Hypertension in a primary care practice
Forsyth, R.A.
Journal of Family Practice 10(5): 803-807
1980
ISSN/ISBN: 0094-3509 PMID: 7391759 Document Number: 159048
The charts of 554 consecutive hypertensive patients seen at a primary care office were reviewed. The highest recorded blood pressure of hypertensive male patients averaged 177/113 mmHg. The most recent blood pressure of males under treatment for hypertension averaged 144/92 mmHg. For female patients the corresponding figures were 179/112 mmHg and 146/91 mmHg. The average yearly cost of treatment was $80. In theory, if these reductions were maintained in one hundred 55-year-old hypertensives for six years, coronary events would decrease by 4.3 events in men and 2.2 events in women. The cost per event prevented would be $11,000 in men and $21,000 in women. Diastolic blood pressures showed a greater correlation to the morbidity pattern found in coronary heart disease (a greater prevalence and severity in men than in women, especially under age 55 years) than did the systolic blood pressures. These findings suggest that for prevention of coronary heart disease, emphasis should be placed on the diagnosis and treatment of males under the age of 55 years who have diastolic hypertension.