Treatment adherence and frailty syndrome in hypertensive older adults

Abstract

Objective: To analyze the association between adherence to antihypertensive treatment and frailty syndrome in hypertensive older adults. Method: A descriptive, cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach with older adults. The data collection took place between November 2017 and March 2018, evaluating sociodemographic information, adherence to antihypertensive treatment, lifestyle and frailty through the Edmonton Frail Scale. The Kruskal-Wallis test and the Chi-squared test were used for data analysis, considering a 95% confidence interval and a significance level of p<0.05. Results: There were 193 older adults who participated in the study. The average age was 80.94 (sd ± 7.17) years, with a predominance of females (72%) and widows (43.5%). The factors which were associated with adherence to treatment were diastolic blood pressure, education and the time that the older adult had smoked (p<0.05). Frailty was not associated with treatment adherence levels (p=0.095). Conclusion: There was no association between frailty scores and control of arterial hypertension; however, adequate monitoring and nursing care are essential in assessing adherence to treatment in order to reduce the aggravations of the disease and frailty syndrome development.