Praxis Medica (Jan 2022)
Arterial hypertension in geriatric population
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Chronic non-contagious diseases: heart and blood vessel diseases, malignant tumors, diabetes, obstructive pulmonary disease, injuries and poisoning, mental health disorders and others, have dominated the world and our national pathology for decades. Arterial hypertension is one of the most common diseases of the present, which affects in more than 60% of people over the age of 60, and represents a risk factor for infarction, insult, chronic heart failure, renal insufficiency, progressive atherosclerosis and dementia, indicating the importance of hypertension frequency testing in the geriatric population in our country and in the world. OBJECTIVE is to point out the specificity, the high frequency and the risk of hypertension in the geriatric population in our country and in the world. METHODS We analyzed the data and literature in the field of geriatrics, internal medicine, neurology, public health, social medicine and health statistics in the part dealing with the protection of the health of the elderly in our country and in the world. The research was conducted through the analysis of previous scientific research obtained from the literature and the search of electronic databases in accordance with the areas defined in the aim of the work. Using the analytical observational method, all necessary data on this topic were collected, recorded and analyzed. A systematic review of the literature in the researched area was carried out, with the aim of reviewing the methodological characteristics of published studies in the mentioned area. Relevant papers based on this search were collected in full text. Data were extracted from such works, analyzed and presented in this paper. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Cardiovascular disease is the primary cause of elderly mortality, and it is believed that by removing it in people over the age of 65, the life expectancy would be prolonged for 16 years. The results of some studies show that a third of patients over the age of 65 have isolated systolic hypertension, which is a significant risk factor for apoplexy. In developed countries, the geriatric population is on the rise and reaches more than 30% of the general population, and cardiovascular disease is one of the most common diseases and causes of mortality in this population. Studies have shown that the incidence of myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular events is doubled in patients over 65 years of life with hypertension. Only two groups of diseases, heart and blood vessels diseases and malignant tumors, account for over half of all causes of death. In the Republic of Serbia, in 2021 the population aged 65 and over accounted for 21.28% of the population, while the percentage representation of very old people, over 85 years of age, is constantly increasing. Observed since 2002, more than 100,000 people die annually in Serbia from all causes of death, and almost every second resident of Serbia dies from diseases of the heart and blood vessels. The burden of diseases of the circulatory system or diseases of the heart and blood vessels is on the rise globally, and in recent years in Serbia, on average, 55% of people who have died are victims of one of the diseases from this group. The most common diagnosis within the group of diseases of the cardiovascular system is essential arterial hypertension. The most common causes of death in 2021 belong to the following groups of diseases (according to ICD-10 - International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization): Diseases of the circulatory system 41.4%; Tumors 15.1%; Diseases of the respiratory system 5.3%; Diseases of glands with internal secretion, nutrition and metabolism 2.6%. Diseases of the heart, blood vessels and malignant tumors accounted for over half (55.7%) of all causes of death in 2021 in Serbia. As many as 41.4% of all deaths were the result of dying from diseases of the circulatory system, and every sixth person who died (15.1%) was a victim of a malignant tumor. Studies have shown that in patients over 65 years of age with hypertension, the frequency of myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular events is twice as high. CONCLUSION Hypertension is very common in elderly and is a growing problem for them, their family and entire community, as it significantly affects the quality of their lives. The number of elderly in general population is increasing and a growing number of them is with hypertension. Successful prevention can significantly affect the reduction in the incidence of this disease in the population of elderly, which would certainly be one of the priority tasks in improving their health and quality of life.
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