Patients' knowledge of hypertension.

A group of hypertensive patients attending a family practice were surveyed in order to determine their level of knowledge compared with a group of controls who were not hypertensive. The results indicated the hypertensive group had significantly greater knowledge, although there were deficits in their knowledge. Most patients identified the physician as their main source of information about hypertension. For this reason, family doctors should consider adding new educational tools to those currently in use. For example, a check list and/or written material could contain information that the physician considers essential for patient education.