Medical Follow-Up Received by Women with Blood Pressure Alerts in the WISEWOMAN Program by Race and Ethnicity, 2014–2018

Abstract

Background: Hypertension is a preventable risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Immediate reduction in blood pressure (BP) is necessary for a person with dangerously high BP to prevent injuries related to heart disease and stroke. Differences in the prevalence of hypertension and dangerously high BP (BP alerts) and the distribution of medical follow-ups were examined by race and ethnicity among participants in the Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for WOMen Across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) program. Materials and Methods: Data (January 2014 through June 2018) were used to identify women, aged 40-64 years, with hypertension at their first WISEWOMAN screening. Women with BP alerts were identified as having an average systolic BP >180 mm Hg or diastolic BP >110 mm Hg at WISEWOMAN baseline screening or rescreening. CDC's WISEWOMAN program is a public health practice program and does not conduct human subject research. Results: Among 65,189 WISEWOMAN participants, 25,098 (38.5%) women had hypertension and 586 (2.3%) of those women had BP alerts. There were significant differences among Hispanic, non-Hispanic black (NHB), and non-Hispanic white (NHW) women in the prevalence of hypertension (26.5%, 67.1%, and 40.2%, respectively, p < 0.001) and BP alerts (1.7%, 3.4%, and 2.1%, respectively, p < 0.001). Among women with BP alerts, 74.7% received a medical follow-up within 7 days and 12.4% received a medical follow-up after 7 days. There were no significant differences in the percentage of women with BP alerts who received a follow-up within 7 days among Hispanic, NHB, and NHW women (71.1%, 77.1%, and 74.4%, respectively, p = 0.085). Conclusions: BP alerts occurred in 2.3% of the WISEWOMAN hypertensive population, and approximately three in four women with BP alerts, regardless of race and ethnicity, received timely follow-up care within 7 days.