[Epidemiological, clinical and therapeutic aspects of arterial hypertension in young adults at the Abidjan heart institute].

INTRODUCTION

Hypertension in young adults has become a health problem due to its increasing prevalence.

OBJECTIVE

To describe the epidemiological, clinical, and therapeutic aspects of hypertension in young adults in Côte d'Ivoire.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

This was a retrospective and analytical study over a 3-year period from 2016 to 2018 conducted at the Abidjan Heart Institute (ICA). We used data from the medical records of hypertension patients aged 18 to 39years with a minimum of six months of outpatient follow-up. Data were analyzed using Stata 12.0 software.

RESULTS

We included 95 patients aged 18 to 39years. The mean age was 34.6±4.2years. The M/F sex ratio was 0.98. Hypertension was predominantly systolic-diastolic (83.1%) and grade III (42.1%). Its severity at the first consultation was significantly reduced by prior treatment (P=0.015). The mean duration of hypertension was 1.7±2.4years. Cardiac involvement was present at the start of follow-up: left ventricular hypertension (44.2%) and CV risk was high (53.7%). Hypotensive treatment was initiated with dual therapy (61.1%) combining RAAS blockers (87.4%) and calcium channel blockers (57.9%). We found that self-measurement at home significantly improved blood pressure control (P=0.0087).

CONCLUSION

This study calls for strengthening screening and management policies for hypertension in young adults in our context.