IN THE NEWS--> Storytelling and Hypertension

A recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine describes a novel, or rather, innovative way of improving blood pressure.  This is in line with the recent article on barbers advice on HTN is more favorable than physicians.  

This is a randomized trial that involved one city in the US.  close to 250 African Americans with HTN were randomized to no intervention or intervention. The intervention was 3 DVD that contained patient stories and the storytellers were from patient population.  Patients with uncontrolled HTN who were assigned to the intervention group had an -11mm Hg greater reduction in SBP than the comparable group.  This was in the first 3 months. Although in 6-9 months, looking at the tables, the difference disappears as BP increased in both groups.  The relative advantage for th DVD group was maintained till last follow up.
This is the first randomized trial doing such a thing.  Its a single center and sustained BP might not have been ideal in the intervention group compared to controls.  What was novel was the innovative approach these investigators took to control the blood pressure.
Nice work!
Ref:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21242364
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21242350