Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Published:

The hypertension-related organ damage: a poorly perceived danger in subjects with low education

Journal of Human Hypertension volume 16, pages 449–451 (2002)Cite this article

Human hypertension (HT) is the end result of various influences, and typically develops gradually over many years. The epidemiology of HT and its correlated risk factors have been studied extensively.1,2 Potential risk factors have included biological variables, psychological and environmental influences,1 such as the level of education. HT and its organ damage are major risk factors for atherosclerotic disease, but is frequently ignored by patients with little education.3,4,5 Increasing the awareness and detection of HT and its organ damage is one of the public health challenges set forth by recent guidelines.6 We recently confirmed that the awareness of HT and its organ damage is education-related.3 After establishing the educational level of 812 consecutive outpatients in our unit, we found that almost all (91%) had a high level of education.

Because patients from our institution may be a selected cohort that is very aware of health care, we decided to establish the awareness of HT and the importance of evaluating the possible hypertension-related organ damage in a cohort of workers, with low educational level, not followed by our institution.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Dyer AR, Stamler J, Shekelle RB, Schoenberger J . The relationship of education to blood pressure. Findings on 40,000 employed Chicagoans Circulation 1976; 54: 987–992

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Pappas G, Gergen PG, Carroll M . Hypertension prevalence and the status of awareness treatment, and control in the Hispanic Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (HHANES) Am J Public Health 1990; 80: 1431–1436

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Tedesco MA et al. Educational level and hypertension: how socioeconomic differences condition health care J Hum Hypertens 2001; 15: 727–731

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Zdrojewski T, Pienkowski R, Szynkiewicz M, Krupa-Wojciechowska B . Have rapid socioeconomic changes influenced awareness of blood pressure in Poland? J Hum Hypertens 2001; 15: 247–253

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Burt VL et al. Trends in the prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension in the adult US population. Data from the health examination surveys Hypertension 1995; 26: 60–69

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Word Health Organization – International Society of hypertension guidelines for the management of hypertension. Guidelines Subcommittee J Hypertens 1999; 17: 151–183

  7. Vargas CM, Imgram DD, Gillum RF . Incidence of hypertension and educational attainment: the NHANES I epidemiologic follow-up study. First National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Am J Epidemiol 2000; 152: 272–278

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Winkleby MA, Jatulis DE, Frank E, Fortmann SP . Socioeconomic status and health: how education, income, and occupation contribute to risk factors for cardiovascular disease Am J Public Health 1992; 82: 816–820

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Marceca M, Fara GM . Socio-economic determinants in conditioning Health Care access Ann Ig 2000; 12: 49–57

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Cuspidi C et al. Influence of different echocardiographic criteria for detection of left ventricular hypertrophy on cardiovascular risk stratification in recently diagnosed essential hypertensives J Hum Hypertens 2001; 15: 619–625

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Earle KA, Taylor P, Wyatt S, Burnett Ray J . A physician-pharmacist model for the surveillance of blood pressure in the community: a feasibility study J Hum Hypertens 2001; 15: 529–533

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Martin RM et al. Elevated blood pressure in men accompanyingpatients to obstetrician's office Am J Hypertens 2000; 13: 1042–1044

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Cuspidi C et al. Short and long-term impact of a structured educational program on thepatient's knowledge of hypertension Ital Heart J 2000; 1: 839–843

    CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Surgical Department of Cardio-Thoracic Sciences, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy

    M A Tedesco, S Caputo, G Di Salvo, F Natale, G Ratti, A Iacono & R Calabrò

  2. Occupational Medicine, ASL CE/1, Caserta, Italy

    D Sortino

Authors
  1. M A Tedesco
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. S Caputo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. G Di Salvo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. F Natale
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. G Ratti
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. D Sortino
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. A Iacono
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. R Calabrò
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to M A Tedesco.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Tedesco, M., Caputo, S., Di Salvo, G. et al. The hypertension-related organ damage: a poorly perceived danger in subjects with low education. J Hum Hypertens 16, 449–451 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jhh.1001397

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jhh.1001397

Search

Advanced search

Quick links