Participants were also less likely to experience
“white coat” hypertension as the BP measurements were
carried out by trained lay interviewers approximately an hour into
the full survey. Our study was not without limitations. Like all
other hypertension studies, our BP measurements were collected
on a single visit to ensure cost-effectiveness and minimize
respondent burden and attrition. The use of measurements based
on one occasion has been known to lead to overestimation of the
prevalence of hypertension by up to 17%.61 Our study did not
collect any information pertaining to the type and dosage of the
antihypertensive medications and the current use of antihypertensive
medications is purely self-reported, hence lacking verifi-
cation, and limiting our understanding on the possible reasons for
lack of optimal BP control in treated hypertensives. We also did
not include any other laboratory measurements in this population
study, which are useful parameters in obtaining a better understanding
of the cardiometabolic risk of our participants. Last but
not least, we are unable to draw a conclusion about etiological
factors of hypertension and its poor control among the elderly due
to the cross sectional design of our study.