Telehealth vs. Clinic-Based Care for Patients with Hypertension

Hypertension is controlled inadequately in many patients. Novel approaches to this problem, including remote monitoring and team-based models of care, have gained traction in recent years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic (NEJM JW Gen Med Sep 8 2022 [e-pub] and JAMA Intern Med 2022; 182:1005).

In this study from 21 primary care practices in the U.S., researchers randomized 3000 adults with uncontrolled hypertension (mean baseline blood pressure [BP], ≈160/90 mm Hg) to either clinic-based care or telehealth care. Clinic-based care entailed face-to-face visits with primary care providers and medical assistants. Telehealth care involved telemonitoring (using devices that transmitted BP readings automatically to the electronic health reco…