Machine learning model predicting hypertension risk among Nigerian adults using Nigeria DHS 2024 data. Includes Streamlit web app for public use.
# Sociodemographic Predictors of Hypertension Risk Among Nigerian Adults
## A Machine Learning Analysis of Nigeria DHS 2024
> Try the live app: hypertension-risk-calc.streamlit.app
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## Project Overview
This project builds a machine learning model to estimate hypertension risk among
Nigerian adults using purely sociodemographic features -- no clinical measurements
required. It uses the Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) 2024, the most
recent nationally representative health survey available for Nigeria.
The core question: **Can we identify which unscreened Nigerians are most likely
to be hypertensive, using only information we already know about them?**
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## Why This Matters
Hypertension is the leading modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease in
sub-Saharan Africa. In Nigeria, a large proportion of hypertensive adults have
never been screened. Without a diagnosis, there is no treatment. Without treatment,
the condition progresses silently.
This model is not a clinical diagnostic tool. It is a **population-level screening
signal** -- designed to help health programs prioritize outreach to communities
and demographic groups where undetected hypertension is most likely concentrated.
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## Data Source
- **Survey:** Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys (NDHS) 2024
- **Phase:** DHS-VIII (Standard DHS)
- **Files used:** Individual Women's Recode (IR) + Men's Recode (MR)
- **Access:** DHS Program (registration required) -- dhsprogram.com
- **Combined sample:** 51,254 adults (women 15-49, men 15-59)
- **Screened population (model training):** 24,333 adults
- **Unscreened population (risk inference):** 26,673 adults
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## Target Variable
- **chd02:** Ever been told you have high blood pressure or hypertension
- Applied only to adults who confirmed they had been screened (chd01 = 1)
- Positive rate in screened population: **13.7%**
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## Features Used
| Variable | Descriptio …