The influence of socioeconomic factors on blood pressure control during a community-based hypertension control programme.

The hypertension programme of the North Karelia Project aimed at lowering the high blood pressure level among the whole population. The influence of socioeconomic factors on the effect of reorganized hypertension care was analyzed among a cohort of 222 hypertensive patients during the five year follow-up. The fall in mean arterial pressure was significantly greater in North Karelia than in the reference area. A slight but not significant difference was found in blood pressure reduction between high and low socioeconomical classes. The results were better in higher socioeconomic groups, but the blood pressure reduction was clear also in lower socioeconomic groups. Our results indicate that the systematic community-based hypertension control programme will result in favourable changes in blood pressure level in the entire population without any clear preference on particular socioeconomic subgroups.