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The most effective way to prevent life-threatening complications of extreme hypertension in African-Americans with diabetes is to better control their blood pressure, according to a Rutgers study, the largest of its kind.
The study, which appears in Clinical and Experimental Hypertensionincluded 783 diabetic and 1,001 non-diabetic patients from a New Jersey hospital emergency department that predominantly serves African-American communities. It is the first study at the risk factors and prevalence for hypertensive emergencies – or drastic increases in blood pressure – in diabetic African-Americans, a population disproportionally affected by complications of high blood pressure.
"Our study found that both diabetics and non-diabetics with hypertensive emergencies had similar rates of organ injury," said Irina Benenson, a Rutgers School of Nursing Assistant Professor. "Combined with the fact that diabetics with hypertensive pressure also have significant increases in blood pressure, the fact that the occurrence of severe damage to vital organs is not sufficient."
According to Benenson, hypertensive emergencies are associated with life-threatening damage to the brain, heart and kidneys. An estimated high rate of high blood pressure during their lifetime, and the likelihood is higher among people with diabetes.
Benenson said the risk of hypertensive emergencies in diabetic African-Americans was significantly higher in those with cardiovascular conditions, kidney disease and anemia, and that having medical insurance and access to a healthcare provider did not cause complications of severely elevated blood pressure. The research is consistent with another recent study, which has been shown to be associated with a 57 percent increased risk of cardiovascular disease in people with diabetes.
"Given the fact that the presence of severely elevated blood pressure is the most important intervention for hypertensive emergencies would be to better manage patients' blood pressure," said Benenson. "Carefully selected interventions that improve patients' adherence to medications, and strategies that help providers to overcome clinical inertia, or failure to increase therapy when unmet, may be associated with hypertension."
Story Source:
Materials provided by Rutgers University. Original written by Caitlin Coyle. Note: Content can be edited for style and length.
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