A Blood Pressure Information Campaign Including Mass Screening for Hypertension in Copenhagen Supermarkets

Abstract

During its heart-week in Feb. 1975, the Danish Heart Foundation drew the attention of the public to the importance of blood pressure [BP] measurements as a vital part of health control and prevention. In all, 24,000 men and women attending supermarkets in Copenhagen took advantage of an offer to have their BP checked; 23% of the screened, who had systolic BP .gtoreq. age + 110 (and this sum exceeded 145) and/or diastolic BP .gtoreq. 100 mmHg for all ages, were advised to contact a general practitioner for further evaluation. It is possible to measure BP and obtain reliable results in an easy, quick, inexpensive and unorthodox way accepted by a public accustomed to free medical care.