High blood pressure, also known as hypertension, is often called the “silent killer” because it often goes unnoticed until it triggers severe health complications such as strokes, heart attacks, kidney damage, and heart failure. According to medical standards, the reading on a doctor’s BP monitor going above 140/90 accounts for hypertension. The World Health Organization (WHO) released its first-ever report on the global impact of hypertension this Tuesday, highlighting the devastating consequences of this widespread, yet often neglected condition.
The WHO report reveals that hypertension affects one in three adults worldwide, making it a significant global health concern. It is a condition that knows no boundaries, affecting people across age groups and geographical regions. The number of people living with hypertension has doubled from 650 million in 1990 to a staggering 1.3 billion in 2019, with nearly half of these individuals unaware of their condition.
According to the WHO report, nearly four out of five people with hypertension are inadequately treated. However, scaling up coverage could avert 76 million deaths between 2023 and 2050. The report reveals a doubling of hypertension cases from 1990 to 2019, with over three-quarters of affected adults residing in low- and middle-income countries.
