Continuous drug treatments can drastically reduce the mortality risks of people with uncomplicated hypertension, a recent research has shown.
The study was part of the project to develop technology to conquer diseases with financial support from the Ministry of Health and Welfare 보건복지부 and Korea Health Industry Development Institute한국보건산업진흥원(KHIDI).
Professors Lee Chan-joo이찬주, Kim Hyeon-chang김현창 and Park Sung-ha박성하 at Cardiovascular and Metabolic Diseases Etiology Research Center of Yonsei University College of Medicine연세대 의대, and Professor Hwang Jin-seub at Daegu University대구대 jointly conducted the research.
The researchers analyzed 1 million people’s data at National Health Insurance Service국민건강보험공단(NHIS), and their subjects were adults aged 20 or older and diagnosed with high blood pressure but without complications, such as cardiac insufficiency and coronary artery diseases.
As a result of comparing the mortality of patients, people who received treatment from the start saw their death rate drop 59 percent, and those who started treatment halfway also experienced a 51-percent drop.
“It has been well known that hypertensive patients with cardiovascular diseases can reduce their death risks by taking active drug treatment, but not been as well known how much death risks can be reduced by drug therapies among uncomplicated high blood pressure patients who do not have complications,” the institute said. “The research was meaningful because it proved active drug treatment is essential for high blood pressure without specific symptoms or complications, using the real-world data that reflects actual medical environment here.”
The Journal of Hypertension will publish the research result in its May 2017 issue, under the title of “Treatment of uncomplicated hypertension is associated with a reduction in cardiovascular mortality: a Korean national cohort study.”