Prevalence of patients using antihypertensive medication in Greenland, and an assessment of the importance of diagnosis for the associated quality of care – a cross-sectional study

• Published in: International Journal of Circumpolar Health
• Main Authors: Maja Hykkelbjerg Nielsen, Marie Balslev Backe, Michael Lynge Pedersen
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2022
• Subjects: Hypertension; prevalence; quality of care; Greenland; Inuit; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic; Circumpolar Health; greenlandic; International Journal of Circumpolar Health; inuit
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2022.2110675; https://doaj.org/article/05b270cb6b8947449814b4c3f64f0856

This study aimed to estimate the age- and sex specific prevalence of patients using antihypertensive medication in Greenland, and compared the quality of care between patients with and without a diagnosis for hypertension. The study was a cross-sectional study comparing patients using antihypertensive medication in 2020 (6,629 patients) and 2021 (7,008 patients), respectively. For data from 2021, patients with a medical diagnosis code were identified. Data was obtained from the Greenlandic electronic medical record. The population of Greenland was used as background population. Quality of care was evaluated based on suggested indicators by international guidelines and goals from Steno Diabetes Centre Greenland. The prevalence of patients aged ≥20 years using antihypertensive medication had increased from 16.7% in 2020 to 17.5% in 2021. The prevalence increased by age and was higher among women compared to men. In 2021, the prevalence of patients aged ≥20 years with a medical diagnosis code for hypertension was 7.9%. The use of antihypertensive medication in Greenland is common. The associated quality of care was low. However, process indicators were significantly improved when patients had a medical diagnosis code. Future focus must be on initiating initiatives ensuring that more patients are registered with a medical diagnosis code.