The study did not thoroughly examine how treatment is affected if a patient forgets or neglects to take medication. Still, doctors should be paying closer attention to their patients' progress, said study coauthor, Mark Moskowitz of the Boston University School of Medicine. Moskowitz also said the problem of high blood pressure may be old news to many, contributing to lackluster treatment. This paper is an awakening call. About 50 million Americans have high blood pressure, and it is estimated that about one-third of those are unaware of they have the condition.
Hypertension can increase the risk for coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure and stroke.
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