Targeting of UnControlled Hypertension in Emergency Department

Summary

The proposed project underscores the following: 1) The prevalence of uncontrolled/undiagnosed hypertension (HTN) in underrepresented groups presenting to the ED is alarmingly high, and 2) ED engagement and early risk assessment/stratification is a cost-effective, feasible innovation to help close health disparity gaps in HTN. This proposal involves a two-arm randomized controlled trial of up to 770 patients from the Emergency Department at University of Illinois Hospital with elevated blood pressure (BP). The primary objective is to determine the effectiveness of an emergency department-initiated Educational and Empowerment (E2) intervention with a Post Acute Care Hypertension Consultation (PACHT-c) intervention (arm 2) on the primary outcome of mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) differences between the two trial arms at 6-months post intervention. Secondary objectives include evaluating the effectiveness of this ED education and empowerment intervention on mean SBP and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) differences at 3-months, and mean DBP differences at 6-months.

Conditions

• Hypertension
• Cardiovascular Diseases
• Vascular Diseases

Interventions

OTHER

HTN Educational Video

The video will educate participants in arm 2 about high BP, how it is diagnosed, and the importance of treating it to prevent secondary complications.

OTHER

Visual Echocardiogram Image Clips

Visual clips of age/gender-matched echocardiograms will be used to educate and motivate patients to change their behavior and improve their BP. We have found that real time visualization of cardiac ultrasound images with active discussion of findings is a significant patient motivator and empowerment tool, and was a significant factor in the success of our previous pilot study.

OTHER

Mobile Health and Remote BP monitoring

All participants randomized to the intervention group will receive an FDA-approved HBPM kit that includes the Nokia wireless (self-inflating) BPM+ monitor and Health Mate mobile app. The app automatically launches when the patient slips on the cuff and turns on the monitor to measure his/her BP. Synced data are automatically uploaded from the mobile app to the iCardia server of our study.

OTHER

Post-Acute Care HTN Transition consultation (PACHT-c)

All participants randomized to the E2 intervention will have a focused consultation with either a clinical pharmacist or an APN. During this consultation, the pharmacist/APN repeats the BP measurement; reviews the screening assessments; and reviews general principles of BP control including nutrition, exercise, and smoking cessation. BP will be managed according to the current published guidelines available at the time of funding regarding initiation of first-line antihypertensive medications. Patients with BP ≥160/100 mmHg may be started on antihypertensive medications by the provider during the consultation if appropriate.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)

  collaborator NIH

• University of Illinois at Chicago

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Heather Prendergast, MD, MPH, MS · University of Illinois at Chicago

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

SCREENING

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

75 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-02-19

Primary Completion

2023-03-31

Completion

2023-03-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations