Prevalence and risk of developing heart failure in hypertensive patients managed in Spanish primary care centres. HICAP study

Objective. The objective was to establish the proportion of hypertensive patients diagnosed with heart failure (HF) and at high risk of developing it in Primary Care (PC) centres in Spain. Methods. Observational, multicentre study. Each investigator included data from 5 consecutive hypertensive patients. A routine laboratory test and a electrocardiogram performed in the previous 6 months had to be available for each patient. Results. Data from 6,375 patients were suitable for the study objectives. The proportion of patients diagnosed with HF was 18.9% (95% confidence interval: 17.97-19.90%), and increased with age. Among the patients not previously diagnosed with HF, 59.1% (95%CI: 57.7-60.5%) had a high risk of developing it. Blood pressure and other cardiovascular risk factors control in high risk patients was insufficient. Conclusion. The proportion of hypertensive patients diagnosed with HF and at high risk for developing it is high in PC. Blood pressure and other cardiovascular risk factors control should be improved to avoid the development of HF among high risk patients.