A call to action and a lifecourse strategy to address the global burden of raised blood pressure on current and future generations: the Lancet Commission on hypertension

Elevated blood pressure is the strongest modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease worldwide. Despite extensive knowledge about ways to prevent as well as to treat hypertension, the global incidence and prevalence of hypertension and, more importantly, its cardiovascular complications are not reduced—partly because of inadequacies in prevention, diagnosis, and control of the disorder in an ageing world. Neil Poulter: upping the pressure on hypertensionVisiting Neil Poulter at the International Centre for Circulatory Health (ICCH), which he co-directs in the west London district of White City, it might seem he's based in one of the less exalted outposts of the centre's parent body, Imperial College London. Not so. Poulter's ICCH office is part of what will eventually be home to a major expansion of the college. This will incorporate new centres for molecular science, translation, and bioengineering, some of which should begin working by the end of next year. Full-Text PDF On the economics of managing blood pressure – Authors' replyWe appreciate the letter from Marjan Attaei and Salim Yusuf in which they express concern that the cost estimates for treating hypertension cited by the Lancet Commission on Hypertension1 might be misleading because it is unclear whether the figures cited by the Commission represent cost per capita or cost per patient treated, and because subsequent data collected by Attaei and Yusuf indicate that cost per patient treated might be higher than that quoted by the Commission. Full-Text PDF On the economics of managing blood pressureThe Lancet Commission on hypertension1 (Sept 24, p 2665) states that the cost of managing hypertension to lower cardiovascular disease risk in medium-risk or high-risk patients is less than US$1 in low-income countries, $1·50 in lower-middle-income countries, and $2·50 in upper-middle-income countries. The Commission also states that a multidrug package targeting hypertension and cardiovascular disease can be provided at $1·08 per person. These estimates are based on modelling exercises by WHO2 and Lim and colleagues. Full-Text PDF