Over 18% of Guyanese suffers from high blood pressure

May 18, 2023 News

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…health minister urges lifestyle change, regular check-up

Kaieteur News – A 2016 survey showed that 18.4% of Guyanese were found to have high blood pressure, but were not on medication, Health Minister, Dr Frank Anthony said on Wednesday.

He said his ministry has since introduced the HEARTS protocol for persons with elevated and high blood pressure.  HEARTS is the acronym for Healthy lifestyle counselling, Evidence-based protocols, Access to essential medicines and technology, Risk-based cardiovascular disease management, Team-based care and Systems for monitoring. HEARTS is fundamentally an evidence-based practice in diagnosing and treating arterial hypertension.

In a message to mark the observance of World Hypertension Day, Anthony said the HEARTS protocol programme is currently available in 95 health centres throughout Guyana. He said it is designed to assist hypertensive patients in managing their blood pressure more effectively. “It can also help delay the progression of elevated blood pressure to high blood pressure and prevent associated complications. The goal is to have all health centres adopt this programme by 2025,” Dr Anthony said.

World Hypertension Day is being observed under the theme: “Measure Your Blood Pressure Accurately, Control It, Live Longer”. Hypertension, commonly called high blood pressure, affects an estimated 1.13 billion persons globally, with more than two-thirds living in low- and middle-income countries.  Men are slightly more affected than women, Anthony said.  He added that High blood pressure is considered the “silent killer” since it has vague or no symptoms. Overtime, uncontrolled Hypertension commonly leads to chronic kidney disease, heart disease, stroke, dementia and death. Stroke and ischemic heart disease, arising from hypertension, are consistently among Guyana’s top causes of death.

“When your healthcare provider tells you your blood pressure, they say two numbers. For instance, they might say your blood pressure is “130 over 80.” The top number (systolic pressure) is the pressure inside your arteries when your heart is contracting. The bottom number (diastolic pressure) is the pressure inside your arteries when your heart is relaxed.”

Many experts define high, elevated, and normal blood pressure as follows:

• High – Top number of 130 or above and/or bottom number of 80 or above.
• Elevated – Top number between 120 and 129 and a bottom number 79 or below.
• Normal – Top number of 119 or below and bottom number of 79 or below.

“On World Hypertension Day, I urge everyone to understand how to measure and control their blood pressure to live longer. You can learn how to measure your blood pressure from your doctor or healthcare provider during your visit to the Health Centre. It’s essential to check your blood pressure to ensure it remains controlled regularly. If you are taking hypertension medication, follow your doctor’s instructions and take your prescribed treatment without skipping any doses. I want to applaud all healthcare professionals, especially those at the primary healthcare level, for their dedication and hard work in ensuring that people with hypertension receive accurate diagnosis, effective management, and control. Let’s collaborate to lessen the impact of this illness, the minister stated.

Only last week, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Director, Dr. Jarbas Barbosa, urged countries to intensify efforts to improve the management of hypertension, a measure that could save around 420,000 lives in the Americas each year. He said while hypertension affects 180 million people in the Region (18% of adults) it “often has absolutely no symptoms nor signs and is therefore frequently undiagnosed and untreated,” Dr. Barbosa said during a media briefing last week.  “This is serious because undiagnosed and uncontrolled hypertension can lead to heart attack, heart failure or stroke,” he added. Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is the primary risk factor for cardiovascular disease, which is the main cause of premature death in the Region, responsible for around 2 million lives lost each year. Yet in the Americas over one-third of men and a quarter of women with hypertension (aged 30 to 79 years) are unaware they have the condition. And of those who are aware they have hypertension and receive treatment, only a third (36%) have it under control.

The PAHO Director highlighted that countries must “intensify the scale-up and ensure equitable access to care for hypertension,” and provide training to ensure the latest approaches for diagnosis and treatment are practiced in primary health clinics across the Americas. These include the PAHO HEARTS initiative, a model of care for cardiovascular risk management, which is currently being implemented in around 3000 clinics across the Region. The Director also urged countries to implement interventions to promote healthy diets, such as front-of-package warning labels on processed and ultra-processed food products, and measures to reduce salt intake.

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• Dr. Frank Anthony, hypertension, Minister of Health, programme, Systems

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