title: Health state utilities of a population of Nigerian hypertensive patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Establishment of the health impact of hypertension on quality of life of Nigerians is a step towards controlling the disease. The study aimed to provide a Nigerian specific reference list of utility scores of hypertensive patients with various interacting conditions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An interviewer-based, cross-sectional study was conducted using hypertensive patients in two purposively selected tertiary hospitals located in South-Eastern Nigeria. Health Utility Index Mark 3 (HUI3) was used.A total of 384 participants with either hypertension alone or with hypertension-associated complications were interviewed in the two tertiary hospitals.The overall mean utility score was 0.35 +/- 0.42. Patients with hypertension alone had the highest overall mean utility score (0.57 +/- 0.29) while hypertensive patients with stroke had the lowest overall mean score (0.04 +/- 0.36). Being a male, increase in age and mean arterial blood pressure, emergency visit and loss of work due to illness were associated with significant decrease in overall utility scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study presented a reference for health state utilities of a population of Nigerian hypertensive patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmacy Management, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Nigeria Nsukka, Nsukka, Enugu, Nigeria. obinna.ekwunife@unn.edu.ng.
authors.forename: Obinna I
authors.initials: OI
authors.lastname: Ekwunife
authors.forename: Cletus N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Aguwa
authors.forename: Maxwell O
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Adibe
authors.forename: Ebenezer
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Barikpaoar
authors.forename: Chioma J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Onwuka