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Treatment of 5413 hypertensive patients: a cross-sectional study

M S Paulsen1, J Sondergaard, L Reuther

  • 1Research Unit of General Practice, Institute of Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Odense. mspaulsen@health.sdu.dk

Family Practice
|May 21, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Optimal blood pressure (BP) control is insufficient in Danish primary care, with only 29.1% of patients achieving target BP. Most hypertensive patients receive one or two BP-lowering medications, indicating a need for improved treatment strategies.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • General Practice
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Hypertension management is primarily conducted in Danish primary care settings.
  • Previous research indicates suboptimal blood pressure (BP) control in 57-79% of hypertensive patients.
  • Key factors influencing BP management include antihypertensive drug treatment, patient risk factors, and presence of cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate BP treatment adherence to Danish guidelines (general: <140/90 mmHg; diabetics: <130/80 mmHg).
  • To analyze BP control in relation to patient risk factors, CVD, and diabetes status.
  • To assess antihypertensive drug prescribing patterns in a primary care population.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study involving 184 general practices and 5413 hypertensive patients in Denmark.
  • Data collection included physician-recorded information on risk factors, CVD, and antihypertensive medications.
  • Patient-reported data on risk factors were gathered via questionnaires; BP control was the primary outcome measure.

Main Results:

  • Only 29.1% of the hypertensive population achieved optimal BP control.
  • Among diabetic patients, optimal BP control was achieved by 10.9%, with 38.7% of patients with CVD reaching target BP.
  • The majority of patients were treated with one (32.5%) or two (39.0%) antihypertensive drugs; 17.7% of hypertensive diabetics were not on recommended renin-angiotensin system inhibitors.

Conclusions:

  • A significant proportion of hypertensive patients in general practice do not achieve optimal BP control.
  • Current antihypertensive treatment regimens, often involving one or two drugs, appear insufficient for achieving guideline-recommended BP targets.
  • Further optimization of treatment strategies is necessary to improve BP control in hypertensive patients within primary care settings.
Abstract

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