Trends in the Prevalence of Multiple Chronic Conditions Among US Adults With Hypertension From 1999–2000 Through 2017–2020

Abstract BACKGROUND The prevalence of many chronic conditions has increased among US adults. Many adults with hypertension have other chronic conditions. METHODS We estimated changes in the age-adjusted prevalence of multiple (≥3) chronic conditions, not including hypertension, using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, from 1999–2000 to 2017–2020, among US adults with (n = 24,851) and without (n = 24,337 hypertension. Hypertension included systolic blood pressure (BP) ≥130 mm Hg, diastolic BP ≥80 mm Hg, or antihypertensive medication use. We studied 14 chronic conditions: arthritis, asthma, cancer, coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease, depression, diabetes, dyslipidemia, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, heart failure, lung disease, obesity, and stroke. RESULTS From 1999–2000 to 2017–2020, the age-adjusted mean number of chronic conditions increased more among US adults with vs. without hypertension (2.2 to 2.8 vs. 1.7 to 2.0; P-interaction