title: Characteristics associated with the dropout of hypertensive patients followed up in an outpatient referral clinic.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the characteristics associated with the dropout of patients followed up in a Brazilian out patient clinic specializing in hypertension.
  
  
  METHODS
  Planned prospective cohort study of patients who were prescribed an antihypertensive treatment after an extensive initial evaluation. The following parameters were analyzed: sex, age, educational level, duration of disease, pressure level used for classifying the patient, previous treatment, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, familial history of hypertension, and lesion in a target organ.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We studied 945 hypertensive patients, 533 (56%) of whom dropped out of the follow-up. The mean age was 52.3+/-12.9 years. The highest probabilities of dropout of the follow-up were associated with current smoking, relative risk of 1.46 (1.04-2.06); educational level equal to or below 5 years of schooling, relative risk of 1.52 (1.11-2.08); and hypertension duration below 5 years, relative risk of 1.78 (1.28-2.48). Age increase was associated with a higher probability of follow-up with a relative risk of 0.98 (0.97-0.99).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We identified a group at risk for dropping out the follow-up, which comprised patients with a lower educational level, a recent diagnosis of hypertension, and who were smokers. We think that measures assuring adherence to treatment should be directed to this group of patients.
authors.affiliation: Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, 90460-040, Brazil.
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Busnello
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Melchior
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Faccin
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Vettori
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Petter
authors.forename: L B
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Moreira
authors.forename: F D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Fuchs
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000553:Ambulatory Care; D015331:Cohort Studies; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012306:Risk; D013223:Statistics as Topic