Introduction:
Hypertensive crisis (HC) is life-threatening condition characterized by a sudden rise in blood pressure higher than 180/110, which can lead to an unfavorable outcome and be associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The purpose of our study is to determine clinical characteristics and factors associated with HC in patients attending hospital emergency department.
Methods:
We conducted a case-control study involving patients aged > 18 years with HC as cases and hospitalized patients with chronic hypertension (HTN) as controls at Shahid Beheshti hospital in Abadan, Iran, from march 2023 to march 2024. Pregnant patients with HTN were excluded from this study. Control patients were randomly selected, and analysis was performed using SPSS v.22
Results:
A total of 306 cases and 204 controls were included. Of the cases, 156 (50.9%) were men. The mean (SD) age of cases was 61.94 (14.16) years. Patients with HC had higher salt intake (p value: 0.01), history of kidney disorders (p value: 0.001), neurologic diseases such as ischemic or thrombotic stroke (p value: 0.004), non-adherence to antihypertensive treatment, higher blood pressure (BP), pulse rate (PR) (p value< 0.001), random blood sugar (BS) (p value: 0.01), and creatinine (Cr) levels (p value <0.001) than controls. The Control group had higher potassium levels (p value: 0.04). Both groups did not differ regarding age, gender, education, smoking, BMI, physical activity, and consuming BP-enhancing drugs such as cocaine, NSAIDs, etc. (p value>0.05)
Conclusions:
HC is one of the most common causes of emergency room admissions. High salt intake, history of neurologic and kidney diseases, non-adherence to antihypertensive treatment, high BP, PR, BS, and Cr levels significantly associated with HC in individuals with chronic HTN. Adequate control of BP and underlying diseases should be pursued to prevent HC and its complications.
I have no potential conflict of interest to disclose.
I did not use generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process.