Effect of Education Intervention on Lifestyle of Patients with Hypertension among the Rural Population of Lorestan Province

BACKGROUND Hypertension is one of the most common chronic health problems across the world, resulting in significant global responsibility in developed and developing countries. The aim of this study was to survey the effect of educational intervention on the lifestyle of patients with hypertension. METHODS This study was a case-control intervention study on 86 patients with hypertension that were selected by simple random sampling from the rural regions of Aligoudarz County in Lorestan Province. Before the intervention, both groups completed the standard questionnaire of HPLP II; two months after the intervention, both groups completed the same questionnaire. The results were analyzed using SPSS software, t-test, and Chi-square test. RESULTS The mean age and standard deviation in case and control groups were 59.95 ± 7.9 and 64.51 ± 9.2 years, respectively. The mean of the total lifestyle scores was significantly increased in the case group compared with the control group (p < 0.05). In addition, the average scores for the three dimensions of physical activity, nutrition, and stress management after educational intervention in the case group compared to the control group showed a significant increase (p < 0.05, for all). CONCLUSION Based on the relationship between lifestyle and hypertension, it seems that implementing educational programs in the fields of nutrition, physical activity, and stress management is essential to improvement in disease knowledge and behavior modification among patients with hypertension.