title: The burden of blood-pressure-related cardiovascular mortality in Mexico.
abstract: This study shows that in Mexico, a country at an advanced stage in the epidemiologic transition, with the national burden of disease dominated by noncommunicable diseases, elevated blood pressure is a major clinical and public health problem. 31.7% of the Mexican individuals aged 50 and over had systolic hypertension, and 47.3% were at systolic prehypertensive levels. Also, approximately half of all cardiovascular deaths that occurred annually in the population of Mexico aged ≥50 years are attributable to above optimal levels of systolic blood pressure. We think these estimates may help order health priorities in Mexico (and other middle-income countries) at a time when the costs of medical care take a considerable share of the gross national product in most countries.
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine and Center for Research and Development on Health Science, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo Leon, 64460 Monterrey, NL, Mexico ; Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid/IdiPAZ, CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Dora E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Cortés-Hernández
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid/IdiPAZ, CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Krista J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Lundelin
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid/IdiPAZ, CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain ; Institute for Social Research, Center for Research and Development on Health Science, Faculty of Accounting and Business Administration, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, 64460 Monterrey, NL, Mexico.
authors.forename: Esteban
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Picazzo-Palencia
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, School of Medicine and Center for Research and Development on Health Science, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo Leon, 64460 Monterrey, NL, Mexico.
authors.forename: Juan J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: de la Cruz
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid/IdiPAZ, CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: José J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Sánchez
authors.affiliation: Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid/IdiPAZ, CIBER in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: José R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Banegas