Why high blood pressure is the world’s number 1 killer          Prof Rhian Touyz
Channel: Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow
Date: 11/04/2022

Professor Rhian M. Touyz is Executive Director and Chief Scientific Officer of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec. Prof. Touyz is recognized internationally as an authority in vascular biology and hypertension.

High blood pressure (hypertension) is often called the ‘silent killer’ because there are no specific symptoms. Hence most people who have high blood pressure don’t even know it. Hypertension is common, affecting 30-35% of adults globally and the prediction is that this will increase. It leads to heart disease, chronic kidney disease, stroke and vascular dementia and is the major contributor to morbidity and premature death worldwide. While the cause(s) of hypertension remain elusive  a number of risk factors such as salt, obesity, sedentary lifestyle and alcohol are known to increase blood pressure. Hypertension can not be cured, but can be managed with antihypertensive drugs. Unfortunately the control rate of hypertension is inadequate across populations Reasons for this are multifactorial, including non-compliance, sub-optimal drugs and poor understanding of mechanisms of the disease. Uncontrolled hypertension and its complications are growing medical challenges that are adding to the health and economic burden of society in low- middle- and high-income countries. Moreover, hypertension and cardiovascular disease may be sequelae of Covid-19 further contributing to the health burden during, and likely post, pandemic. To address these challenges, there have been enormous efforts into unravelling the causes of hypertension, with suggestions that the immune system, inflammation, the microbiome and small vessels may be important. New approaches to treatment including vaccines, surgical interventions and devices are being tested as novel strategies to control hypertension. This lecture will focus on hypertension as a major killer and will highlight new discoveries and future trends in the prevention, diagnosis and management of this important condition.