Abstract Body (Do not enter title and authors here): Background and aims:
Hypertension stands as the foremost preventable cause of premature mortality and is expected to have a global burden of up to 55%. Here we aim to examine the trends in age-standardized death rates (ASDR), years of life lost (YLL), and disability-adjusted life years (DALY) for alcoholic hypertension, pinpoint the vulnerable populations, and raise awareness about the global health burden of alcohol-related hypertension.
Methods:
Data on alcohol-related hypertension was extracted from the Global Burden of Diseases 2021 study, including ASDR, YLL, and DALY from 1990 to 2021. The dataset was globally divided and categorized by continents and World Bank income levels. Joinpoint regression was performed to determine annual percentage change (APC) and average annual percentage change (AAPC) from 1990 to 2021.
Results:
Globally, the age standardized death rates (ASDR) for alcohol-related hypertension had an overall decline from 1990-2021. In 1990, ASDR was 1.12 (95% UI 0.72-1.6) and it declined to 0.94 in 2021 (AAPC=-0.54; 95% CI -0.57 to -0.50). Although the overall trend is declining, some prominent spikes in mortality rate were observed, with the most prominent one seen from 2006-2010 (APC=1.38; 95% CI 1.04-1.82). Globally, the disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) rate was 23.75 in 1990 and it decreased to 18.86 in 2021 (AAPC=-0.73; 95% CI -0.76 to -0.69). From 1990 to 2021, the age standardized years of life lost (YLL) showed a continuous drop with an AAPC of -0.78 (95% CI -0.81 to -0.75). In continent-wise analysis, North America and Europe had higher ASDRs while Asia and Africa had lower ASDRs. From 1990 to 2021, North America and Europe had AAPC of 0.44 (95% CI 0.36 to 0.53) and AAPC of 0.23 (95% CI 0.16 to 0.31) respectively. Conversely, the AAPCs for Africa and Asia showed significant decline and were -0.16 (95% CI -0.19 to -0.15) and -1.37 (95% CI -1.41 to -1.33) respectively. According to World Bank income levels, upper-middle income countries had declining death rates while lower-middle and lower-income countries had increasing death rates throughout.
Conclusion:
Alcohol-related hypertension remains a global health concern. While overall trends show a decline in mortality rates, spikes and variations across continents and income levels highlight the need for targeted interventions.