Hypertension in the population and prevention in outpatient settings: problems and solutions

The high prevalence of hypertension in Russia and its leading role in cardiovascular diseases warrant a comprehensive analysis of hypertension problems and the search for new solutions. Objective. To analyze the prevention of hypertension in the population and in outpatient settings to support the use of IT technologies. Material and methods. An online survey of 1.722 individuals was performed, and 749 outpatient records were analyzed. Results and discussion. Every tenth patient with hypertension was not followed up by doctors. The target blood pressure level was achieved in half of the patients and every third at 60 years and older. Doctors did not always adhere to the concept of «ideal drug therapy» for hypertension. When prescribing antihypertensive drugs (AHDs), doctors rarely used international generic names, and brand names were much more common. About 30% of patients did not take antihypertensive drugs (AHDs), and only a third of the rest received AGPs commonly prescribed by doctors in outpatient settings. Hypercholesterolaemia persisted in most patients with stage I and II hypertension. Only one in five patients was prescribed lipid-lowering therapy. Every tenth patient with stage I and II hypertension was unreasonably prescribed antiplatelet agents. Conclusion. It is proposed to use IT technologies to increase the effectiveness of hypertension prevention.