Well Controlled Blood Pressure in Turkish Patients: How Many Drugs Are Required to Attain and Maintain the Blood Pressure Goal?

Background: This study aimed to determine the number of antihypertensive agents required to achieve optimal blood pressure (BP) in Turkish hypertensive patients. Material and Methods: Totally 400 hypertensive patients (114 males and 286 females) were enrolled. BP was measured by patients at home twice a day. The patients were called for controlling in every four weeks, and those who had BP < 140/90 were not followed-up. In patients with BP > 140/90 drug, doses were increased or another antihypertensive drug added and the patients were continued to be followed-up. Results: In the first follow-up (on the 4th week), 152 (38%) patients, including 35 (31%) men and 117 (41%) women, attained the goal BP. The mean duration of hypertension in single, double, triple, and quadruple treatment groups was 6.2 ± 5.0, 6.8 ± 5.9, 8.8 ± 5.4, and 10.4 ± 6.6 years, respectively. In the beginning, the median number of agents used for each patient was 2.17. When the follow-up was concluded, the median of agents used for each patient was 2.72. Conclusion: Thirty-eight percent of participants had controlled hypertension in the first follow-up. Women had better BP control. The median number of agents required for attaining and maintaining BP goal was 2.72. More drugs are needed when hypertension gets longer.