Open AccessThe importance of frequent return visits and hypertension control among US young adults: a multidisciplinary group practice observational study
Author(s) -
King Cecile C.,
Bartels Christie M.,
Magnan Elizabeth M.,
Fink Jennifer T.,
Smith Maureen A.,
Johnson Heather M.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
the journal of clinical hypertension
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.909
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1751-7176
pISSN - 1524-6175
DOI - 10.1111/jch.13096
Subject(s) - medicine , observational study , young adult , blood pressure , ambulatory , psychological intervention , ambulatory blood pressure , pediatrics , proportional hazards model , retrospective cohort study , population , environmental health , psychiatry
Young adults (aged 18 to 39 years) have the lowest hypertension control rates compared with older adults. Shorter follow‐up encounter intervals are associated with faster hypertension control rates in older adults; however, optimal intervals are unknown for young adults. The study objective was to evaluate the relationship between ambulatory blood pressure encounter intervals (average number of provider visits with blood pressures over time) and hypertension control rates among young adults with incident hypertension. A retrospective analysis was conducted of patients aged 18 to 39 years (n = 2990) with incident hypertension using Kaplan‐Meier survival and Cox proportional hazards analyses over 24 months. Shorter encounter intervals were associated with higher hypertension control: <1 month (91%), 1 to 2 months (76%), 2 to 3 months (65%), 3 to 6 months (40%), and >6 months (13%). Young adults with shorter encounter intervals also had lower medication initiation, supporting the effectiveness of lifestyle modifications. Sustainable interventions for timely young adult follow‐up are essential to improve hypertension control in this hard‐to‐reach population.