Proportion and characteristics of patients who measure their blood pressure at home: nationwide survey in Slovenia.

INTRODUCTION Home blood pressure monitoring has several advantages over blood pressure monitoring at a physician's office, and has become a useful instrument in the management of hypertension. OBJECTIVE To explore the rate and characteristics of patients who measure their blood pressure at home. METHODS A sample of 2,752 patients with diagnosis of essential arterial hypertension was selected from 12596 consecutive office visitors. Data of 2,639 patients was appropriate for analysis. The data concerning home blood pressure measurement and patients' characteristics were obtained from the patients' case histories. RESULTS 1,835 (69.5%) out of 2,639 patients measured their blood pressure at home. 1,284 (70.0%) of home blood pressure patients had their own blood pressure measurement device. There were some important differences between these two groups: home blood pressure patients were more frequently male, of younger age, better educated, from urban area, mostly non-smokers, more likely to have diabetes mellitus and ischemic heart disease and had higher number of co-morbidities and were on other drugs beside antihypertensive medication. Using the logistic regression analysis we found that the most powerful predictors of home blood pressure monitoring had higher education level than primary school OR = 1.80 (95% CI 1.37-2.37), non-smoking OR = 2.16 (95% CI 1.40-3.33) and having a physician in urban area OR = 1.32 (95% CI 1.02-1.71). CONCLUSION Home blood pressure monitoring is popular in Slovenia. Patients who measured blood pressure at home were different from patients who did not. Younger age, higher education, non-smoking, having a physician in urban area and longer duration of hypertension were predictors of home blood pressure monitoring.