Control and treatment of arterial hypertension; Program 20-20

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases are the first cause of premature death in the world. Arterial hypertension is among the most prevalent modifiable diseases, and is the third cause of death in the world, with one in every eight deaths worldwide being attributed to it. Arterial hypertension is easily to identify using non-invasive methods. World population studies have shown that the prevalence of arterial hypertension in adults greater than 35 years is 41%, and only 46.5% are aware of being hypertensive. In those that are aware, 87.9% are receiving pharmacological treatment, but only 32.5% of those that receive treatment are well-controlled, with an overall control worldwide of just 18%. In this article, the factors that explain this situation are reviewed, including the difficulties associated with the availability and access to health services and anti-hypertensive medication, education of the health teams, and lack of awareness by the patients as regards their illness. This is reflected by a low adherence to the interventions on changes in life style and the pharmacological treatment. Furthermore, a review is carried out on a series of initiatives and strategies that are being developed by different organisations in order to improve the adequate detection, treatment, and control of arterial hypertension, as such that it contributes to substantially decrease the morbidity and mortality due to cardiovascualar diseases.