*Adjustment was made in each model for age, sex, race or ethnic group, educational level, and current smoking status, but not for other risk factors. Odds ratios are expressed as the risk of severe, uncontrolled hypertension for a patient with the risk without it. CI denotes confidence interval.

A case-control study of visits by hypertensive men in one inner city hospital emergency room compared those whose hypertension was controlled with those in whom the hypertension was uncontrolled. After controlling for a variety of other related factors (such as race and education), men whose hypertension was uncontrolled were over four times as likely to have no primary care source as those whose hypertension was controlled. This was by far the most salient correlate of hypertension control of the several factors that were studied.

Source: Shea S, Misra D, Ehrlich MH, Field L, Francis CK. Predisposing factors for severe, uncontrolled hypertension in an inner-city minority population. N Engl J Med 1992; 327(11):776-781.