Researchers from the University of Washington and other institutions are advocating for an 80-80-80 target to tackle hypertension, or chronic high blood pressure, as a national policy.
Their findings, published in Nature Medicine by Sarah J. Pickersgill and her team, highlight a new strategy to significantly reduce the global impact of this condition.
Hypertension is a major contributor to heart disease, which causes numerous deaths worldwide each day. Despite advancements in medical treatments for controlling high blood pressure, many people remain untreated.
The researchers analyzed medical records from various countries and found that only 20% of people with hypertension manage their condition with medication.
The reasons for this low treatment rate include a lack of medical facilities, limited patient awareness, and insufficient public efforts to address the issue, especially in underdeveloped regions.
To address this, the researchers proposed the 80-80-80 model. This model sets three key targets:
- 80% Testing: Ensure that 80% of the population is tested for hypertension.
- 80% Treatment: Of those diagnosed with hypertension, 80% should receive appropriate treatment.
- 80% Control: Aim for 80% of those treated to achieve target blood pressure levels.
Their model showed that if this goal were achieved globally, it could prevent between 76 and 130 million deaths.
While their model primarily focused on mortality, they also noted that better control of hypertension would reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease, thereby alleviating related pain and suffering.
The researchers believe that adopting the 80-80-80 target as a national goal could be one of the most significant public health achievements in the coming decades.
They argue that all countries have the potential to reach this target, which would lead to a considerable reduction in deaths and an improvement in the quality of life for millions of people worldwide.
If you care about high blood pressure, please read studies that early time-restricted eating could help improve blood pressure, and natural coconut sugar could help reduce blood pressure and artery stiffness.
For more information about blood pressure, please see recent studies about added sugar in your diet linked to higher blood pressure, and results showing vitamin D could improve blood pressure in people with diabetes.
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