الفهرس 
IntroductionOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Nearly one billion people or about 26% of the adult population of the world had hypertension. It was common in both developed (333 million) and undeveloped (639 million) countries. However, rates vary markedly in different regions with rates as low as 3.4% (men) and 6.8% (women) in rural India and as high as 68.9% (men) and 72.5% (women) in Poland.
It is a major risk factor for cerebrovascular disease, coronary heart disease, and cardiac and renal failure. Treating raised blood pressure has been associated with a 35–40% reduction in the risk of stroke and at least a 16% reduction in the risk of myocardial infarction. Hypertension is classified according to etiology as either primary (essential) hypertension or secondary hypertension; about 90–95% of cases are categorized as ”primary hypertension” which means high blood pressure with no obvious underlying medical cause. The remaining 5–10% of cases (secondary hypertension) is caused by other conditions that affect the kidneys, arteries, heart or endocrine system.
The ultimate public health goal of antihypertensive therapy is to reduce cardiovascular and renal morbidity and mortality. Since most persons with hypertension, especially those >50 years of age, will reach the DBP goal once the SBP goal is achieved, the primary focus should be on attaining the SBP goal. Treating SBP and DBP to targets that are <140/90 mmHg is associated with a decrease in CVD complications.(101) In patients with hypertension and diabetes or renal disease, the BP goal is <130/80 mmHg.
In clinical trials, antihypertensive therapy has been associated with reductions in (1) stroke incidence, averaging 35–40 percent; (2) myocardial infarction (MI), averaging 20–25 percent; and (3) HF, averaging >50 percent.90 It is estimated that in patients with stage 1 hypertension (SBP 140–159 mmHg and/or DBP 90–99 mmHg) and additional cardiovascular risk factors, achieving a sustained 12 mmHg reduction in SBP over 10 years will prevent 1 death for every 11 patients treated. In the added presence of CVD or target organ damage, only nine patients would require such BP reduction to prevent one death. Adoption of healthy lifestyles by all persons is critical for the prevention of high BP and is an indispensable part of the management of those with hypertension. Weight loss of as little as 10 lbs (4.5 kg) reduces BP and/or prevents hypertension in a large proportion of overweight persons, although the ideal is to maintain normal body weight.