BACKGROUND: In Germany, an estimated 20-25 million patients suffer from hypertension. Blood pressure control rates are, however, lower than in many other European countries and the USA. The present analysis reports blood pressure treatment and control rates in Germany in patients with hypertension treated by cardiologists. METHODS: The present analysis reports data from a German subgroup analysis of a large, multinational, observational survey i-SEARCH that recruited patients in 2005/2006. It reports blood pressure readings, drug utilization and control rates in cardiology practice. RESULTS: A total of 4,982 patients were documented at 417 sites. Mean systolic/diastolic blood pressure (SBP/DBP) was 152 ± 19.5/88.4 ± 11.5 mmHg. SBP was 1.3 mmHg higher in men than in women (p = 0.021). The majority of patients had an SBP between 141 and 160 mmHg and 31.4% of patients had normal SBP. Overall blood pressure control rate was only 11.6% [95% CI 10.7-12.6] in treated patients. It was different in men [10.2%; 95% CI 9.0-11.6] than in women [8.1%; 95% CI 7.1-9.4; p = 0.008] and higher in patients without diabetes [12.7%; 95% CI 11.6-14.0] than in those with diabetes [4.3%; 95% CI 3.4-5.4; p < 0.0001]. One-third of patients received either monotherapy or dual therapy, or three and more drugs, respectively; 42.2% of patients received guideline-recommended dual combination therapy. A combination of beta-blockers + ACE inhibitors was most frequently prescribed (30.8%). CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate a low level of blood pressure control, especially in patients at an increased risk for cardiovascular events, such as those with diabetes or cardiovascular comorbidities. Major efforts are required to improve hypertension management as recommend by current treatment guidelines.
BACKGROUND: In Germany, an estimated 20-25 million patients suffer from hypertension. Blood pressure control rates are, however, lower than in many other European countries and the USA. The present analysis reports blood pressure treatment and control rates in Germany in patients with hypertension treated by cardiologists. METHODS: The present analysis reports data from a German subgroup analysis of a large, multinational, observational survey i-SEARCH that recruited patients in 2005/2006. It reports blood pressure readings, drug utilization and control rates in cardiology practice. RESULTS: A total of 4,982 patients were documented at 417 sites. Mean systolic/diastolic blood pressure (SBP/DBP) was 152 ± 19.5/88.4 ± 11.5 mmHg. SBP was 1.3 mmHg higher in men than in women (p = 0.021). The majority of patients had an SBP between 141 and 160 mmHg and 31.4% of patients had normal SBP. Overall blood pressure control rate was only 11.6% [95% CI 10.7-12.6] in treated patients. It was different in men [10.2%; 95% CI 9.0-11.6] than in women [8.1%; 95% CI 7.1-9.4; p = 0.008] and higher in patients without diabetes [12.7%; 95% CI 11.6-14.0] than in those with diabetes [4.3%; 95% CI 3.4-5.4; p < 0.0001]. One-third of patients received either monotherapy or dual therapy, or three and more drugs, respectively; 42.2% of patients received guideline-recommended dual combination therapy. A combination of beta-blockers + ACE inhibitors was most frequently prescribed (30.8%). CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate a low level of blood pressure control, especially in patients at an increased risk for cardiovascular events, such as those with diabetes or cardiovascular comorbidities. Major efforts are required to improve hypertension management as recommend by current treatment guidelines.
Authors: Patricia M Kearney; Megan Whelton; Kristi Reynolds; Paul Muntner; Paul K Whelton; Jiang He Journal: Lancet Date: 2005 Jan 15-21 Impact factor: 79.321
Authors: Peter Bramlage; David Pittrow; Hans-Ulrich Wittchen; Wilhelm Kirch; Steffen Boehler; Hendrik Lehnert; Michael Hoefler; Thomas Unger; Arya M Sharma Journal: Am J Hypertens Date: 2004-10 Impact factor: 2.689
Authors: Shari Danielle Bolen; T Alafia Samuels; Hsin-Chieh Yeh; Spyridon S Marinopoulos; Maura McGuire; Marcela Abuid; Frederick L Brancati Journal: J Gen Intern Med Date: 2008-01-25 Impact factor: 5.128
Authors: Katharina Wolf-Maier; Richard S Cooper; José R Banegas; Simona Giampaoli; Hans-Werner Hense; Michel Joffres; Mika Kastarinen; Neil Poulter; Paola Primatesta; Fernando Rodríguez-Artalejo; Birgitta Stegmayr; Michael Thamm; Jaakko Tuomilehto; Diego Vanuzzo; Fenicia Vescio Journal: JAMA Date: 2003-05-14 Impact factor: 56.272
Authors: Katharina Wolf-Maier; Richard S Cooper; Holly Kramer; José R Banegas; Simona Giampaoli; Michel R Joffres; Neil Poulter; Paola Primatesta; Birgitta Stegmayr; Michael Thamm Journal: Hypertension Date: 2003-11-24 Impact factor: 10.190
Authors: Nicole Ebner; Gabor Földes; Tibor Szabo; Matthias Tacke; Susann Fülster; Anja Sandek; Wolfram Doehner; Stefan D Anker; Stephan von Haehling Journal: Clin Res Cardiol Date: 2012-08-10 Impact factor: 5.460
Authors: Felix Mahfoud; Frank Himmel; Christian Ukena; Heribert Schunkert; Michael Böhm; Joachim Weil Journal: Dtsch Arztebl Int Date: 2011-10-28 Impact factor: 5.594