TitleImproving urban African Americans' blood pressure control through multi-level interventions in the Achieving Blood Pressure Control Together (ACT) study: a randomized clinical trial.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2014
AuthorsEphraim, PL, Hill-Briggs, F, Roter, DL, Bone, LR, Wolff, JL, Lewis-Boyer, LP, Levine, DM, Aboumatar, HJ, Cooper, LA, Fitzpatrick, SJ, Gudzune, KA, Albert, MC, Monroe, D, Simmons, M, Hickman, D, Purnell, L, Fisher, A, Matens, R, Noronha, GJ, Fagan, PJ, Ramamurthi, HC, Ameling, JM, Charlston, J, Sam, TS, Carson, KA, Wang, N-Y, Crews, DC, Greer, RC, Sneed, V, Flynn, SJ, DePasquale, N, L Boulware, E
JournalContemp Clin Trials
Volume38
Issue2
Pagination370-82
Date Published2014 Jul
ISSN1559-2030
KeywordsBlack or African American, Blood Pressure, Blood Pressure Determination, Communication, Community Health Workers, Female, Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice, Humans, Hypertension, Male, Motivation, Patient Education as Topic, Primary Health Care, Problem Solving, Research Design, Self Care, Social Support, Socioeconomic Factors
Abstract

<p><b>BACKGROUND: </b>Given their high rates of uncontrolled blood pressure, urban African Americans comprise a particularly vulnerable subgroup of persons with hypertension. Substantial evidence has demonstrated the important role of family and community support in improving patients' management of a variety of chronic illnesses. However, studies of multi-level interventions designed specifically to improve urban African American patients' blood pressure self-management by simultaneously leveraging patient, family, and community strengths are lacking.</p><p><b>METHODS/DESIGN: </b>We report the protocol of the Achieving Blood Pressure Control Together (ACT) study, a randomized controlled trial designed to study the effectiveness of interventions that engage patient, family, and community-level resources to facilitate urban African American hypertensive patients' improved hypertension self-management and subsequent hypertension control. African American patients with uncontrolled hypertension receiving health care in an urban primary care clinic will be randomly assigned to receive 1) an educational intervention led by a community health worker alone, 2) the community health worker intervention plus a patient and family communication activation intervention, or 3) the community health worker intervention plus a problem-solving intervention. All participants enrolled in the study will receive and be trained to use a digital home blood pressure machine. The primary outcome of the randomized controlled trial will be patients' blood pressure control at 12months.</p><p><b>DISCUSSION: </b>Results from the ACT study will provide needed evidence on the effectiveness of comprehensive multi-level interventions to improve urban African American patients' hypertension control.</p>

DOI10.1016/j.cct.2014.06.009
Alternate JournalContemp Clin Trials
PubMed ID24956323
PubMed Central IDPMC4169070
Grant ListK23 DK094975 / DK / NIDDK NIH HHS / United States
K23 DK097184 / DK / NIDDK NIH HHS / United States
P50 HL105187 / HL / NHLBI NIH HHS / United States