Avoid Trado-Medical Treatment For Hypertension, Commissioner Urges Ogun Residents

ABEOKUTA - The Ogun state Commissioner for Health, Dr. Tomi Coker has implored residents of the state to avoid patronizing trado-medical treatment for hypertension so as to live longer. 

The Commissioner stated this on Monday at a press conference heralding 2021 World Hypertension Day with the theme "Measure Your Blood Pressure Accurately, Control it,  Live Longer."

The Commissioner however described hypertension as a silent killer and major public health problem, saying if not properly checked, may result to heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, heart failure and sight problems. 

She disclosed that, most people developed the non-traceable disease as a result of diet, lifestyle or medical condition. 

The Commissioner stated that, it is on record that an estimate of 1.13 billion people worldwide have hypertension and two-third of these people are living in developed countries. 

According to her,  "One in four Nigerians are at risk of being diagnosed with hypertension. Unfortunately, the burden of hypertension is seriously underestimated in Nigeria due to non-availability of data" she added. 

She however, warned against the use of orthodox treatments in treating hypertension because it worsen its effect on human health. 

According to her, the risk of hypertension can be reduced if blood pressure is regularly measured. 

"It is crucial to measure blood pressure regularly because most people with hypertension are unaware of the problem since it may not show warning signs or symptoms" she said. 

She said, "Ogun, being one of the two states supported by Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH)  and World Health Organizations (WHO) is presently carrying out routine screening for elevated blood pressure, and immediate enrolment for management of same in 12 primary health care facilities with highly subsidized drugs to make treatment affordable.

"This intervention shall be scaled up to at least 100 primary health care facilities across 20 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and all the secondary health facilities in the state by the beginning of June".

She pleaded with citizens of the State between the age of 30 and above to present themselves every six months at the hospital for a Blood Pressure check and get appropriate treatment. 

She equally appealed to all residents of Ogun State to visit the nearest health facility around them to check their blood pressure accurately by Healthcare professionals so that the appropriate treatment can be instigated immediately at an affordable cost.