Internet used to control blood pressure

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People with high blood pressure can keep their condition under control using the internet, according to a report in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

A group of researchers at the University of Washington set out to test if they could cut out the need for people with high blood pressure to visit their doctor.

Some 778 patients were assigned to three groups: usual doctor-based care, home blood pressure monitoring and web services training, or home blood pressure monitoring web services training and management by a pharmacist through the web.

Patients using web services could email doctors, fill prescriptions and get test results. Pharmacists prescribed medications and used email to help patients reach target blood pressure.

More than half of the patients in the third group reached their target blood pressure compared to one third in the other two groups.

Dr Beverly Green told Reuters: “Web communication (e-mail and secure messaging) improves health care because it is always available (24/7), allows people to respond at a time that is convenient to them, and often in a much briefer way than over the telephone or certainly during an in-person visit.”

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