Evolución de los ingresos por hipertensión arterial tras la disminución de sal en el pan en la Región Metropolitana

Abstract

Introduction. Cardiovascular diseases are a worldwide health problem and one of the main risk factors is a high-salt diet. In this context, Chile carried out a plan to gradually reduce the salt content of bread in 2011, and to date the effectiveness of this strategy has not been assessed. Objective. To describe the progression of Cardiovascular Health Program (CHP) admissions in each health service in the Metropolitan region. Material and method. Cross-sectional descriptive study. The following variables were statistically analyzed: admission rate to the CHP, percentage of admissions for arterial hypertension to the CHP, sorted by age group, gender and health service, between years 2008 and 2016. Mean difference, proportion and Kruskal-Wallis tests were used, considering statistical significance at p<0,05. Results. Admission rate to the CHP significantly decreased from 2008 to 2016 (p=0,04), no significant difference was found between years 2011 and 2016. Percentage of admissions for arterial hypertension to the CHP significantly decreased from 2008 to 2016 (p=0,002), from 2011 to 2014 (p=0,047), and in every age group, both genders and four health services between 2011 and 2014. Discussion. The strategy was effective as evidenced by the downward trend in percentage of admissions for arterial hypertension to the CHP. Other findings can be explained by factors not analyzed in this study.