Black patients preoccupied with racial concerns have higher blood pressure than those who aren't, according to results of new Johns Hopkins-led research

The findings suggest that heightened race consciousness could at least in part account for the disproportionately high rate of hypertension in black Americans - the highest prevalence of any group in the United States and one of the highest rates in the world. As part of ongoing research into doctor-patient relationships and racial disparities, the researchers surveyed 266 patients in urban health clinics in Baltimore between September 2003 and August 2005. Sixty-two percent of the patients were black. To test for race consciousness, they used the 2002 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System "Reactions to Race" module developed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Patients - both black and white - were asked how often they thought about their race. Two categories were created: Those who said that they ever think about their race and those who said that they never do. Half of the black patients responded that they "ever" think about it, and one in five white patients said that they did. When blood pressures were measured, being a race-conscious black patient was associated with significantly higher diastolic blood pressure (roughly five millimeters of mercury) and somewhat higher systolic blood pressure (some four millimeters of mercury) than black patients who were not preoccupied with race. There was no effect on blood pressure in race conscious white patients. Systolic blood pressure, the top number in a blood pressure reading, measures the force that pressure from the beating heart places on the arteries moving blood to the rest of the body, while diastolic blood pressure, the bottom number, indicates the pressure in the arteries when the heart rests between beats. The researchers say that it is well known that chronic stress can increase blood pressure. In addition to the link between race consciousness and blood pressure, the researchers found that whites who were race conscious were more likely to feel respected in the doctor-patient relationship than whites who were not concerned with race, though they were less likely to take their blood pressure medication as prescribed.