Association between perceived racial discrimination and hypertension: findings from the ELSA-Brasil study.

"Pardos" and blacks in Brazil and blacks in the USA are at greater risk of developing arterial hypertension than whites, and the causes of this inequality are still little understood. Psychosocial and contextual factors, including racial discrimination, are indicated as conditions associated with this inequality. The aim of this study was to identify the association between perceived racial discrimination and hypertension. The study evaluated 14,012 workers from the ELSA-Brazil baseline population. Perceived discrimination was measured by the Lifetime Major Events Scale, adapted to Portuguese. Classification by race/color followed the categories proposed by Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Hypertension was defined by standard criteria. The association between the compound variable - race/racial discrimination - and hypertension was estimated by Poisson regression with robust variance and stratified by the categories of body mass index (BMI) and sex. Choosing white women as the reference group, in the BMI < 25kg/m2 stratum, "pardo" women showed adjusted OR for arterial hypertension of 1.98 (95%CI: 1.17-3.36) and 1.3 (95%CI: 1.13-1.65), respectively, whether or not they experienced racial discrimination. For black women, ORs were 1.9 (95%CI: 1.42-2.62) and 1.72 (95%CI: 1.36-2.18), respectively, for the same categories. Among women with BMI > 25kg/m2 and men in any BMI category, no effect of racial discrimination was identified. Despite the differences in point estimates of prevalence of hypertension between "pardo" women who reported and those who did not report discrimination, our results are insufficient to assert that an association exists between racial discrimination and hypertension.

Association between perceived racial discrimination and hypertension: findings from the ELSA-Brasil study / A associação entre discriminação racial percebida e hipertensão: achados do estudo ELSA-Brasil / Asociación entre la discriminación racial percibida y la hipertensión: hallazgos del estudio ELSA-Brasil

"Pardos" and blacks in Brazil and blacks in the USA are at greater risk of developing arterial hypertension than whites, and the causes of this inequality are still little understood. Psychosocial and contextual factors, including racial discrimination, are indicated as conditions associated with this inequality. The aim of this study was to identify the association between perceived racial discrimination and hypertension. The study evaluated 14,012 workers from the ELSA-Brazil baseline population. Perceived discrimination was measured by the Lifetime Major Events Scale, adapted to Portuguese. Classification by race/color followed the categories proposed by Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). Hypertension was defined by standard criteria. The association between the compound variable - race/racial discrimination - and hypertension was estimated by Poisson regression with robust variance and stratified by the categories of body mass index (BMI) and sex. Choosing white women as the reference group, in the BMI < 25kg/m2 stratum, "pardo" women showed adjusted OR for arterial hypertension of 1.98 (95%CI: 1.17-3.36) and 1.3 (95%CI: 1.13-1.65), respectively, whether or not they experienced racial discrimination. For black women, ORs were 1.9 (95%CI: 1.42-2.62) and 1.72 (95%CI: 1.36-2.18), respectively, for the same categories. Among women with BMI > 25kg/m2 and men in any BMI category, no effect of racial discrimination was identified. Despite the differences in point estimates of prevalence of hypertension between "pardo" women who reported and those who did not report discrimination, our results are insufficient to assert that an association exists between racial discrimination and hypertension.

Pretos e pardos no Brasil e negros nos Estados Unidos têm risco aumentado de desenvolver hipertensão arterial, quando comparados com brancos, mas as causas dessa desigualdade ainda são pouco compreendidas. Fatores psicossociais e contextuais, inclusive discriminação racial, têm sido apontados como condições associadas a essa desigualdade. O estudo teve como objetivo identificar a associação entre discriminação racial percebida e hipertensão. O estudo avaliou 14.012 participantes da linha de base do estudo ELSA-Brasil. A discriminação foi medida com a Lifetime Major Events Scale, adaptada para português. A classificação de raça/cor seguiu as categorias propostas pelo Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE). Hipertensão arterial foi definida de acordo com as diretrizes atuais. A associação entre a variável composta - raça/discriminação racial - e hipertensão foi estimada através de regressão de Poisson com variância robusta, e estratificada pelas categorias de índice de massa corporal (IMC) e gênero. Tendo como categoria de referência as mulheres brancas, no estrato de IMC < 25kg/m2, as mulheres pardas mostraram OR ajustada para hipertensão arterial de 1,98 (IC95%: 1,17-3,36) e 1,3 (IC95%: 1,13-1,65), respectivamente, conforme relatavam ou não a exposição à discriminação racial. Para as mulheres pretas, as ORs foram 1,9 (IC95%: 1,42-2,62) e 1,72 (IC95%: 1,36-2,18), respectivamente, para as mesmas categorias. Entre mulheres com IMC > 25kg/m2 e homens em qualquer categoria de IMC, não foi identificado nenhum efeito de discriminação racial. Apesar das diferenças nas estimativas pontuais da prevalência de hipertensão entre mulheres pardas que relataram (vs. não relataram) discriminação racial, nossos resultados são insuficientes para afirmar que existe uma associação entre discriminação racial percebida e hipertensão.

Los "mestizos" y negros in Brasil y los negros en los EE.UU. tienen un riesgo mayor de desarrollar hipertensión que los blancos, y las causas de esta inequidad se han estudiado poco. Factores psicosociales y contextuales, incluyendo la discriminación racial, han sido identificados como las condiciones asociadas a esta inequidad. El objetivo de este estudio fue identificar la asociación entre la discriminación racial percibida y la hipertensión. El estudio evaluó a 14.012 trabajadores procedentes de la base de referencia poblacional del ELSA-Brasil. La discriminación percibida se midió mediante la Lifetime Major Events Scale, adaptada al portugués. La clasificación por raza/color siguió las categorías propuestas por el Instituto Brasileño de Geografía y Estadística. La hipertensión fue definida por criterios estándar. La asociación entre la variable compuesta -raza/discriminación racial- e hipertensión se estimó por regresión de Poisson con varianza robusta y estratificada por las categorías: índice de masa corporal (IMC) y sexo. Se eligieron mujeres blancas como grupo de referencia, en el IMC < 25kg/m2 estrato, las mujeres "mestizas" mostraron una proporción de probabilidades ajustadas para hipertensión arterial de 1,98 (IC95%: 1,17-3,36) y 1,3 (IC95%: 1,13-1,65), respectivamente, hayan o no sufrido discriminación racial. Para las mujeres negras, la proporción de probabilidades ajustadas fueron 1,9 (IC95%: 1,42-2,62) y 1,72 (IC95%: 1,36-2,18), respectivamente, en las mismas categorías. Entre las mujeres con IMC > 25kg/m2 y hombres en cualquier categoría IMC, no se identificaron efectos de discriminación racial. A pesar de las diferencias en las estimaciones puntuales sobre la prevalencia de la hipertensión entre las mujeres "mestizas", que informaron y no informaron discriminación racial, nuestros resultados son insuficientes para afirmar que existe una asociación entre la discriminación racial e hipertensión.