Hypertension management in a Cape Peninsula coloured community. A retrospective medium-term assessment

A retrospective study of the records of a large hypertension clinic at a primary care centre was carried out for the period 1975-1984. A total of 250 patients were selected from a systemic 1-in-2 sample. The objectives were to establish the degree of control, compare the use of a large arm blood pressure (BP) cuff with a standard one, and determine the prevalence of associated diseases and the cost of drug therapy. The mean systolic BP was 163.2 mmHg, with 45% of patients having a systolic BP below 160 mmHg. The mean diastolic BP was 101.2 mmHg with 13% of patients having a diastolic BP below 95 mmHg. The majority of patients were overweight and the large BP cuff was found to be useful.