The Charlottesville blood pressure survey: the role of the physician in hypertension case finding.

The population of a community of 29,608 adults was screened door-to-door for elevated blood pressure. A questionnaire was administered and analyzed to profile the hypertensive person who is most likely to be unaware of his problem. One hundred and one people with documented sustained hypertension were "unaware" of their problem. Of these, 58% had a diastolic blood pressure consistently greater than 100 mm Hg. Sixteen per cent of all hypertensive males were unaware of their problem compared to 5% of hypertensive females. Of those less than 35 years old, 38% of males were unaware compared with 4% of females. White (11%) persons were more apt to be unaware than non-white persons (6%). No person with a positive family history of hypertension was unaware. Ninety-one per cent of all unaware hypertensives had a regular physician. Sixty per cent had consulted a physician within 18 months, and 92% had consulted a physician within 60 months of the survey. The screening process was completed on only 21% of all adults in the target community. These data suggest that the young, white, hypertensive male with no family history of hypertension is most likely to be unaware of his problem. Routine measurement of blood pressure by physicians may be more efficient than door-to-door surveys in contacting the unaware hypertensive person.