ASSESSMENT OF SELF-CARE AND ADHERENCE TO ANTIHYPERTENSIVE TREATMENT AND BLOOD PRESSURE CONTROL

Objective: To analyze self-care rates associated with treatment adherence and blood pressure (BP) control. Design and method: A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted involving hypertensive patients receiving treatment at a specialized center in central Brazil. Various scales were used for evaluation: the Questionnaire on Adherence to Treatment of Arterial Hypertension (QATHAS), which assesses pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments; the Morisky-Green test, which measures intentional adherence; and the Self-Care Scale for Hypertension (SC-HI), includes the domains of Maintenance, Management, and Confidence in Performing Self-Care. A blood pressure below 140/90 mmHg was considered to be controlled. The variables used were sex, education, marital status, age, body mass index, and duration of treatment. The statistical analyses employed in the study included Student’s t-test, ANOVA, the Kruskal-Wallis test, and the Kolmogorov-Smirnov distribution test. Results: A total of 152 people participated, 73.7% female, with a mean age of 63.7 (± 11.5) years and a mean time in treatment of 10.1 (± 7.6) years. The rate of blood pressure control was 57.9% (n = 88), with women having a higher proportion (80.2%) of control rates. The proportion of those with intentional adherence deficit and uncontrolled BP was significantly higher (24; 37.5%) compared to those with uncontrolled BP (19; 22.1%). There was no association between the SC-HI domains and BP control. The Management domain correlated with longer treatment time and older age. Men had less confidence in performing self-care (24.8; ± 4.8) than women (26.7; ± 3.4), and married people also had less confidence (25.4; ± 4.3). The Maintenance domain was associated with education, and illiterate individuals had lower self-care averages (31.0; ±3.0). This domain was associated with QATHAS scores, with lower levels presenting lower self-care averages (29.4; ±3.8). Those with unintentional adherence deficit had lower averages in the Safety domain (26.1; ±3.8) than those with intentional adherence deficit (28.9; ±2.4). Conclusions: Self-care behavior was associated with education, marital status, sex, treatment adherence scores, and adherence deficit according to intentionality but with no association with blood pressure control rates.