Journal of AdvancedMedical and Dental Sciences Research

Aims Various studies found a high correlation among pathological anxiety and hypertension. Like patients with other chronic medical conditions patients suffering from hypertension experience many profound psychological symptoms which increase their risk for the development of mental health disorders particularly anxiety and depression. Literature suggests anxiety is highly prevalent among patients diagnosed with hypertension. We evaluated the prevalence of excessive anxiety among patients of hypertension. Methods It was a cross sectional observational study carried out amongst the outpatients of a tertiary care teaching hospital in eastern India. A semi-structured questionnaire especially designed for the study was used to collect the data of the patients. HADS ( Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Zigmond, AS; Snaith, RP, 1983) was used to rate the anxiety symptoms of the patients. Results The study sample consisted of 142 subjects with mean age of 45.85±7.98 years, the mean duration of hypertension was 6.95±3.72 years and mean body weight of the patients in the sample was 73.69 ±7.04 kg. Based on the HADS scores, 40 patients of hypertension were classified as patients suffering from excessive levels of anxiety, which constituted 28.16 % of the total sample size. Conclusions This study found a prevalence of excessive anxiety in 28.16 % of the patients of hypertension. Keywords Anxiety, Hypertension, Prevalence.