Treating patients with hypertension in Indonesia's primary health care centre: A challenging condition.

BACKGROUND

In Indonesia, hypertension treatment relies on primary health care services, and there are no current data on blood pressure control and hypertension treatment in Indonesia's primary health care system.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study including all patients with hypertension (n = 273) who visited the Tegal Alur II Community Health Center in 2017. For all patients with hypertension, medical records containing the most recent blood pressure results and antihypertensive treatments were examined by the authors. The primary outcome in this study was optimal blood pressure control according to the Joint National Committee (JNC) VII guidelines.

RESULTS

The mean systolic and diastolic blood pressures were 143.7 mmHg (SD 18.5) and 87 mmHg (SD 11.4), respectively. Calcium channel blockers were the most frequently used antihypertensive agents (58.6%). Of all patients with hypertension, 27.1% achieved controlled blood pressure. Bivariate analysis revealed a significant association between antihypertensive agents and blood pressure control (p = 0.009). Multivariate analysis showed that calcium channel blockers were the strongest predictor of blood pressure control, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.9 (95% confidence interval CI [1.1-3.5], p = 0.022).

CONCLUSION

Controlled blood pressure was achieved by less than half of all patients with hypertension visiting the Tegal Alur II Community Health Center in 2017. The majority of patients with hypertension received single-drug therapy with calcium channel blockers, the most frequently used antihypertensive agents. There was a significant association between antihypertensive agents and blood pressure control.

FUNDING: This study received no financial support from any specific funding agencies.