Association between Hypertension and Chronic Arsenic Exposure in Drinking Water: A Cross-Sectional Study in Bangladesh

Mohammad Rafiqul Islam; Ismail Khan; John Attia; Sheikh Mohammad Nazmul Hassan; Mark McEvoy; Catherine D’Este; Syed Azim; Ayesha Akhter; Shahnaz Akter; Sheikh Mohammad Shahidullah; Abul Hasnat Milton

doi:10.3390/ijerph9124522

Table 2

Association of arsenic concentration with overall Hypertension, Systolic Hypertension, Diastolic Hypertension and Pulse pressure (n = 994).

Arsenic	Overall hypertension			Systolic hypertension ^§			Diastolic hypertension ^ψ			Increased pulse pressure ^φ
Arsenic	No. of cases	Adjusted	95% CI	No. of cases	Adjusted	95% CI	No. of cases	Adjusted	95% CI	No. of cases	Adjusted	95% CI
Concentration *, (N)	No. of cases	OR	95% CI	No. of cases	OR	95% CI	No. of cases	OR	95% CI	No. of cases	OR	95% CI
<50 (532) †	43	-	-	47	-	-	64	-	-	15	-	-
>50 (462)	23	0.93	0.49–1.78	30	1.11	0.61–2.02	50	1.24	0.76–2.01	26	3.54	1.46–8.57

* Arsenic Concentration.: Drinking water arsenic concentration in microgram/liter; ^§ Systolic hypertension: Systolic blood pressure ≥140 mmHg; ^ψ Diastolic hypertension: Diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mmHg, ^φ Pulse pressure: categorized as <55 mmHg and ≥55 mmHg; 95% CI: 95% Confidence interval. ^† Reference category. Adjusted for age, sex, education, marital status, religion, monthly income and BMI. ** Crude Odds Ratios: For overall hypertension 0.60 (CI: 0.35–1.01), systolic hypertension 0.72 (CI: 0.45–1.15), diastolic hypertension 0.89 (CI: 0.60–1.31) and for increased pulse pressure 2.06 (CI: 1.07–3.93).