Blood Pressure Assessment in Ophthalmology Clinics for Patients With Diabetes.
Over half of diabetic patients in ophthalmology clinics have uncontrolled stage 2 hypertension.
Blood Pressure Assessment in Ophthalmology Clinics for Patients With Diabetes.
IMPORTANCE: Hypertension is a major modifiable risk factor for diabetic retinopathy progression but may not be assessed routinely during ophthalmology visits.
To evaluate prevalence of elevated or uncontrolled blood pressure (blood pressure) among adults with diabetes presenting for ophthalmologic care and patient attitudes toward in-clinic screening.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This prospective case series was conducted from July 2024 to August 2024 at a single academic retina clinic.
A prior diagnosis of hypertension was present in 144 of 172 patients (83.7%); among these, 131 of 144 patients (91.0%) were receiving antihypertensive therapy.
Among 28 patients without known hypertension, 24 of 28 (85.7%) had above-normal blood pressure, including 10 of 28 (35.7%) with stage 2 hypertension and 3 of 28 (10.7%) in hypertensive crisis.
In this single-center case series, uncontrolled or previously unrecognized hypertension was highly prevalent among patients with diabetes, even among those engaged in routine medical follow-up.
Opportunistic blood pressure screening in ophthalmology clinics appears feasible and may identify actionable cardiovascular risk.