Trends in Utilisation of Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring in Australia.

Abstract

Background Hypertension is a significant risk factor for cardiovascular disease and affects over 1 in 4 Australians aged 18 and over. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) is instrumental in the diagnosis of masked hypertension and in patients suspected to have white-coat hypertension. Despite The National Heart Foundation of Australia strongly recommending the use of ABPM in 2016, ABPM was not funded by the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) until November 2021. We sought to analyse the adoption trends of ABPM in Australia following the introduction of MBS funding. Methods Publicly available MBS Item Statistics Report for MBS Item 11607 was analysed for the period between November 2021-October 2023 and was categorised based on state or territory. Results The national average of ABPM services utilised per capita (100,000 population) from November 2021-October 2023 was 643, and increased by 134% (from 275 to 368) between the first two years of MBS funding of ABPM. New South Wales had the highest utilisation of ABPM over the first two years of MBS-funded ABPM with 760 services per capita (in comparison to South Australia's lowest adoption rate of 433 services per capita) (Figure). Adoption of ABPM in Northern Territory had the greatest increase between the first two years by 215% (from 241 to 518). Conclusion The differing rates of ABPM adoption across different states and territories highlights disparities in the utilisation of ABPM. To align with national adoption rates of ABPM, exploration of patient demographics and healthcare services may be required in states with low utilisation. [Figure Presented]Copyright � 2024