Adherence to antihypertensive treatment: difficulties reported by hypertensive patients

Objectives: To characterize hypertensive patients and to recognize the difficulties to comply with the proposed treatment by the health team. Methods: The data were collected from medical records and through interviews with 54 hypertensive patients. Results: Among the 54 hypertensive patients, 66.7% were adults female aged between 30 and 90 years. The mean blood pressures (mmHg), systolic and diastolic pressures, were 138 and 83, respectively, but only half of the patients had the blood pressure controlled. There was an association between the disease knowledge and the complying with guidelines for hypertension treatment. The main reported difficulty was following a low sodium diet. Comparing the guidelines prescribed to the patients with those actually followed there was agreement in 37 cases. Conclusion: The communication between members of the healthcare team and patients should be improved, and the people involved in the treatment of hypertension need to discuss the difficulties and find ways to resolve them.