17 May
World Hypertension Day was first held in May 2005 and has become an annual event ever since. The purpose of the day is to promote public awareness of hypertension and to encourage citizens of all countries to prevent and control this silent killer, the modern epidemic.
The theme for 2017 World Hypertension Day is Know Your Numbers with a goal of increasing high blood pressure (BP) awareness in all populations around the world.
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a chronic medical condition in which the blood pressure is elevated in the arteries. This means the heart has to work too hard to pump the blood through the system.
It is the leading risk factor for disease burden worldwide. Approximately 4 in 10 adults have raised blood pressure which often goes undiagnosed, but healthy attitudes can help combat hypertension.
An estimated 18% of deaths (9.4 million) and 162 million years of life lost world-wide were attributed to increased blood pressure in 2010. One half of blood pressure related disease occurs in people with higher levels of blood pressure even within the normal range. Hypertension now disproportionately impacts low and middle-income countries.
