Blood pressure control and clustering of cardiovascular risk factors in Mediterranean post-menopausal hypertensive women

BACKGROUND: Control of hypertension is unsatisfactory among older women. Data about Mediterranean countries are not currently reported. AIM: The aim of the present study was to describe the features of blood pressure (BP) control and the clustering of other cardiovascular (CV) risk factors in Mediterranean post-menopausal hypertensive women. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We consecutively selected 516 post-menopausal female patients (mean age 69 +/- 11 years) with drug-treated essential hypertension (ESH/ESC grade 1 and 2) for this cross-sectional study. All patients were divided in 4 groups: < 60 years; 60-69 years; 70-79 years; >= 80 years. RESULTS: The Kruskal-Wallis analysis of variance showed a significant difference among the 4 age groups both for systolic BP (p < 0.001) and diastolic BP (p < 0.01). Mann-Whitney test for multiple comparisons of each age group vs. octogenarians demonstrated that there is a significant incremental trend of SBP through the age decades. Mean diastolic BP values were significantly higher in younger patients (age decades < 60 and 60-69 years, p < 0.01 and p < 0.05 respectively), while in patients aged 70-79 years there was no difference vs. octogenarians. Dyslipidemia was the more prevalent clustered risk factor with a peak rate of 49% in patients aged 60-69 years, statistically different (p < 0.05) from octogenarians. Global BP control (i.e. treated BP < 140/90 mmHg) was low (33.5% in the whole population) and there was no trend through age decades. CONCLUSIONS: BP control varied across age groups, but was poor. Nevertheless, the studied population appeared to be at low cardiovascular risk, due to a modest clustering of traditional risk factors.