High blood pressure or hypertension is one of the most important causes of premature death worldwide, claiming nearly 9.4 million lives very year, said Gandhi Medical College (GMC) Cardiac department Head of the Department Dr Yogesh Verma on Thursday.
While talking to media, Dr Verma said that according to a report published in 2011 by the World Health Organisation (WHO), in India, hypertension affects one in three adults aged 25 and over. Making the scenario worse, the fact is that in India, only a quarter to a third of patients are aware of their hypertensive status. Further, only one in five patients suffering with hypertension are on treatment and less than 5 per cent are controlled.
Aradhana Hospital Nephrology DM Dr Sanjay Gupta said, "Undiagnosed and uncontrolled hypertension leads to complications like heart attack, stroke, kidney failure and eye damage.
Early death or disability due to hypertension can cause loss of income and incur huge medical care expenditures, which can be devastating for the family. The only way is to prevent hypertension is to undergo a regular blood pressure check-up. This would detect high blood pressure early and help to take action to minimize future problems.”
Dr Gupta recommended that all healthy adults should get their BP checked during their routine visits to the doctor. However, if BP is in the higher range or one has a personal or family history of high blood pressure, stroke or heart attack, it is best to have it checked more frequently, as advised by the doctor.