Facts About Hypertension

Blood pressure is the pressure of blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Arteries carry blood from your heart to other parts of your body.

Blood pressure normally rises and falls throughout the day, but it can damage your heart and cause health problems if it stays high for a long time. Hypertension, also called high blood pressure, is blood pressure that is higher than normal.

Facts About Hypertension in the United States

In 2017, the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association published new guidelines for hypertension management and defined high hypertension as a blood pressure at or above 130/80 mm Hg. Stage 2 hypertension is defined as a blood pressure at or above 140/90 mm Hg.

  • Having hypertension puts you at risk for heart disease and stroke, which are leading causes of death in the United States
  • In 2018, nearly half a million deaths in the United States included hypertension as a primary or contributing cause.
  • Nearly half of adults in the United States (108 million, or 45%) have hypertension defined as a systolic blood pressure ≥ 130 mm Hg or a diastolic blood pressure ≥ 80 mm Hg or are taking medication for hypertension.3
  • Only about 1 in 4 adults (24%) with hypertension have their condition under control.
  • About half of adults (45%) with uncontrolled hypertension have a blood pressure of 140/90 mm Hg or higher. This includes 37 million U.S. adults. 
  • About 30 million adults who are recommended to take medication may need it to be prescribed and to start taking it. Almost two out of three of this group (19 million) have a blood pressure of 140/90 mm Hg or higher.
  • High blood pressure was a primary or contributing cause of death for more than 494,873 people in the United States in 2018.2
  • High blood pressure costs the United States about $131 billion each year, averaged over 12 years from 2003 to 2014.