivariable analysis showed that elevated waist-to-height ratio had the strongest independent association with hypertension, followed by a family history of the condition and elevated visceral fat levels. Low physical activity, a low physical health-related quality-of-life score, low adherence to a Mediterranean diet, and hyperuricemia also showed significant independent associations with hypertension. Hypertensive women exhibited a generally less favourable multidimensional profile than normotensive participants. The findings indicate that comprehensive primary healthcare evaluations combining body composition, lifestyle indicators, and metabolic markers could enhance the identification and personalised management of women at high risk of hypertension.
Hypertension is rising in countries undergoing rapid nutritional and lifestyle transitions, posing serious health threats to women. Understanding how body measurements, everyday activity, diet, and metabolic health interact helps primary healthcare providers look beyond blood pressure numbers alone. This comprehensive picture enables earlier identification of at-risk women and supports tailored prevention strategies before severe cardiovascular complications develop.
This epidemiological study provides early-stage clinical insights that could inform the design of risk-stratification tools, screening protocols, or lifestyle intervention programmes for primary healthcare providers and public health organisations. However, because the study is observational in nature, it remains far from direct commercial deployment. Significant applied validation and software development would be necessary before these risk associations could be integrated into formal clinical decision-support systems.
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The burden of hypertension is increasing in countries undergoing rapid nutritional, lifestyle, and epidemiological transitions, creating an urgent need for context-specific prevention strategies. Among Moroccan women, hypertension may reflect the combined influence of lifestyle behaviors, reproductive history, adiposity, biological alterations, cardiometabolic risk, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL). However, these dimensions are rarely examined together in a single integrated framework. This case–control study included 430 Moroccan women, comprising 215 hypertensive cases and 215 normotensive controls. Sociodemographic, reproductive, clinical, lifestyle, dietary, anthropometric, body composition, biological, and quality-of-life data were collected. Physical activity was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ), Mediterranean diet adherence using the Mediterranean Diet Adherence Screener (MEDAS), and health-related quality of life using the 12-item Short Form Health Survey (SF-12). Biological markers included fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), total cholesterol, uric acid, creatinine, and hemoglobin. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors independently associated with hypertension. Participants with hypertension showed a less favorable multidimensional profile than normotensive controls. In the adjusted model, elevated waist-to-height ratio showed the strongest association with hypertension (AOR = 2.83; 95% CI: 1.61–4.98), followed by family history of hypertension (AOR = 2.47; 95% CI: 1.49–4.09), elevated visceral fat level (AOR = 2.40; 95% CI: 1.38–4.18), low physical activity (AOR = 2.22; 95% CI: 1.31–3.76), low SF-12 physical component score (AOR = 2.18; 95% CI: 1.29–3.68), low Mediterranean diet adherence (AOR = 2.08; 95% CI: 1.20–3.59), and hyperuricemia (AOR = 2.01; 95% CI: 1.15–3.50). Routine primary healthcare assessment should extend beyond blood pressure measurement to include central adiposity, physical inactivity, sedentary behavior, dietary patterns, reproductive history, cardiometabolic comorbidities, and HRQoL. This integrated approach may support the identification of high-risk women and guide more personalized prevention and management of hypertension.
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DOI: 10.1186/s12905-026-04808-1
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