By Anjali Sharma
UNITED NATIONS – WHO on Tuesday warned that over 1.4 billion people worldwide live with hypertension, yet only 1 in 5 have the condition under control.
The new WHO report on chronic high blood pressure launched during the 80th UN General Assembly at an event co-hosted with Bloomberg Philanthropies and Resolve to Save Lives highlights that uncontrolled hypertension is a leading driver of heart attacks, strokes, kidney disease and dementia, kills over 10 million people each year.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said “Every hour, more than 1,000 lives are lost to strokes and heart attacks from high blood pressure – and most of these deaths are preventable.”
He added “Countries have the tools to change this narrative. With political will and investment, millions of lives can be saved.”
The report showed that only 28 per cent of low-income countries have consistent access to all WHO recommended hypertension medicines, compared to 93% of high-income nations. In 99 countries, control rates remain below 20 per cent.
The agency noted that despite these gaps, progress is possible.
Bangladesh, the Philippines and South Korea have shown how integrating hypertension care into universal health coverage can sharply increase treatment and survival rates, WHO added.
