International Journal of Public Health Research 2014; 2(2): 15-19 Published online April 30, 2014 (http://www.openscienceonline.com/journal/ijphr) Study of hypertension among Fayoum University students Mona Soliman 1 , Omaima El-Salamony 1 , Khalid El-Khashab 2 , Naglaa A. El-Sherbiny 2, * , Safaa Khamis 2 1 Cairo University, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo-Egypt 2 Fayoum University, Faculty of Medicine, Fayoum-Egypt Email address nas02@fayoum.edu.eg. (N. A. El-Sherbiny) To cite this article Mona Soliman, Omaima El-Salamony, Khalid El-Khashab, Naglaa A. El-Sherbiny, Safaa Khamis. Study of Hypertension among Fayoum University Students, International Journal of Public Health Research. Vol. 2, No. 2, 2014, pp. 15-19. Abstract Background: Hypertension is considered as a public health problem world-wide because of its high frequency and concomitant risks for morbidities. The study aimed for, identification of the prevalence of pre-hypertensive and hypertensive Fayoum University students and their associated risk factors and morbidities. Methods: This was a two phases study first: cross-sectional descriptive study of (954) students from first and fourth academic year of both; Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Social Sciences to detect the prevalence of hypertension. Second phase was a case control study of (139) students from both faculties. A self-administered questionnaire, with measuring weight, height, waist circumference and a lab investigation was done. Results: The hypertension and prehypertension prevalence was (5.7% & 47.4%) respectively. Their proportions increased significantly by age, sex with a (P-value = 0.000). There was a statistical significant difference between cases and controls regarding body mass index, some investigation and stress score. Conclusion: The university students were exposed to the problem of hypertension, which indicated the need for life style modification programs introduced in the curriculum of the university, with planning for treatment of hypertensive students. Keywords Hypertension, Risk Factors, University Students 1. Introduction Hypertension is a major concern to people worldwide, both directly and indirectly due to its consequences for causing several other diseases. It is a silent threat to the people health all over the world as there are 7.6 million premature deaths were attributed to high blood pressure worldwide [1]. The prevalence of hypertension continues to rise, from lowest as (3.4%) in India to the highest as (72.5%) in Poland and most of patients received medication are not adequately treated to optimal goal [2]. In the Eastern Mediterranean Region; the average prevalence of hypertension was (26%) and it affects approximately 125 million individuals, with a several million new cases of hypertension and more of pre-hypertension [3]. The Egyptian National Hypertension survey of adults conducted in six Egyptian governorates estimated the prevalence of hypertension as (26.3%) [4]. Hypertension is classified into two group's primary hypertension of unknown cause and secondary hypertension caused by several organs affection [5]. The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC7) introduced a new blood pressure (BP) category, “pre-hypertension,” defined as a systolic blood Pressure (SBP) of 120 to 139 mm Hg and/or a diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of 80 to 89 mm Hg [6]. Pre-hypertension individuals have a greater risk of developing hypertension than those with lower blood pressure levels [7]. Adolescents and youth aged (10-24 years) represent (25%)