This paper reviews the epidemiology of prehypertension in Jamaica and lessons learnt from three national surveys and two cohort studies conducted by the Tropical Medicine Research Institute’s Epidemiology Research Unit.

This paper provides an update on the burden of cardiovascular disease risk factors in Jamaica using data from the most recent national health survey. The burden of cardiovascular disease remains high with prevalence of hypertension, 25%; diabetes, 8%; hypercholesterolaemia, 12%; obesity, 25% and overweight, 27%.

In this cross-sectional study, the prevalence of the metabolic syndrome in Jamaican adults was 21.1% and 18.4% using the International Diabetes Federation and American Heart Association/National Heart Lung and Blood Institute criteria, respectively. Metabolic syndrome prevalence was associated with socio-economic status in men.