Hypertension.

Hypertension is responsible for roughly one-in-six adult deaths annually in the United States and is associated with five of the top nine causes of death.(1) Ten trillion dollars is the estimated annual cost worldwide of the direct and indirect effects of hypertension.(2,3) In the U.S. alone, costs estimated at almost $74 billion in 2009 placed a huge economic burden on the health care system.(4) The prevalence of hypertension increases with advancing age to the point where more than half of people 60 to 69 years of age and at least three-fourths of those 70 years of age and older are affected.(5) Most individuals with hypertension do not have it adequately controlled.(1,6) Medication noncompliance due to avoidance of side effects is suggested to be a primary factor.(6) The epidemic incidence of hypertension and its significant cost to society indicate that a well-tolerated, cost-effective approach to treatment is urgently needed.