Epidemiological Study of Non-communicable Diseases Among Patients Attending Nutritional Clinic in Baquba Teaching Hospital

Abstract

Background: Non-communicable diseases are chronic diseases with long duration resulting from a combination of many factors like genetic, physiological, environmental, and lifestyle. Factors like poor diet, lack of exercise, tobacco, drugs, alcohol, family, and environment are risk factors for non-communicable diseases.Non-communicable diseases have huge economic consequences due to health care costs and lost economic productivity. Non-communicable diseases are responsible for 63% of the total death. Modifiable risk factors due to lifestyle can be controlled or reduced by intervention like lack of exercise, smoking, alcohol, unbalanced diet while non-modifiable risk factors cannot be reduced or controlled like age, gender, genetics. Improper maternal nutrition in utero and during the first year of life is associated with the risk of non-communicable diseases in adulthood. Obesity is now a public health problem because of strong association with hypertension, coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke. Objective: To determine non -communicable diseases among patients attending a nutrition clinic in Baquba Teaching Hospital and to assess the diseases in relation to age, gender, residency, occupation, and educational level. Patients and Methods: This descriptive study was conducted in Baquba Teaching Hospital, a review of patients’ records was done from the start of January 2015 to 31st December 2017. Data were collected by specially designed questionnaire which includes age, gender, height, weight, occupation, residency, and educational level. Results presented in tables with numbers and percentages. Results: The total number of records were (891) .obesity and morbid obesity (64.2%). Obesity (52.7%) followed by hypertension (20.3%). Most of the cases were female (66.7%). The age group of (31-40) year was mostly affected (23.2%). Urban residents (77.2%) of cases .House wives (48.2%) followed by students (23.1%). (63.8%) of cases were graduated from primary and secondary school. Conclusion: Most the cases were obese. Female affected more than male, majority of cases in the age group below 50 years, urban residents more than rural residents, most of cases were house wives, matority of cases were graduated from primary and secondary school.