Paris (AFP)

More than half of people with hypertension worldwide, or 720 million, do not take treatment, putting them at risk for serious cardiovascular problems, according to a WHO-funded study.

"Hypertension significantly increases the risk of diseases of the heart, brain and kidneys, and is one of the leading causes of death and disease in the world," WHO said in a statement Wednesday after the release. of the study in the medical journal The Lancet.

According to researchers, more than 8.5 million deaths worldwide each year are directly linked to high blood pressure.

Acting on this parameter could make it possible to reduce by 20 to 25% the number of heart attacks and by 35 to 40% that of cerebrovascular accidents, they judge.

Conducted by Imperial College London, the study shows that the number of people with hypertension worldwide has doubled in 30 years, from 650 million in 1990 to 1.28 billion in 2019.

This increase in absolute value is, however, linked to the increase in the world population and to its aging: in proportion, the proportion of people with hypertension has changed little in 30 years (about a third of the world adult population).

In contrast, there is a shift from rich to poor countries: while the rates of people with hypertension have fallen in high-income countries, they have increased or remained stable in many low- and middle-income countries. , especially in sub-Saharan Africa, Oceania or some countries in Asia.

What's more, researchers estimate that 580 million people around the world have hypertension without knowing it.

In total, more than half of hypertensive people (720 million) are not treated.

"While hypertension is easy to diagnose and treat with low cost drugs, it is a public health defeat that so many people around the world are still not getting the treatment they need," commented the lead author of the study, Prof. Majid Ezzati, cited by the WHO.

Along with the study, the WHO is publishing new recommendations to better diagnose and treat hypertension.

In addition to these recommendations for caregivers, the organization also discusses the importance of healthy living.

To treat or prevent hypertension, you need to eat less salt and more fruits and vegetables, exercise regularly, avoid tobacco and reduce your alcohol consumption.

Caused by the ejection of blood from the heart through blood vessels, blood pressure is measured in two ways: when the heart contracts (systolic pressure) and when it relaxes (diastolic pressure).

We speak of hypertension above 140 mmHg (millimeters of mercury) for systolic pressure and 90 mmHg for diastolic.

© 2021 AFP