title: Prevention and control of hypertension: developing a global agenda.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This review demonstrates the need for enhancing strategic approaches to the prevention and control of hypertension, a global health issue.
  
  
  RESULTS
  An epidemic of chronic noncommunicable diseases is threatening national healthcare systems' sustainability and the economy of many countries. Increased blood pressure is the leading risk for premature death and disability and accounts for approximately 10% of healthcare spending. Four of nine recent United Nations' targets for reducing chronic noncommunicable diseases relate directly or indirectly to hypertension. The expanded chronic care model provides a comprehensive framework for developing hypertension prevention and control strategies. The model addresses the roles of healthy public policy, healthy living environments, healthy communities, reorientation of health services delivery toward management of chronic illness, support for improving clinical decisions, enhanced skills of people to prevent and self-manage chronic disease, partnerships of stakeholders and information systems to track the impact of interventions and identify care 'gaps'. The authors advocate that hypertension organizations can lead aspects of hypertension strategy development and implementation.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Prevention and control of hypertension requires a strategic approach that could have a central role for hypertension experts and the hypertension community.
authors.affiliation: aLibin Cardiovascular Institute of Alberta, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta bWorld Hypertension League, Burnaby, BC, Canada.
authors.forename: Norm R C
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Campbell
authors.forename: Mark L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Niebylski
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care; D014943:Global Health; D017048:Health Care Costs; D006284:Health Plan Implementation; D006291:Health Policy; D006292:Health Priorities; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000191:economics / Q000401:mortality / Q000517:prevention & control*; D055818:Public-Private Sector Partnerships