Epidemiological, Clinical and Therapeutic Characteristics of Arterial Hypertension in the Elderly in A Moroccan Population

The aim of the study is to report the epidemiological, clinical and therapeutic aspects of arterial hypertension in the elderly in Moroccan hospitals. This was a descriptive retrospective study conducted over a period of 2 years in the cardiology department of the CHU Ibn Rochd. It concerned subjects aged 60 and over, know hypertensives, followed in the department during the study period. We retained 134 patients, i.e. 59.29% of the 226 hypertensive patients followed during this period: 107 women (79.85%) and 27 men (20.15%), with an average age of 68,31 ± 13.5 years in the both sexes (extremes: 60 to 87 years). Systolic hypertension was the most frequently reported. Median blood pressure was 14.39 mmHg systolic and 77.84 mmHg diastolic. Diabetes was the most common risk factor associated with high blood pressure with a frequency of 39,76%. The symptom most reported by patients was dyspnea on exertion (14.18%). Left ventricular hypertrophy was present in 8.21% of cases. In 63.43% of cases, the objective blood pressure goal was reached. Bitherapy with 49.18% was the most used therapeutic choice. The most prescribed therapeutic classes were ACE inhibitors and calcium channel blockers. This study highlighted a high prevalence of arterial hypertension in the elderly at the CHU Ibn Rochd in Casablanca. Despite well codified treatment, hypertension in the elderly remains insufficiently controlled so far.