Prevalence of diabetes and hypertension in ethnic minority adults living in rural Yunnan province, China

Hypertension (HTN) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) are risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD), which is increasing in rural China. Little data is available about their prevalence among ethnic minorities in rural China. Eleven villages were randomly selected from Yunnan province, China. Six hundred thirty-four randomly selected subjects from six ethnic minorities and the Han ethnic majority participated in a cross-sectional survey, which included blood pressure (BP) and HbA1c measurements. From each village, 70–90 men and women between the ages of 50 and 70 years were randomly selected. The prevalence and self-reported history of HTN and DM were evaluated in these seven ethnic groups. The prevalence of DM was 6.3 %, with variability between ethnic groups, ranging from 2.7 % in the Tibetan group to 9.8 % in the Han group (P = 0.09). HTN prevalence also varied from 30.5 % in the Lisu group to 54.7 % in the Tibetan group (P = 0.003). Only 22.5 % (9/40) and 47.7 % (112/235) of those diagnosed with DM and HTN, respectively, had reported a known history of their condition. The prevalence of DM varied across ethnic groups, with Han people having a greater prevalence than the ethnic minorities. As most subjects with DM or HTN were not actually aware of their condition, there is need for increased screening and education promotion in this region.