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Review
. 2022 Oct;45(10):1575-1581.
doi: 10.1038/s41440-022-00972-7. Epub 2022 Jul 20.

Social determinants of hypertension in high-income countries: A narrative literature review and future directions

Atsushi Nakagomi  1   2 , Yuichi Yasufuku  3 , Takayuki Ueno  3 , Katsunori Kondo  3
Affiliations
Review

Social determinants of hypertension in high-income countries: A narrative literature review and future directions

Atsushi Nakagomi et al. Hypertens Res. 2022 Oct.

Abstract

Hypertension is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease and despite established strategies to lower blood pressure, the control of hypertension remains poor. This is true even in high-income countries with well-established welfare and medical systems. Among the social factors associated with hypertension (i.e., social determinants of hypertension, SDHT), individual socioeconomic status (SES), including education, income, and occupation, can be crucial for hypertension management (prevalence, awareness, treatment, and control). This article reviews the findings of recently published studies that examined the association between SES and hypertension management in high-income countries. It also discusses social prescribing, which targets social isolation and loneliness as modifiable SDHT to improve hypertension management.

Keywords: Hypertension; Social determinants of health; Social prescribing; Socioeconomic status.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Conceptual framework of social determinants of hypertension. Based on World Health Organization (2010) [10]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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