Cross-sectional association between perceived discrimination and hypertension in African-American men and women: the Pitt County Study

Few studies have examined the impact of the frequency of discrimination on hypertension risk. The authors assessed the cross-sectional associations between frequency of perceived racial and nonracial discrimination and hypertension among 1,110 middle-aged African-American men (n = 393) and women (n = 717) participating in the 2001 follow-up of the Pitt County Study (Pitt County, North Carolina). Odds ratios were estimated using gender-specific unconditional weighted logistic regression with adjustment for relevant confounders and the frequency of discrimination. More than half of the men (57%) and women (55%) were hypertensive. The prevalences of perceived racial discrimination, nonracial discrimination, and no discrimination were 57%, 29%, and 13%, respectively, in men and 42%, 43%, and 15%, respectively, in women. Women recounting frequent nonracial discrimination versus those reporting no exposure to discrimination had the highest odds of hypertension (adjusted odds ratio = 2.34, 95% confidence interval: 1.09, 5.02). A nonsignificant inverse odds ratio was evident in men who perceived frequent exposure to racial or nonracial discrimination in comparison with no exposure. A similar association was observed for women reporting perceived racial discrimination. These results indicate that the type and frequency of discrimination perceived by African-American men and women may differentially affect their risk of hypertension.