As Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark this year’s 2023 World Hypertension Day, the Minister of Health Dr. Osagie Ehanire says the reason for the day is to combat the low awareness of Hypertension, especially in low-income countries and promoting accurate Blood Pressure measurement methods.
The Minister who was represented by the Director of Public health in the ministry Dr Alex Okoh said hypertension is a leading Cardiovascular disease and non-communicable disease that is significant morbidity and mortality with the low and middle-income countries responsible for nearly over 80% of the global cardiovascular disease burden.
“Globally, more than 1 billion people worldwide are living with hypertension and this represents more than 30% of the adult population, of this number only 52% are aware of their condition while about 35% are on treatment and less than 14% have the blood pressure control”. She said.
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Dr Okoh expressed concern about the burden of hypertension that is disproportionately more in the law and middle-income countries in the decades due to the prevalence of risk factors such as tobacco use, physical inactivity, unhealthy diet, and harmful alcohol consumption.
“It is important to note that public awareness creation, education, routine screening at every opportunity, early detection and diagnosis, counseling and prompt provision of standard treatment and care are essential element for hypertension control”. She added.
In her message to commemorate the 2023 World Hypertension Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti said that in the African region, close to 40% of adults aged 30-79 years are hypertensive and only a quarter of these are on medications, optimal blood pressure control is only attained in 11% of patients on medication.
She said people with hypertension will not have any specific signs or symptoms directly attributed to the condition.
“Symptoms are usually foreboding of damage on specific organs in the body including the heart, brain, eyes and kidneys resulting from poor control”. She added.
Dr. Moeti said that Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) mostly heart attack, stroke, and heart failure which account for a significant burden of premature mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
“Every year, the global community commemorates the World Hypertension Day on the 17th of May. This year, the theme is Measure Your Blood Pressure Accurately, Control It, Live Longer. “This is aimed at drawing attention to combatting the low level of awareness of hypertension as well as the limited availability of calibrated devices for accurate blood pressure measurement”.
“Hypertension is easy to diagnose and there are safe and cost-effective treatment including pharmacologic and behavior change interventions”. She added.
She noted that WHO has prioritized decentralized management and care for NCDs including management of hypertension, using the WHO Package of Essential Noncommunicable disease interventions for primary healthcare. In addition, the WHO has published a guidance on the technical specification for automated blood pressure monitoring devices to ensure improved access to accurate, affordable blood pressure devices which is often a significant barrier to proper medical care in low-resource settings.
“We need to regularly check our blood pressure and incase it is raised, adhere to medications as prescribed by the health provider. We can fight hypertension and the responsibility starts with us as individuals and as communities, taking control of our health and well-being. We need to adopt healthy lifestyles such as reducing salt intake, increasing portions of fruits and vegetables consumption, increasing physical activity, and avoiding tobacco and excessive alcohol consumption”. She said.
She however called on governments in Africa to lead the way by implementing their commitments through policies and programs that addresses the root causes of hypertension, promote healthy environments, and improve access to healthcare services.
“This will require a significant investment in healthcare infrastructure, training of healthcare workers, and increasing access to affordable medications. Early detection through routine screening at all health service delivery levels is important and calibrated and validated blood pressure measuring devices should be available in all health facilities.”
