'Essential' arterial hypertension: time for a paradigm change

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Internal Medicine
• Clinical Practice

Background:

• Essential hypertension is frequently diagnosed without systematically excluding secondary causes.
• This diagnostic approach leads to a high prevalence of essential hypertension, potentially overlooking curable conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the historical development of essential hypertension as a diagnosis.
• To evaluate current scientific evidence regarding the prevalence of secondary hypertension.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of recent studies on hypertension etiology.
• Analysis of evidence supporting the prevalence of secondary hypertension.

Main Results:

• Recent studies provide strong evidence that secondary hypertension is common when systematically investigated.
• Secondary hypertension is highly prevalent, challenging the notion of essential hypertension's dominance.

Conclusions:

• Increased clinical awareness is needed to systematically search for secondary causes of hypertension.
• Early detection and treatment of secondary hypertension can improve blood pressure control and patient quality of life.