Hypertension prevalence in a representative sample of Greek adults: The Hellenic National Nutrition and Health Survey (HNNHS)

Hypertension is a major risk of cardiovascular diseases. In Greece, large cross-sectional studies have reported a prevalence of hypertension between 13 and 27%1,2, with approximately 40% of the population being aware of their status and 33%-34% having their hypertension controlled3,4. Result generalizability to the Greek adult population, however, can be questioned, despite the large sample sizes because the samples were collected from hospitals and clinics and not from the general population3, or from rural and urban areas of the Attica prefecture (Greece)3. In summary, despite the detrimental aspects of hypertension, limited data from a representative sample have been reported in Greece. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of hypertension in a national representative sample of Greek adults.