No abstract

This study evaluated hypertensive patients assisted in twelve health facilities, in Alfenas city-Minas Gerais, Brazil, in order to verify medication adherence and make a situational analysis of these patients. Data collection was carried out through home visits to patients, who answered a questionnaire and had their blood pressure (BP) measured. Medication adherence was assessed in the questionnaire by using the "Morisky" test, and following adaptations of "MINICHAL", life quality of the hypertensive patients under antihypertensive therapy, was observed. Among 196 hypertensive patients interviewed (52.04% female and 47.96% male), the age group with the highest number of hypertensive patients was the elderly (≥60 years), accounting by 68.36% of the interviewed, being that most of the interviewed declared having low education. Only 48.98% of the interviewed were considered adherent to antihypertensive treatment and 55.10% of the patients complained of dry mouth, 26.53% reported chest pain without physical effort, and 36.23% reported the occurrence of numbness or tingling. As for the BP measurement, 58.67% of the patients had between normal BP and ideal-high, and 41.32% between stage 1 and isolated systolic hypertension. Due to age group, biological, socioeconomic status, sociocultural context, and educational differences among the interviewed, can be inferred that there is a lack in more effective and individualized care in the healthcare facilities assessed, greatly contributing the high prevalence of antihypertensive treatment non-adherence found in this study (51.02%). Therefore, these data should be considered to increase the adherence rates to antihypertensive treatment by the users.