High Blood Pressure: key points
- High blood pressure is a major risk factor for death, disease and health problems.
- It is estimated that nearly a third of the population of Scotland aged 16 years and over has a raised blood pressure or a history of high blood pressure.
- Prevalence increases sharply with age. More than three quarters of those over 75 years have high blood pressure.
- A large proportion of those with high blood pressure do not attend their GP, or attend less frequently than once per year.
| Year | Estimated number of cases1 | Prevalence (%)2 | Estimated number of deaths3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 2003 | 644,000 | 33.00% | 6,100 |
| 2008 | 689,000 | 33.90% | 5,800 | |
| 2009 | 725,000 | 35.40% | 5,700 | |
| 2010 | 782,000 | 37.90% | 5,700 | |
| Women | 2003 | 707,000 | 32.70% | 6,700 |
| 2008 | 698,000 | 31.40% | 6,400 | |
| 2009 | 690,000 | 30.90% | 6,200 | |
| 2010 | 748,000 | 33.30% | 6,200 | |
| All adults | 2003 | 1,349,000 | 32.80% | 12,900 |
| 2008 | 1,387,000 | 32.60% | 12,300 | |
| 2009 | 1,413,000 | 33.00% | 11,800 | |
| 2010 | 1,530,000 | 35.50% | 11,900 |
1Estimated by applying the prevalence rate to the GROS mid-year population estimates for 2003, 2008, 2009 and 2010.
2From the Scottish Health Survey. Respondents were considered hypertensive if their systolic blood pressure was 140 mmHg or over or their diastolic blood pressure was 90 mmHg or over. The 2009 data are based on the second revision with corrected nurse weights.
3It is estimated in the WHO Comparative Quantification of Risk that around 22% of all mortality can be attributed to high (non-optimal) blood pressure. Here we have estimated the number of deaths due to high blood pressure by applying this percentage to the number of deaths in Scotland (see GROS deaths time series data, by sex and age groups).
Section updates:
- The last major update of this section was completed in January 2012.
- The next major update is due to be carried out by end December 2012.