Study of risk factors of hypertension among adult males in semi-urban environment of Pune, India

Abstract

Hypertension or a blood pressure level above 120/80mm of Hg, is a type of cardiovascular disease (CVD) with rapidly growing prevalence rates globally. The deleterious effects of hypertension are evident not only on the cardiovascular system but also on other organs and systems of the body, thus increasing the burden of disease manifold. A consistently raised level of blood pressure has injurious effects on arteries, eyes, kidneys, liver etc. resulting in complications like Atherosclerosis, retinopathies, nephropathies etc. The rapidly rising prevalence of hypertension and other cardiovascular diseases over the few decades and the reduction in tropical diseases like cholera, malaria etc. reflects a shift in the epidemiology of diseases from communicable to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Thus, CVDs are a major public health concern contributing 31% to the total world mortality. Of this, hypertension is responsible for 9.4 million deaths each year. By the year 2030, it is expected that globally, 23 million cardiovascular deaths will be due to hypertension, of which about 85% cases will be from low-resource settings and developing nations.