RESUMEN
Based on questionnaire responses elicited from 378 physicians working in April - May 1986, the study collected information on the physicians definition of hypertension and their usual modes of managing the problem. A large majority of the primary health care [PHC] physicians, as well those in hospitals, used multiple BP readings to diagnose the disease. However, 23% of physicians measured BP only if the patient presented some symptoms. When our findings are compared with an American study conducted in 1977, a substantial percentage of the Kuwait study physicians regarded a diastolic blood pressure [DBP] of 95-99 mm Hg. as normal for patients aged 40+, while almost all the American physicians considered a DBP less than 95 to be normal for all ages studied. Unlike the American study, 85% of the PHC and 55% of the hospital physicians in Kuwait used sedatives or tranquilizers as the initial therapy. The survey findings lead us to assert that there is a need to develop national guidelines for the definitional management of hypertension. There is also a need to institute blood pressure measurement as a routine procedure in the PHC setting. Finally, a multi-pronged approach including a strong emphasis on patient education is necessary