Prevalence of white coat hypertension in adult primary care attenders

BackgroundWhite coat hypertension (WCH) is common but such data is lacking in Malaysia. AimsTo determine the prevalence of WCH and its associated factors among healthy adults in the Malaysian primary care setting. Methods This was a cross-sectional study conducted from January to June 2014 in 5 primary care clinics in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. Previously healthy adult who found to have persistently elevated BP fulfilling all the inclusion and exclusion criteria of our study at clinic were recruited. The validated BP set Omron HEM7200 was used for home BP monitoring in making the diagnosis of WCH. Patients were guided to do home BP monitoring. Results A total of 105 subjects completed the study, with a response rate of 92.1 per cent. The prevalence of WCH among Malaysian primary care attenders was 52.4 per cent. There was no correlation found between WCH and socio-demographic variables. ConclusionMore WCH studies using ambulatory blood pressure monitoring with larger sample size are needed for Malaysian primary care setting. Accurate diagnosis of hypertension could have saved money on the unnecessary anti-hypertensive agents