DOI: 10.5061/dryad.9p8cz8wqg
title: Data from: Low levels of hypertension screening in HIV care clinics in rural Uganda: a mixed methods study

description: Background: The prevalence of hypertension (HTN) among people living with
 HIV (PLHIV) has increased over the last decade globally. Given the dual
 burden of disease and significant prior investment in HIV care,
 integrating care for HTN and HIV is recommended. However, data on HTN
 screening, treatment, and control prior to such integration are
 lacking.  Using a mixed-methods approach, we assessed the
 baseline status of HTN screening, treatment, and control in 52 Ugandan
 public health facilities, participating in an ongoing cluster randomised
 trial of an integrated HIV/HTN care model. Methods: From November 2020 to
 March 2021, we reviewed patient records and randomly sampled 50 PLHIV
 without a documented HTN diagnosis per health facility and all PLHIV with
 a documented HTN diagnosis per health facility. We surveyed the sampled
 participants, took their blood pressure measurements, and described the
 HTN care cascade. We also conducted in-depth interviews with 24 patients
 and 12 providers to explore their experience with HTN screening and care.
 We used an in-depth thematic approach to analyze the resulting qualitative
 data. Results:  Among 2,645 PLHIV, &lt;1% (20/2,645) reported
 having their BP measured within 6 months before the survey. The prevalence
 of HTN was 13.6% (359/2,645), including 287 (10.5%) newly diagnoses and 32
 (1.2%) prior diagnoses that were not documented in their health record. Of
 49 (1.9%) with a previously documented HTN diagnosis, 31 (63%) were on HTN
 treatment, and 53% had controlled HTN. In-depth interviews with providers
 and patients revealed a lack of blood pressure equipment, high patient
 load, limited technical HTN knowledge, and patients' fear of
 anticipated long waiting times as reasons for low HTN screening in the HIV
 clinics.  Conclusion: Regular screening for the detection of HTN
 patients was hardly performed. There is an urgent need for interventions
 to advance the integration of HTN care in HIV clinics.
description: Data Collection: From November 2020 to March 2021, we reviewed
 patient records and randomly sampled 50 PLHIV without a documented HTN
 diagnosis per health facility and all PLHIV with a documented HTN
 diagnosis per health facility. We surveyed the sampled participants, took
 their blood pressure measurements, and described the HTN care
 cascade.  Data Processing: Data included is the raw
 data collected from EMR and study surveys. 
description: # Low levels of hypertension screening in HIV care clinics in rural
 Uganda: a mixed methods study
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.9p8cz8wqg](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.9p8cz8wqg) This is the data from a baseline status assessment of Hypertension (HTN) screening, treatment, and control in 52 Ugandan public health facilities, participating in an ongoing cluster randomized trial of an integrated HIV/HTN care model.  The study was funded by the *European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership* (EDCTP). From November 2020 to March 2021, we reviewed patient records and randomly sampled 50 persons living with HIV (PLHIV) without a documented HTN diagnosis per health facility and all PLHIV with a documented HTN diagnosis per health facility. We surveyed the sampled participants, took their blood pressure measurements, and described the HTN care cascade. ## Description of the data and file structure The data provided are in a comma-separated-value (CSV) file that includes variable names as column headers. The data file name is Uganda_Int_HIV_HTN_baseline_EUopensci.deident.v3.csv The corresponding data dictionary is an excel document filename is Uganda_Int_HIV_HTN_baseline_EUopensci.datadictionary.v3.xlsx | Variable Name | Question | Variable Type | Variable Codes | | :-------------- | :------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | :------------ | :---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | hc\_code | Health Center (coded) | Numeric | De-identifed code | | clinicid | Participant/Clinic ID: collected from the ART card/register - deidentified | Numeric | De-identifed code | | age\_category | Age &lt;=40 | Numeric | 0 = age &gt; 40 1 = age &lt;= 40 | | female | Reported as female | Numeric | 0 = Male 1=Female | | artyr | Years on ART - calculated from ART start date (grouped) | Numeric |  1 = up\_to\_1\_year  2 = from\_2\_to\_5   3 = from\_6\_to\_9   4 = from\_10\_to\_35 | | hc4 | Is Clinic a Health Center 4 level | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | | smoke | Current smoking | Numeric | 1 = Yes 2 = No | | alcohol | Current alcohol use | Numeric | 1 = Yes 2 = No | | overweight | Obesity or overweight  | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes -9 = missing | | marital\_status | Current marital status | Numeric | 1 = Single never married 2 = Married/Cohabitating 3 = Divorced/ separated/ widowed -9 = missing | | exercise | Lack of physical work or exercise  | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | | bpmdate6mon | Blood pressure measured in last 6 months at clinic | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | | htn\_now | Prior HTN diagnosis or prior HTN diagnosis not documented in health record or new HTN diagnosis | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | | category | Patient category at baseline visit | Numeric | 1 = HTN 2 = No known HTN | | prior\_unknown | Prior HTN diagnosis not documented in health record | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | | new\_dx | New HTN diagnosis at visit | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | | bpfinal | Final BP recording  (Sys/Dia): | String | Sys/Dia -9/-9 = missing | | htn\_stage | Severity of HTN during the survey categorized using the 2020 guidelines of the  American Society of Hypertension and the International Society of Hypertension | Numeric | 0 = Normal (&lt;140/90 mmHg) 1 = Grade 1 (140-159/90-99) 2 = Grade 2 (160-179/100-109) 3 = Grade 3 (&gt;=180/110) | | treat | On HTN treatment | Numeric | 0 = No 1 = Yes | ## Sharing/Access information This  data is shared as required by the publishing journal and under the terms of the Creative Commons Zero "No rights reserved" data waiver (CC0 1.0 Public domain dedication)([http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/](http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/))