Stress management in the treatment of essential hypertension in primary health care.

The present study was a pilot project to determine the feasibility of a stress management program for treatment of hypertension in the Swedish primary health care system. Those patients in the catchment area of the primary health care center at Tumba hospital who were under 45 years old and diagnosed with primary hypertension during 1979-1981, were chosen to participate if they had had at least one measurement of 150 mmHg systolic and/or 95 mmHg diastolic during 1981. Patients on diuretic medication were included but those being medicated with beta-blockers were excluded for ethical reasons. Of the 21 people who fulfilled these criteria, 13 took part in the treatment, which lasted ten weeks. Both systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreased significantly (151.1 to 124.7 and 96.4 to 89.3, respectively). The conclusions drawn were that stress management may offer a viable alternative to medication of mild hypertension in primary health care and that it should be tested on a larger scale with systematic blood pressure measurements performed during daily activities, serving as a basis for baseline determination.