Abstract
In order to study the epidemiology of hypertension in the elderly and its relationship to other disease situations, a study was performed on 815 institutionalized elderly people indicating a statistically significant decrease of both systolic and diastolic blood pressure with age.
There is a difference between the population originating in Europe and America and those from Asia and Africa; in the latter group the blood pressure values were significantly higher, specially in females.
The prevalence of hypertension as a disease does not differ between younger and older age groups. The lower prevalence in the population studied (28.1%) when compared to data in the literature which indicates prevalence of about 40%, might be due to the fact that the institution population live under sheltered conditions and close medical follow up.
In conclusion hypertension in the elderly serves as a major risk factor for several disease situations thus leading to a better survival for those with lower values of blood pressure.
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Strulov, A., Epstein, L., Harth, A. et al. Blood pressure and hypertension in an elderly population. Eur J Epidemiol 6, 160–165 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00145789
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00145789