[Importance of a bad adherence to the antihypertensive treatment in the hypertensive population. How to improve it?].
Overwhelming evidence indicates that the treatment of arterial hypertension is beneficial, but, in practice, less than 50% of treated hypertensive patients have well-controlled blood pressure. The success of treatment relies upon adherence (for both non pharmacologic and drug treatment) by the patient. This problem of observance is multifactorial. Several factors play a role: the patient, his/her illness, his/her treatment and the therapeutic environment where the relationship between the medical doctor and the patient is crucial. To improve observance, but also treatment persistence we need to think about it. Observance must be discussed with the patient at each visit. An excellent relationship between doctor and patient, education about hypertension, its risks, and the ways to avoid complications, the choice of a well tolerated and simple treatment progressively introduced, the intervention in this management of the family and the pharmacist, the development of home self blood pressure measurement by the patient are all important ways to improve adherence. This could reduce the cardiovascular complications related to high blood pressure and thus decrease the general costs for the society.
Krzesinski
J M
JM
Service de Néphrologie-Dialyse-Transplantation, CHU de Liège, Belgique. jm.krzesinski@chu.ulg.ac.be
Krzesinski
F
F
D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D016903:Drug Monitoring