High blood pressure causes two out of three heart attacks and strokes in Asia Pacific
New research published by the Asia-Pacific Cohort Studies Collaboration (APCSC) in the ‘Journal of Hypertension’ has revealed that high blood pressure causes up to 66% of cardiovascular diseases, such as heart disease and stroke, in the Asia-Pacific Region.
Given that around half of the world’s burden of cardiovascular disease is carried by low and middle income countries in the region, these findings highlight the immense impact that blood pressure-lowering strategies could have in the area.
Dr Alexandra Martiniuk, author and Senior Research Fellow at The George Institute for International Health (part of the APCSC Secretariat) said: “We aimed to identify the role of hypertension (high blood pressure) in cardiovascular diseases in the Asia-Pacific region and found that hypertension was the key factor in more than half of cases. This shows the potential reduction in deaths from heart disease and stroke that could have been achieved if high blood pressure were controlled in this region.”
APCSC researchers found that the fraction of deaths caused by stroke, as a result of hypertension, exceeds 60% in certain countries (Indonesia and Mongolia). High levels were also found in New Zealand (over 30%) and Australia (30%). The study also identified that high blood pressure causes a significant percentage of deaths from heart disease in both countries.
The research confirmed that hypertension is as risky for women as men.
Hypertension is the third leading modifiable risk factor for global burden of disease after tobacco and alcohol. Priority needs in this area include population-based strategies to prevent or reduce high blood pressure, such as salt reduction strategies as well as prevention and treatment of high blood pressure in individuals.
