The role of telemedicine in the monitoring and control of patients with hypertension during the COVID-19 pandemic: a multicenter study in primary care

Background. The COVID-19 epidemic overloaded primary care. Telemedicine visits (TV) were promoted to prevent chronic diseases, such as hypertension (HT), from being neglected. Objectives. To explore the association between number of visits and HT control with an emphasis on TV. Material and methods. Retrospective follow-up study in seven primary care health centers in Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. Measurements: Gender, age, blood pressure (BP), electrocardiogram, body mass index (BMI), habits and laboratory tests during the period 2019-2021. Logistic regression models estimated the advantage ratio between in-person visits (PV) and TV in HT control, adjusted for gender and age. Results. In total, 770 patients with HT were analyzed. BP measurement went from 79% in 2019 to 56% in 2020 (p < 0.001) and 58% in 2021 (p = 0.354, between 2020 and 2021). HT control went from 41% in 2019 to 27% in 2020 (p < 0.001) and 31% in 2021 (p = 0.130 between 2020 and 2021). From 2019 to 2020, PV decreased, and TV increased. The multivariate analysis retained PV with the family doctor (p = 0.017) and community nurse (p = 0.027) in 2019, TV with the doctor (p = 0.002) and PV with the nurse (p < 0.001) in 2020, and PV with both in 2021, but did not retain age or gender. Conclusions. A direct association was identified between the frequency of patient visits and the control of their HT; TV with family doctors were useful in this relationship in 2020, which points to the beneficial effect of TV for the care of hypertensive patients when in-person visits were diminished.