Assessment of Adherence to Self-Care Practices of Known Hypertensive Out-Patients in the Cardiology Unit of Tertiary Hospitals in South-Eastern Nigeria: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Abstract

<title>Abstract</title> Background Adherence is a primary determinant of the effectiveness of treatment as poor adherence attenuates optimum clinical benefit and paves the way for complications. The aim of the study was to assess adherence to self-care practices of hypertensive patients. Results About 297(59.4%) adhered to medication use, 259(59.4%) was adherent to low salt diet, 255(51.0%) adhered to physical activity while 300(60%) adhered to weight management self-care practices. Most of the patients 361(72.2%) were non- smokers, however, a lot of them consume alcohol 363(72.6%). Gender was associated medication use (X² (1) = 7.152, p = 0.007) while educational level had an association with physical activity and smoking (X² (3) = 31.898, p = 0.000). Conclusion The hypertensive patients had high level of self-care practices for hypertension, however, adherence to the DASH diet was low. The practice of exercise, and weight control was moderate. Patient-specific targeted interventions are required to improve self-care practices for hypertension. Improving self-management practices for hypertension requires targeted, patient-specific interventions.