Year: 2026 | Month: June | Volume: 16 | Issue: 6 | Pages: 74-83
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijhsr.20260608
Correlation of Anthropometric Indices and Hypertension: An Observational Study
Parita Jagdish Dave1, Yagna Unmesh Shukla2
1PhD Scholar, Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, India
2PhD Guide, Gujarat University; Principal, Government Physiotherapy College & Government Spine Institute, Ahmedabad, India
Corresponding Author: Parita Jagdish Dave
ABSTRACT
Background and Objectives: Globally, elevated blood pressure ranks among the most prevalent and consequential non-communicable diseases, and its co-occurrence with excess adiposity is well-recognised in contemporary epidemiological literature. Within the Indian context, hypertension is responsible for more than half of all stroke-related fatalities and nearly a quarter of deaths attributable to coronary artery disease. A variety of body composition surrogates have been proposed to quantify adiposity-associated cardiovascular risk, yet their utility differs considerably across genders owing to the dimorphic nature of human fat distribution. The present study was therefore designed to evaluate the gender-stratified correlation between three anthropometric indices—Body Mass Index (BMI), A Body Shape Index (ABSI), and Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR)—and blood pressure in a cohort of adults with confirmed hypertension.
Methods: A cross-sectional observational study was conducted among 141 hypertensive adults (67 males, 74 females; mean age 51.7±6.4 years) recruited from a physiotherapy outpatient department in Ahmedabad via systematic random sampling. Blood pressure was recorded using a calibrated mercury sphygmomanometer following standard auscultatory technique, and anthropometric indices were measured according to established protocols. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient was employed for all association analyses given the non-normal distribution of the data.
Results: WHR demonstrated the strongest positive association with systolic blood pressure (SBP) across the entire cohort (ρ=0.66, p<0.05), while BMI (ρ=0.26, p<0.05) and ABSI (ρ=0.22, p<0.05) showed weaker but statistically significant correlations. No significant relationship was identified between any anthropometric index and diastolic blood pressure (DBP). Gender-stratified analysis revealed that in males, both BMI (ρ=0.46, p<0.05) and WHR (ρ=0.40, p<0.05) correlated moderately with SBP, whereas in females, ABSI (ρ=0.47, p<0.05) and WHR (ρ=0.92, p<0.05) were the dominant correlates of SBP.
Conclusion: Systolic blood pressure is most robustly associated with WHR across both genders, with BMI being the additional significant correlate in males and ABSI in females. Diastolic blood pressure appears independent of the anthropometric parameters studied. Clinicians are encouraged to integrate WHR and ABSI into hypertension assessment rather than relying exclusively on BMI, particularly when evaluating female patients.
Key words: Hypertension; Anthropometric indices; Body Mass Index; Waist-to-Hip Ratio; A Body Shape Index; Systolic Blood Pressure