'Pela Saúde de Portugal' - data from a screening on blood pressure

The Portuguese Society of Hypertension is responsible for the Mission 70/26 Project, a movement that aims to achieve 70% control of hypertensive patients aged 18-65 years old, under Primary Healthcare by 2026. To reach the general population, different activities were done, in this article we will describe one in particular, the campaign called 'Pela Saúde de Portugal'.

From December 2023 to July 2024, there were nine screenings for hypertension done in eight cities in Portugal. Volunteers were asked about medical history, their weight and blood pressure were assessed and they were informed about Hypertension (HTN) and target organ damage.

479 screenings were performed. Of the participants, 243 (51%) were female. History of hypertension was reported in 34,7% of them and 32,4% of these were taking medication. There was a significant blood pressure (BP) reduction from the first to the third measurement and both systolic and diastolic BP (mean of the second and third measurements) were higher in hypertensive patients. There were significant BP differences between the cities.

'Pela Saúde de Portugal' was not a study of the prevalence of hypertension but merely an awareness campaign with HTN screening done all around the country. This type of campaign is important to draw attention to HTN and other risk factors, improving health literacy in this field. The analysis of the volunteer's characteristics is important to design future interventions.