News - Hypertension Week of Jan. 26, 2003/ Vol. 2 No. 04

Wake Forest to Establish First Hypertension Registry

Wake Forest University School of Medicine will establish the first hypertension registry in the United States with the help of a $630,000 federal grant.

All adult patients who visit Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center will be screened for hypertension and referred for treatment if necessary. Those diagnosed with hypertension will be contacted approximately 90 days after their visit to determine if they are complying with recommended treatment and if blood pressure has improved.

The registry will gauge the impact of high blood pressure on emergency departments and the populations they serve and identify the factors that could either facilitate or handicap the development and implementation of a comparable statewide system in North Carolina.

Wake Forest officials said a successful registry could also contribute to the elimination of racial and ethnic disparities in the burden of hypertension-related disorders.

Source: Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center