Hypertension Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice in Adult Hypertensive Patients at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Objective. Hypertension (HTN) remains a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases globally. Despite considerable improvement in increasing awareness, treatment, and control of HTN, undiagnosed and uncontrolled HTN remains a major public health challenge. Our focus was on studying the knowledge, attitude, and practice regarding HTN in adult hypertensive patients at a tertiary care hospital in Sri Lanka. Methodology. A descriptive study on knowledge, attitude, and practice of hypertensive patients on antihypertensive medications attending the hypertensive clinic was carried out from January 2016 to June 2016 at THP. Results. The study was on a total of 371 hypertensive patients comprising 253 (68.2%) females and 118 (31.8%) males. Among the total participants, 12 (3.2%), all females, had never been to school. About half of them (47.7%) had not even reached GCE (ordinary level). More than two-thirds (77%) of the study population were aware of the complications of HTN as they were informed by a health care team member. About 74% of them were taking all their prescribed medications. Almost all (95%) patients had checked their blood pressure (BP) during the previous 12 months, and almost the same percentage had visited their doctor for BP checkups every 1–3 months. Conclusion. Our patients were well aware of the importance of regular follow-ups and also knowledgeable about the complications related to HTN. Almost 75% of the patients had optimum drug compliance. It was revealed that forgetfulness was the frequent cause for poor drug compliance.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice Toward Hypertension Among Hypertensive Patients Residing in Lebanon

“…To illustrate such poor practices towards HTN, only 45.3% of patients in our study regularly check their BP. In accordance with our results (90%), a good level of adherence to antihypertensive medications has been reported in Sri Lanka 29 and Ethiopia. 30 In contrast, a fair level of practice and inadequate adherence to HTN treatment and prevention measures have been described in Iraq.…”

“…This study aimed to determine the Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice (KAP) toward hypertension (HTN) among hypertensive patients residing in Lebanon while identifying the factors affecting and parameters predicting the HTN KAP scores in these patients. Results showed that 40.4% of patients had hypertension for more than 10 years and 67.3% had a family history of HTN compared to 53% and 21.1% in Sri Lanka 29 and Ethiopia, 30 respectively. In 2015, it was reported in Lebanon by Matar et al that 30% of the studied 1697 adults were graded as pre-HTN and 36.9% as hypertensive.…”

“…3,5 High BP, when left untreated, can also seriously affect vital organs such as the brain, eyes, heart, and kidneys. 6 Non-pharmacological strategies to reduce HTN risk and lower BP are as follows: weight loss in any patient above the upper limit of the "normal weight" ( [18.5-25]kg/m 2 ), namely overweight (BMI: [25][26][27][28][29][30]kg/m 2 ) and obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/ m 2 ) patients, smoke cessation, reduced alcohol consumption, dietary supplements, self-measured BP monitoring, and exercise. 7,8 Dietary modification is also essential, the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet is the most effective diet, as well as the Mediterranean, low sodium, low carbohydrate, high protein dietary approaches that are also beneficial compared to control diet.…”

Increasing Awareness of Hypertensive Patients About Their Blood Pressure Readings During Clinic Visits in a Tertiary Hospital in Riyadh

“…Therefore, the author emphasized the importance of interventions for increased screening coverage. In Sri Lanka, most patients demonstrate good practices in measuring BP readings; 95% of patients regularly check their BP every 12 months, and 71% of patients have good compliance with anti-hypertensive medications [ 15 ]. Of the remaining patients who have poor compliance, the most reported reason is forgetfulness, which was also detected among our patients.…”

Assessment of Knowledge, Attitude and Practice among Hypertensive Patients in a Teaching Hospital

“…10 Pre-hypertension in itself is not a disease but is like a warning sign and identifies those who are likely to develop stage1 and stage 2 HTN. 11 High blood Pressure can also cause damaging effects to the brain specifically it can cause aneurysm or stroke. 12 Significant changes have been noted in the incidence and prevalence of hypertension where major dietary changes had been implemented.…”