The global epidemiology of hypertension.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Narrative review synthesizing epidemiological estimates and global health data without a formal systematic review protocol.
PubMed 32024986 · doi:10.1038/s41581-019-0244-2
What was done
This review examined global epidemiological trends in blood pressure and hypertension, synthesizing prevalence estimates, geographic variations, behavioral risk factors, and rates of awareness, treatment, and control across high-income countries versus low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
What was found
Global mean blood pressure remained constant or slightly decreased over the past four decades, but total hypertension prevalence increased. In 2010, an estimated 31.1% of adults worldwide (1.39 billion people) had hypertension. Prevalence was higher in LMICs (31.5%, 1.04 billion individuals) than in high-income countries (28.5%, 349 million individuals). Proportions of awareness, treatment, and blood pressure control remained low, with the largest shortfalls in LMICs.
Why it matters
Hypertension remains the leading contributor to cardiovascular mortality globally, with the primary burden increasingly shifting to developing regions where healthcare infrastructure and control rates are lowest.
Limits
The abstract describes a narrative review without detailing search criteria, inclusion standards, or formal risk-of-bias evaluation. The primary quantitative estimates presented rely on historical 2010 modeling, and numerical estimates for specific awareness, treatment, or control rates are omitted in the abstract.
Cited by
- supports Hypertension currently affects nearly one third of the global population.