Asian Journal of Research in Medicine and Medical Science

Hypertension is the major risk factor for cardiovascular disease in Sub-Saharan Africa, and has emerged an alarming public health concern, with an estimate of 57million Nigerians being diagnosed and many still not diagnosed.It is a disease, in which unknown morbidity exceeds known morbidity, and current data indicates that cases of hypertension seen in the hospital are “just a tip of the iceberg”. The descriptive cross-sectional study design was adopted for the study. Ethical approval was obtained from Imo State ministry of health, Ethical Review Board and permission was obtained from the village head. A Self-administered self-structured questionnaire was utilized. About an average respondents did not know the definitive value of hypertension considering the educational level of the respondents. Most of the respondents were not aware that medical management must be adhered to when they feel better. Respondents demonstrated poor knowledge on certain risk factors of hypertension such as salt and red meat consumption, alcohol intake, and being overweight, despite being aware of its complications. Regardless of some characteristics of the respondents such as hypertension status, family history of hypertension, and time of last blood pressure check in this population; there exists poor knowledge on certain risk factors with significant health implications such as salt and red meat consumption. Hence, it is necessary that effective health education and awareness should focus on these risk factors, as well as tackle misconception and personal preference that tend to exist in an informed population. Additionally, the benefits of adherence to medical management should be stressed.