AMA urges all patients to know their numbers on World Hypertension Day

With the number of deaths caused by high blood pressure on the rise in the United States, the American Medical Association (AMA) is joining the American Heart Association (AHA) to increase public awareness of this "silent killer." In conjunction with World Hypertension Day, the AMA is supporting the Know Your Numbers campaign to encourage more patients to monitor their blood pressure levels and take the necessary steps to get their high blood pressure — or hypertension — under control.

"In addition to its obvious devastating impact on patients and their families, heart disease has a massive financial ripple effect across the health care system. On World Hypertension Day, the AMA remains keenly focused on the millions of Americans who have uncontrolled hypertension," said AMA President Steven J. Stack, M.D. "By empowering more patients to monitor and control their blood pressure, we will help improve health outcomes for patients and reduce health care costs."