Black Americans have a greater chance of developing blood pressure, and that blood pressure is likely to be higher and to cause more health problems in a black American than a white or Asian American. Researchers associated with the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute are calling for new research and evidence-based treatments to help prevent and manage hypertension in black Americans at the cause of the higher rates in the population, the earlier age of onset, and the greater risk that there would be complications (Whelton, Einhorn, Muntner, Appel, Cushman, Roux, & Arnett, 2016).
They make the point that while there is insufficient evidence and research concerning the causes, taking a proactive approach requires greater effort regarding ongoing monitoring of blood pressure to help stop problems early (Whelton et al., 2016). The researchers further noted the important point that the risks and outcomes were not apparent in middle-income countries with mostly black populations, and therefore there was a likely cultural or national connection to hypertension of black people in America (Whelton et al., 2016). Ferdinand, Yadav, Nasser, Clayton‐Jeter, Lewin, Cryer, and Senatore (2017) agree that more research is essential to improving the outcomes of hypertension for black Americans, they note that there is a specific connection regarding treatment rates and control of the disease, and this can be traced to poor medication adherence in this population.
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"Discussion: Black American Degenerative Diseases".
There are social determinants which make understanding medication adherence in this population challenging (Ferdinand et al., 2017). Distrust of the medical profession by black American due to mistreatment in the past may be part of it (Ferdinand et al., 2017). Clinical evidence may not be able to overcome the problem of distrust and poor relationships between the health care systems and black Americans, but more psychological and socially focused interventions may provide improvement (Ferdinand et al., 2017).
- Ferdinand, K. C., Yadav, K., Nasser, S. A., Clayton‐Jeter, H. D., Lewin, J., Cryer, D. R., & Senatore, F. F. (2017). Disparities in hypertension and cardiovascular disease in blacks: The critical role of medication adherence. The Journal of Clinical Hypertension, 19(10), 1015-1024. Retrieved for: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jch.13089/full
- Whelton, P. K., Einhorn, P. T., Muntner, P., Appel, L. J., Cushman, W. C., Roux, A. V. D., … & Arnett, D. K. (2016). Research needs to improve hypertension treatment and control in African Americans. Hypertension, 68(5), 1066-1072. Retrieved from: http://hyper.ahajournals.org/content/68/5/1066.full
