Hypertension – a civilization disease of the 2020st century. The report of the National Health Test of Poles 7 shows that 26 percent. Poles do not measure the pressure at all. XNUMX percent measured blood pressure more than a year ago. We discuss the consequences of untreated hypertension with professor dr. hab. n. med. Piotr Jankowski.
- In Poland, about 33-40 percent. people have problems with hypertension, but even 40 percent. of them have no idea about it. When the disease is diagnosed, 15-20 percent. patients see no need to start treatment
- Hypertension itself is asymptomatic but leads to serious complications that can be fatal. The biggest challenge for patients is to change their lifestyle, not for a day, a month or a year, but forever
- «The average life expectancy of a well-treated hypertensive patient is not shorter than that of a non-hypertensive patient. Hypertension is now a fully reversible risk factor for myocardial infarction, heart failure, stroke and death »
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Magda Zmna, Medonet: Professor, according to the report of the National Health Test of Poles, 26 percent. Poles declare that he is diagnosed with hypertension. And how many people still do not know that they have a problem for this?
Prof. dr hab. n. med. Piotr Jankowski, cardiologist and member of the Polish Cardiac Society: The result from the National Health Test of Poles 2020 corresponds roughly to the percentage of people who have hypertension and know it. In general, the number of people with arterial hypertension in Poland, depending on various studies, ranges from 33 to even 40 percent, with almost 40 percent. of them do not know that they suffer from hypertension. In other words, if we added this percentage of people who do not know that they have hypertension to the percentage indicated in NTZP, we would get this approx. 33-35 percent. – that is the actual number of people with hypertension.
Why don’t so many people know they have high blood pressure? Do they have no symptoms or are they just ignoring these symptoms?
Hypertension is usually asymptomatic. Symptoms, if any, are a consequence of the occurrence of complications from arterial hypertension. If arterial hypertension causes a heart attack, coronary artery disease, heart failure, hemorrhagic or ischemic stroke, retinal retinopathy, nephropathy, then symptoms will appear. Indeed, some people do sometimes respond to high blood pressure, but studies involving large groups of patients show that there are relatively few such people. It is asymptomatic, but its complications are very serious and often lead to death.
- See also: Every third of us has hypertension
Since hypertension does not give any symptoms, it is probably not the easiest thing to convince the patient that it should be treated. Are hypertensive patients disciplined?
This is a serious problem. It is true that the percentage of people who, after being diagnosed with hypertension, do not want to start treatment is now lower than it was 20 or 30 years ago, but this is still a problem. At the turn of the century, every second patient with hypertension did not start treatment because he thought it was pointless. Now these statistics have improved. According to recent studies, about 15-20 percent. patients diagnosed with arterial hypertension do not see the need and do not want to cure the disease. In absolute numbers, it is still a million people.
In addition to people who consciously do not start treatment, there is also a large group of people who begin to heal, but do it inconsistently. They discontinue treatment, forget to use medication regularly, and do not lead a consistently healthy lifestyle. The hardest thing is to change your habits. It should be remembered that effective treatment of high blood pressure is not limited to taking pills, but also involves a change in lifestyle – a healthy diet, regular physical activity, avoiding cigarette smoke and stimulants – and not for a week, month or year, but for the rest of my life.
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In some cases, changing the lifestyle gives a good enough effect that it is enough to keep the pressure in check without the need to take pills. In other cases, it will prevent the disease from progressing, and medication doses may be lower.
A serious problem is the permanent change in lifestyle and getting used to the regular use of antihypertensive drugs. Modern medicine has a number of modern, well-tolerated antihypertensive drugs that can be used once a day.
How can we convince a patient that it “pays” to treat his hypertension?
If hypertension is well treated, the average patient’s quality of life is no different from that of healthy people. The life expectancy of a well-treated hypertensive patient is not shorter than that of a non-hypertensive patient. Hypertension is now a fully reversible risk factor for myocardial infarction, heart failure, stroke and death.
It should also be mentioned that well-treated hypertension is a much smaller burden for the state budget. Treatment of complications of hypertension is much more expensive, and the complications themselves often cause sickness or disability absenteeism in professionally active people. Hypertension is one of the most cost-effective diseases to treat.
Have people treated for high blood pressure or other cardiovascular conditions experienced the disadvantages of the COVID-19 pandemic?
The pandemic has made it difficult to treat patients with acute and chronic diseases, and it has also affected those with cardiovascular disease. Fortunately, in the Polish health system, we have the option of teleporting and electronic prescription, which allowed for continuation of treatment in most cases. These procedures worked well. However, in the first phase of the pandemic, in many cases, access to direct medical consultations was difficult, which could be dangerous in the case of an exacerbation of the disease or when a new disease emerged in the patient. This contact was not difficult in every clinic, but it often happened, which could reduce the quality of treatment. I hope that we are already overcoming these difficulties.
Will topics related to the pandemic in the context of heart disease be discussed at the currently ongoing XNUMXth International Congress of the Polish Cardiac Society?
Yes, there have already been two sessions. One was devoted to the treatment of patients with cardiovascular diseases during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the other to the treatment of COVID-19 in patients with cardiovascular problems. Many studies show that cardiovascular diseases significantly worsen the course of COVID-19 infection, increase the risk of severe course, respiratory failure and the need to connect to a ventilator, as well as death. Two different views during two different sessions. Both of these issues are important. As previously expected, both sessions enjoyed great popularity among doctors. The congress is conducted on the Internet, so anyone interested can take part in the session from anywhere in the world.
The congress itself this year will take place in a unique formula, due to the ongoing pandemic.
It can be said that thanks to the pandemic, the Congress of the Polish Cardiac Society, which has always been the largest scientific conference in Poland, has turned into the largest event on the Polish Internet. For the first four days (16-19.09), we broadcast sessions on five channels from 12.00 to 21.00, and on Saturday from 9.00 to 16.15. There will be a daily webinar for the next five weeks. All lectures and sessions are recorded and will be playable at any time. Thanks to this, everyone interested will be able to listen to the lectures at a convenient time. This is a great convenience because we broadcast on five channels and it is not possible to participate in several sessions at the same time.
More information about the congress on the website: https://kongres2020.ptkardio.pl/
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