Abstract:Objective To investigate the status of mental health and its correlation with coping stylesin patients with hypertension. Methods Symptom Checklist (SCL-90) and Medical Coping Modes Questionnaire (MCMQ) were employed to survey 237 hypertension inpatients selected from Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, the First Affiliated Hospital of Hebei North University. Independent sample t test was used to compare the differences between the hypertension patients and the norm, and then the correlation between mental health and coping styles was analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis. Results The total score of SCL-90 and the scores of five factors (including somatization, depression, anxiety, horror and paranoid ideation) were significantly higher in the patients with hypertension than in the norm (t1=4.377, P1<0.05; t2=2.429, P2<0.05; t3=3.627, P3<0.05; t4=3.380, P4<0.05; t5=2.263, P5<0.05). As for the coping styles, the score of confrontation was significantly higher in the hypertension patients than in the norm (t=6.545, P<0.05), while the score of avoidance was quite the contrary (t=-3.246, P<0.05), and no statistically significant difference was found in the score of acceptance-resignation between the patients with hypertension and the norm. The confrontation coping style was negatively correlated with each factor and total score of SCL-90 except the factors of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, hostility and horror (P<0.05), and the avoidance coping style with each factor and total score of SCL-90 except the factor of hostility (P<0.05). The acceptance-resignation coping style was positively correlated with each factor and total score of SCL-90 except the factors of obsessive-compulsive symptoms, hostility, paranoid ideation and psychoticism(P<0.05). Conclusions The mental health level of the patients with hypertension is significantly lower than that of normal persons. The coping styles of confrontation and avoidance have positive effects on the mental health of the patients with hypertension, while the acceptance-resignation coping style has a negatively effect on their mental health.