Background. Since the treatment of hypertension is beneficial for the elderly, we have undertaken this study that aims to evaluate the management of hypertension in elderly patient in Côte d'Ivoire.Methods. A retrospective study was conducted among 854 hypertensive elderly patients of Abidjan Cardiology Institute who were followed for a minimum of one year, between January 2000 and December 2009.Results. The patients mean age was years, and 59% were women. At the first presentation, it was mostly systolic-diastolic hypertension (51.8%) and isolated systolic hypertension (38.5%). Mean blood pressure was mmHg for systolic, mmHg for diastolic, and mmHg for pulse pressure. Pulse pressure was ≥60 mmHg in 80.4%. According to the European Guidelines stratification of the cardiovascular risk-excess attributable to high blood pressure, 82.1% of the sample had a very high added risk. The pharmacological therapy was prescribed in 93.5%. More than 66% of patients were receiving ≥2 antihypertensive drugs including fixed-dose combination drugs. The most common agents used were diuretics (63.5%) followed by angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers in 61.3%. The most common agents used for monotherapy were calcium antagonists. When ≥2 drugs were used, diuretics and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers were the most common. Blood pressure control was achieved in 42.6%.Conclusion. The control of elderly hypertension can be effective in Sub-Saharan Africa. He required at least two antihypertensive drugs to meet the recommended blood pressure target.
Angiotensin receptor blockers: do they protect against dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in the elderly?
