多數高血壓患者不知道自己血壓高
High blood pressure is often called a "silent killer" because it rarely causes any symptoms. Now a huge study from England shows just how many people are living with it without realising.
Researchers from the University of Oxford examined blood pressure readings from more than a million adults taking part in a national health research programme. They found that over a third of participants had high blood pressure. Of those, almost six in ten had never been diagnosed and were not taking any medication.
Even people who were receiving treatment were not always protected. Half of those taking blood pressure tablets still had readings that were too high.
The condition became much more common with age, affecting around 15% of adults under 40 and more than 70% of those over 80. It was also almost 50% more common in men than in women.
High blood pressure puts extra strain on the heart and blood vessels, and it is linked to around half of all heart attacks and strokes in the UK. The good news is that it can be easily measured and treated.
The researchers say health services need to find and treat people much earlier. For individuals, the message is simple: get your blood pressure checked regularly, even if you feel perfectly well.
高血壓常被稱為「沉默的殺手」，因為它很少有明顯的症狀。英格蘭一項大規模研究顯示，很多人有高血壓卻完全不知道。
牛津大學的研究人員分析了一個全國性健康研究計畫中一百多萬名成年人的血壓資料。他們發現，超過三分之一的參與者有高血壓。而在這些人當中，將近六成從來沒有被診斷過，也沒有吃任何藥。
就算是正在治療的人，血壓也不一定控制得好。正在吃降血壓藥的人當中，有一半的血壓數值還是太高。
年紀越大，高血壓越常見：40 歲以下的成年人約有 15% 有高血壓，80 歲以上的人則超過 70%。男性有高血壓的比例也比女性高出將近 50%。
高血壓會增加心臟和血管的負擔，英國大約一半的心臟病發作和中風都和它有關。好消息是，血壓很容易量，也可以治療。
研究人員表示，醫療體系需要更早找出並治療這些患者。對個人來說，道理很簡單：就算覺得身體很好，也要定期量血壓。