icddr,b scientists with international collaborators win major research grant to study ways to manage hypertension

MEDI NEWS

Scientists with icddr,b’s non-communicable diseases programme and their international collaborators have received a large award from the UK Department for International Development (DFID), Medical Research Council and Welcome Trust to study ways to lower blood pressure in adults living in rural South Asia.

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease that is often under-recognised in developing countries but is a rapidly growing cause of death.

Lowering blood pressure is thought to be the single most important way to avert heart disease.

The study will test low-cost public health strategies by health workers and doctors to lower blood pressure among adults and reduce their risk of heart disease in three sites – Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka – key countries in South Asia where the burden of hypertension is growing rapidly.

The trial,  called COBRA-BPS (Control of Blood Pressure and Risk Attenuation – Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) and led by principal investigator Professor Tazeen Jafar from the Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School, will study 2500 individuals in 30 rural communities in these three countries over a period of three years.

All three South Asian countries have recently prioritised action on tackling non-communicable diseases like heart disease, and the study will provide important information for policymakers on specifically how to address rising rates of hypertension among their populations.

icddr,b scientists with international collaborators win major research grant to study ways to manage hypertension

MEDI NEWS

Scientists with icddr,bs non-communicable diseases programme and their international collaborators have received a large award from the UK Department for International Development (DFID), Medical Research Council and Welcome Trust to study ways to lower blood pressure in adults living in rural South Asia. Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease that is often under-recognised in developing countries but is a rapidly growing cause of death. Lowering blood pressure is thought to be the single most important way to avert heart disease. The study will test low-cost public health strategies by health workers and doctors to lower blood pressure among adults and reduce their risk of heart disease in three sites Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka key countries in South Asia where the burden of hypertension is growing rapidly. The trial, called COBRA-BPS (Control of Blood Pressure and Risk Attenuation Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) and led by principal investigator Professor Tazeen Jafar from the Duke-National University of Singapore Graduate Medical School, will study 2500 individuals in 30 rural communities in these three countries over a period of three years. All three South Asian countries have recently prioritised action on tackling non-communicable diseases like heart disease, and the study will provide important information for policymakers on specifically how to address rising rates of hypertension among their populations.