Age- and Sex-Specific Blood Pressure Trajectories in a Hispanic Population Using a Joint Longitudinal Modeling Approach

Author

• Jaqueline Quintanilla, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Date of Award

8-1-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Applied Statistics and Data Science

First Advisor

Kristina Vatcheva

Second Advisor

Santanu Chakraborty

Third Advisor

Zhuanzhuan Ma

Abstract

Hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, yet longitudinal blood pressure (BP) patterns among Hispanic adults remain understudied. This study evaluated longitudinal systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP and DBP) trajectories by sex and age and compared linear mixed-effects models with multivariate joint longitudinal models. SBP and DBP measurements from Hispanic adults were analyzed using four joint models with different random-effects structures: shared random intercept (SHRI), shared random intercept and slope (SHRIS), separate random intercept (SPRI), and separate random intercept and slope (SPRIS). After adjustment for covariates, females consistently exhibited lower SBP and DBP than males and there were similar BP trajectories across age groups. Models incorporating random slopes generally demonstrated improved fit, with SPRI frequently providing the best fit across subgroup analyses. These findings highlight sex differences in longitudinal BP patterns and support the use of joint models for analyzing correlated SBP and DBP trajectories.

Comments

Copyright 2026 Jaqueline Quintanilla. All Rights Reserved. https://proquest.com/docview/3408953555

Recommended Citation

Quintanilla, J. (2026). Age- and Sex-Specific Blood Pressure Trajectories in a Hispanic Population Using a Joint Longitudinal Modeling Approach [Master's thesis, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley]. ScholarWorks @ UTRGV. https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/etd/2073