Type D Personality and Essential Hypertension in Primary Care: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study Within a Cohort of Patients Visiting General Practitioners

Abstract

To estimate the relationship between type D personality and essential hypertension among patients visiting their GPs for any health problem, 101 hypertensive and 138 nonhypertensive patients were consecutively recruited and assessed using the Type D Personality Scale (DS14). The predictive value of type D personality was determined using a logistic regression model, taking into account the differences in recognized confounders between groups. Type D personality in the hypertension group was twice as frequent as in the no hypertension group and hypertension was more frequent among type D than non-type D patients. Logistic regression showed a significant predictive value of type D personality for hypertension, adjusting for sex, age, body mass index, family history of hypertension, living condition, education, and employment. Therefore, type D personality was strongly related to hypertension and it was a noteworthy predictor of hypertension in a real-world cohort of primary care patients.