Hypertension and Compliance to Treatment in the Primary Care Setting: Key Issues from the Literature Review

The lack of effective hypertension management increases the risk of cardiovascular events. Issues of compliance to antihypertensive treatment are commonly seen as the main cause of not obtaining optimal blood pressure control, despite the availability of clinically well tolerated antihypertensive drug therapies. Our focus will be, therefore, on factors related to patient, physician and health care delivery process reported to influence the adherence to antihypertensive treatment and, subsequently, to affect blood pressure lowering. Research efforts within primary care settings should be accomplished to develop and to implement initiatives that improve the overall management of hypertension and 'primarily' prevent phenomena of insufficient adherence to treatment.