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ABSTRACT
Alberto Liberman Versão
Português
Hypertension is usually considered an asymtomatic condition, which brings difficulty in identifying individuals who are aware and those who are aware of non-controlled arterial pressure. Hypertensive urgency is one of the most serious situations of non-controlled hypertension. Modifying of physical and psychological well being as well as quality of life in hypertensive patients is a controversial question. The objective of this study was to evaluate the quality of life in patients with hypertensive urgency using the generic instrument - questionnaire SF-36. Seventy patients with hypertensive urgency including male and female were chosen between the ages of 30 and 70, attended in Emergency Room of the Albert Sabin Hospital in Campinas, which were are beneficiaries of a health care plan. The patients were symptomatic and presented a level of 2 and 3 of arterial hypertension and were not carriers of serious comorbities or functional incapacity. After being treated in Emergency Room, they were then forwarded for a laboratory clinical evaluation at the ambulatory. They were applied to a type of interview through the questionnaire SF-36, generic instrument of quality of life, the specific questionnaire to evaluate the symptoms of patients with hypertension and also the questionnaire pertaining to Jenkins sleep disturbances. The average age of the sample studied was of 50.39 years of which 31 (44.3%) were male and 39 (55.7%) female. The average value of the systolic arterial pressure was 176,28 mmHg, and the diastolic arterial pressure was 110,14mmHg. None of the patients presented an associated clinical condition; 65.7% had a target-organ disease and 15.7% were diabetic. The majority of the values obtained in the eight domains of SF-36 were situated above 70, although in the vitallity and mental health domains the values were less than 60. The relationship between the variables of the sample and the eight domains of SF-36 demonstrated that the male patients presented higher values, with a significant difference in almost all the domains. Those with a higher level of scholarship, or who were employed and had an income, presented higher scores and better quality of life in all the domains. The patients who were aware, and those undergoing hypertension treatment presented inferior numeric scores in the domains of SF-36. Diabetics, those with comorbities, stress-related, and those who most used medical assistance, were associated with lower values in the domains of SF-36. There was no association between the levels of arterial pressure, age, risk factors, obesity, sedentary life and quality of life. The variables most consistently associated and correlated with quality of life were the rates of frequency and seriousness of the symptoms and the occurance of sleep disturbances. Concluding, the patients with hypertensive urgency when evaluated according to the questionnaire SF-36, demonstrated lower values in the domains of vitality and mental health, therefore indicating a lower quality of life.
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