RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To analyze the characteristics and control of hypertensive patients visited in a hospital hypertension clinic, dependent of the internal medicine department. METHODS: The study included 597 hypertensive patients, mean age 51.9 years (range 14-85), visited consecutively during the period 1989-1998. We applied the following initial protocol: Usual and orientated HBP anamnesis and physical examination, routine blood and urine test, standard electrocardiography and abdominal echocardiography. If necessary, we indicated other test or special explorations. After every visit, the data were stored into an electronic database, which we analyzed retrospectively to obtain the data of this study. RESULTS: Initial and final BP were: systolic BP 154 +/- 25 vs 141 +/- 21 mmHg, Dif. -12.9 (95% CI -14.8 a -11.0), and diastolic BP 96 +/- 12 vs 88 +/- 19 mmHg, Dif. -7.6 (95% CI -8.6 a -6.6). Four hundred and five patients (79.5%) presented I-II OMS stage and 121 (20.2%) III stage. One hundred and seventy-four cardiovascular events were registered. Hypercholesterolemia and obesity were present in 32% of the patients. Seventy-four (10.7%) had secondary HBP. ECA inhibitors were the antihypertensive drugs more used, either associated (58.9%) or as monotherapy (37%). Nine hundred patients (31.8%) presented optimal BP control (< 140/90 mmHg), and 27 (4.5%) refractory HBP. Weight and laboratory values (but uric acid) did not change significantly during the follow-up period. CONCLUSIONS: The patients showed a high prevalence of severe cardiovascular events, and associated risk factors. The 10% presented secondary HBP. About 31% of the patients reached optimal BP control.
