Arterial Hypertension and Health-Related Quality of Life

Purpose: To investigate the effect of awareness of arterial hypertension on quality of life in hypertensive patients in Greece. Materials and methods: This was a prospective observational study that included 189 aware hypertensive patients on treatment with antihypertensive therapy. Patients were ambulatory men or women ⩾18 years old, with diagnosed essential hypertension. Results: The mean BDI score was 9.9±6.9 and 58%, 25%, 8.9%, 7.3% were identified without, with minimal, moderate and 0.8% with severe depression respectively. The mean score for physical component summary (PCS-36) was 48.9±7.6 and the mean score for mental component summary (MCS-36) was 46.0±10.6. The stage of hypertension was not an independent predictor for any of the SF-36 dimensions. Dippers had not different levels of health related quality of life as compared with non-dippers. LV hypertrophy was associated with lower scores on bodily pain (p<0.05) and kidney failure was associated with lower scores on general health perception (p<0.05). Female gender, increased age and the presence of COPD were independently associated with lower physical and mental health scores (p<0.05). Score on BDI was independently correlated with all dimensions of SF-36, indicating that greater depression levels are associated with lower levels of health related quality of life. Conclusions: The stage as well as awareness of arterial hypertension does not affect physical and mental health. The fact that arterial hypertension per se is not a symptomatic disease may explain these results at least in patients with uncomplicated hypertension.