India's hypertension control initiative
Tags: National News
A project called the India Hypertension Control Initiative (IHCI) found that out of 2.1 million Indians, about 23% have uncontrolled blood pressure.
About Hypertension Control Initiative (IHCI)
Hypertension is a serious, and growing, health issue in India.
Keeping this fact in mind, the Ministry of Health, Indian Council of Medical Research, State Governments and WHO-India launched a five-year initiative for monitoring and treatment of hypertension.
The programme was launched in November 2017.
In the first year, 26 districts of five states - Punjab, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Maharashtra were covered under IHCI.
By December 2020, IHCI was expanded to 52 districts across ten States — Andhra Pradesh (1), Chhattisgarh (2), Karnataka (2), Kerala (4), Madhya Pradesh (6), Maharashtra (13), Punjab (5), Tamil Nadu (1), Telangana (13) and West Bengal (5).
What is Hypertension?
High blood pressure (hypertension) is a common condition in which the blood pressure on the artery walls is high, which can lead to a condition such as a heart attack.
Hypertension is defined as having systolic blood pressure level greater than or equal to 140 mmHg or diastolic blood pressure level greater than or equal to 90 mmHg.
Need of IHCI
India is committed to reduce premature mortality due to non-communicable diseases (NCDs) by 25% by 2025.
One of the nine voluntary targets includes reducing the prevalence of high blood pressure by 25% by 2025.
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