Abstract / Summary
Abstract The May Measurement Month (MMM) campaign was conducted in Mongolia in 2023 to raise awareness of raised blood pressure (BP). Adults aged ≥18 years were recruited through convenience sampling at primary health care centres in Ulaanbaatar. Three seated BP readings were taken from each participant, and a questionnaire collected information on demographics, lifestyle factors and comorbidities. Hypertension was defined as a systolic BP ≥140mmHg or diastolic BP ≥90mmHg or being on BP-lowering medication. Controlled BP was defined as being on BP-lowering medication with a BP <140/90mmHg. Multiple imputation was used to estimate one or two missing BP readings. In total, 5,413 participants were screened, with a mean age of 46.8 years; 55.6% were female. Of all participants, 2,302 (42.5%) had hypertension, of whom 1,920 (83.4%) were aware and 1,896 (82.4%) were on antihypertensive medication. Among those on antihypertensive medication, 976 (51.5%) had a BP controlled to <140/90mmHg, and of all participants with hypertension, 42.4% had controlled BP. MMM 2023 in Mongolia identified substantial proportions of untreated and particularly, inadequately controlled hypertension, reinforcing the need for improved screening and treatment strategies at the national level.