الفهرس 
Economic burden of hypertension
Out-of-pocket expenditure among hypertensive patients Definitions of Out-of-pocket health expenditure (OOPE)Only 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
The current study participants were selected randomly from the hypertensive patients attending Tanta University hospitals for receiving healthcare services. The study provides an insight into the economic burden shouldered by the hypertensive patients in the Delta region. The incidence of CHE was calculated and compared as regards the determinants to better understand it. The current study included 295 hypertensive patients either attending outpatient clinics or presented with acute complications and attending cariology emergency room (ER), admitted at CCU or admitted at CCU after Percutaneous Cardiological Intervention (PCI). Most of the study participants were males, married, and living in rural areas. More than of two third of the study participants had very low or low socioeconomic level based on the socioeconomic status scale (SES). Regarding the disease profile, more than two third of the study participants had uncontrolled hypertension with disease duration more than 2 years. The most prevalent risk factor was obesity followed by smoking. Patients with acute complications (group II) had significantly less disease control, longer disease duration and more risk factors as more than half of them were smokers and more than two of third of them were obese. The former characteristics explain why these patients were presented by acute hypertension complication that necessitates emergency room visits or even hospital admission. Most of hypertensive patients attending outpatients’ clinics used public governmental health services during the last 3 months. This can be explained by their socioeconomic level as more than two third of them had very low or low socioeconomic level. This may reflect less affordability to pay for private health services. However, all hypertensive patients with acute complications (group II) reported using private health care services besides public health care services as all patients of group II had to use laboratory investigation at private sectors. Laboratory services were not available at Tanta university hospitals till admission as they were available free of charge only for admitted patients. This could reflect shortage in public healthcare services provided for hypertensive patients with complications. Therefore, they incur higher mandatory out of pocket expenditures during seeking healthcare services with acute complications.