Prevalence of Self-Reported Hypertension and Antihypertensive Medication Use Among Adults — United States, 2017

Abstract

© 2018, Department of Health and Human Services. All rights reserved. What is already known about this topic? Hypertension is a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke. Hypertension prevalence and treatment among the U.S. population varies by demographic characteristics and by state. What is added by this report? During 2011-2015, overall, the age-standardized prevalence of hypertension (30.1% in 2011 to 29.8% in 2015), as well as the use of antihypertensive medication among persons with self-reported hypertension (63.0% in 2011 to 61.8% in 2015), decreased slightly among U.S. adults. However, it is unclear whether these small changes are clinically meaningful. What are the implications for public health practice? Aggressive public health actions to expand existing, effective interventions could enhance improvement in hypertension prevention and management in order to achieve Healthy People 2020 goals.