Sociodemographic factors, comorbidities, and biochemical parameters associated with poor adherence to antihypertensive treatment among university employees from Southeast Mexico: a cross-sectional study.

Abstract

Purpose: Poor adherence to antihypertensive treatment is one of the leading causes of life-threatening complications in individuals with hypertension. Therefore, investigating the factors involved is essential. This study aimed to identify sociodemographic factors, comorbidities, and biochemical parameters associated with poor adherence to antihypertensive treatment among university employees in southeastern Mexico.

Methods: A total of 259 hypertensive employees were included and grouped according to their level of adherence-high, moderate, or poor-using the MMAS-8 Scale. For group comparisons, the Kruskal-Wallis and χ² tests were used for continuous and categorical variables, respectively. To quantify the strength of these associations, a univariate binary logistic regression was performed, considering those variables that were significant in the preliminary comparative analyses. Additionally, to reinforce these observations, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed to evaluate the discriminative ability of biochemical parameters significantly associated with treatment adherence.

Results: A higher prevalence of hypertensive employees with low educational and occupational status was observed in the poor-adherence group, with obesity and dyslipidaemia being the most frequent comorbidities among them. Elevated blood glucose, uric acid, and lipid levels were also significantly associated with poor adherence (p < 0.001).

Conclusions: Educational institutions and healthcare systems should pay special attention to this working population, including, among other measures, medical follow-up, periodic monitoring of biochemical parameters, and the implementation of lifestyle changes.