TABLE 3.
Hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals of independent predictors of a hypertension diagnosis (all participants, N = 14970)
| Variable | Unadjusted HR | 95% CI | P value | Adjusted HR | 95% CI | P value |
| Patient factors | ||||||
| Age | ||||||
| 18–24 years | 0.60 | (0.50–0.73) | <0.001 | 0.66 | (0.53–0.83) | <0.001 |
| 25–31 years | 0.63 | (0.56–0.72) | <0.001 | 0.68 | (0.58–0.79) | <0.001 |
| 32–39 years | 0.78 | (0.71–0.87) | <0.001 | 0.85 | (0.75–0.96) | 0.007 |
| 40–59 years | 0.95 | (0.88–1.0) | 0.13 | 0.98 | (0.90–1.1) | 0.56 |
| ≥60 years | 1.0 | – | – | 1.0 | – | – |
| Race/ethnicity | ||||||
| White | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| Black | 1.4 | (1.2–1.6) | <0.001 | |||
| Other | 1.1 | (0.99–1.3) | 0.07 | |||
| Marital status | ||||||
| Single | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| Married/partnered | 1.0 | (0.96–1.1) | 0.31 | |||
| Separated/divorced/widowed/other | 1.1 | (0.98–1.2) | 0.10 | |||
| Tobacco use | ||||||
| Current tobacco use | 0.89 | (0.81–0.98) | 0.023 | |||
| Former tobacco use | 1.0 | (0.96–1.1) | 0.39 | |||
| Never used tobacco | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| Unknown/missing | 1.1 | (1.0–1.2) | 0.029 | |||
| BMI | 1.004 | (1.001–1.007) | 0.023 | |||
| On Medicaid during baseline or study period | 1.2 | (1.1–1.4) | 0.002 | |||
| Comorbid conditions | ||||||
| Diabetes mellitus | 1.4 | (1.2–1.6) | <0.001 | |||
| Anxiety | 1.1 | (0.97–1.2) | 0.17 | |||
| Chronic kidney disease | 1.5 | (1.1–2.0) | 0.010 | |||
| Low prevalence conditiona | 1.1 | (0.93–1.2) | 0.35 | |||
| ACGb risk score, young index | 1.02 | (1.00–1.04) | 0.09 | |||
| Intermittent normal blood pressures in baseline | 0.79 | (0.73–0.85) | <0.001 | |||
| JNC 7 Stage of hypertensionc | ||||||
| Stage 1: 140–159/90–99 mmHg | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| Stage 2: ≥160/100 mmHg | 2.0 | (1.6–2.7) | <0.001 | |||
| Study start year | ||||||
| 2008 | 1.2 | (1.0–1.4) | 0.021 | |||
| 2009 | 1.0 | (0.89–1.2) | 0.65 | |||
| 2010 | 1.0 | (0.85–1.2) | 0.99 | |||
| 2011 | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| 2008 start year x Stage 2 hypertensionint | 0.72 | (0.55–0.95) | 0.021 | |||
| 2009 start year x Stage 2 hypertensionint | 0.89 | (0.66–1.2) | 0.45 | |||
| 2010 start year x Stage 2 hypertensionint | 0.86 | (0.62–1.2) | 0.37 | |||
| 2011 start year x Stage 2 hypertensionint | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| Total ambulatory visit counts, annual mean | ||||||
| Primary care visits | 0.99 | (0.98–1.0) | 0.55 | |||
| Urgent Care visits | 0.96 | (0.921–0.996) | 0.030 | |||
| Provider factors | ||||||
| Primary specialty | ||||||
| Internal medicine | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| Family medicine/family practice | 1.0 | (0.94–1.1) | 0.77 | |||
| Other | 0.98 | (0.88–1.1) | 0.66 | |||
| Provider age | ||||||
| Lowest provider age quartile | 1.0 | – | – | |||
| 2nd provider age quartile | 1.0 | (0.91–1.1) | 0.99 | |||
| 3rd provider age quartile | 0.87 | (0.79–0.96) | 0.005 | |||
| Highest provider age quartile | 0.87 | (0.79–0.95) | 0.003 | |||
| Provider sex | ||||||
| Female | 1.2 | (1.1–1.3) | <0.001 | |||
CI, confidence interval; HR, hazard ratio.
aDue to low prevalence, an indicator variable was created for the presence of any of the following comorbidities: atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure, stroke/transient ischemic attack, other neurological disorders, collagen vascular disease, alcohol abuse, or deficiency anemia.
bACG = Adjusted Clinical Group Case-Mix Assessment System.
cJNC 7 Stage of Hypertension = severity of blood pressure elevation at study entry.