Guidelines for the management of hypertension

In Canada, as in all industrialized countries, hypertension is the most common indication for visits by adults to doctors, and is becoming even more prevalent largely as a consequence of two factors--the increasing age and the increasing obesity of the population. The control of hypertension in Canada and elsewhere is woefully inadequate. Recent guidelines from the United States and Canada emphasize similar principles designed to improve control. These include the assessment of overall cardiovascular risk, careful measurements of blood pressure, effective use of lifestyle modifications, targeted antihypertensive drug therapy and various manoeuvres to improve long term adherence to therapy. Cardiologists will play an increasingly important role in managing hypertension as a way to reduce the cardiovascular diseases that remain the leading causes of morbidity and mortality.