A recent study discovered that mortality rates due to hypertension are significantly increasing among young women, with rates quadruple during the past twenty years
Researchers found that up to 5 of every 100,000 deaths among 25- to 44-year-old women in 2023 developed cardiac-related issues due to hypertension, in contrast to 1 in 100,000 in 1999.
For the study, scientists assessed death certificate data from 1999 to 2023. Over 29,000 women passed away from high blood pressure-related heart disease during that period.
Black women had an increased blood pressure-related death rate, at nearly 9 per 100,000 than just over 2 per 100,000 for white women.
Southern women had nearly 4 deaths per 100,000 related to hypertension-related cardiac disease compared to nearly 3 deaths in the Midwest and about 2 in the Northeast and the West.
It is important to note that women experience certain sex-related health risks during their lifetimes, related to changes that may occur during pregnancy or during pre-menopausal period.
Lead researcher Dr. Alexandra Millhuff stated, “We need to be screening patients of this demographic for hypertension more aggressively, and that includes mitigating risk factors and possibly using antihypertensive medications.”
“Even though hypertension is more prevalent in older populations, it’s something that we need to be vigilant about in younger populations, as well,” Milhuff added.
Researchers are slated to present the findings March 29 at an ACC meeting in New Orleans, as it's considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
