Background: The impact of preventing hypertension and maintaining normal blood pressure (BP) on life expectancy and healthy life expectancy (HLE) among Black adults, who are disproportionately affected by hypertension, has not been quantified.
Methods: We used a discrete event simulation to estimate life expectancy and HLE among a cohort of Black adults from the Jackson Heart Study (n=4933) from age 20 to 100 years or until death. We modeled preventing hypertension as having BP <130/80 mm Hg and maintaining normal BP as having BP <120/80 mm Hg across the lifespan. In the primary analysis, we assumed that lowering BP decreased the risk of cardiovascular disease events, resulting in life expectancy and HLE gains. In a secondary analysis, we assumed that preventing hypertension and maintaining normal BP directly reduced both cardiovascular disease and mortality risk.
Results: At age 20 years, the projected average life expectancy was age 80.8 (95% uncertainty interval [UI], 80.6-81.1) years, and HLE was 70.5 (95% UI, 70.3-70.7) healthy life years. In the primary analysis, preventing hypertension and maintaining normal BP added 0.9 (95% UI, 0.8-1.1) and 1.1 (95% UI, 0.9-1.3) years to life expectancy, respectively, and 2.7 (95% UI, 2.6-2.9) and 2.9 (95% UI, 2.7-3.1) healthy life years to HLE, respectively. In the secondary analysis, preventing hypertension and maintaining normal BP added 4.5 (95% UI, 4.3-4.6) and 4.6 (95% UI, 4.4-4.8) years to life expectancy, respectively, and 5.7 (95% UI, 5.6-5.8) and 5.9 (95% UI, 5.7-6.0) healthy life years to HLE, respectively.
Conclusions: Preventing hypertension and maintaining normal BP were projected to increase life expectancy and HLE among Black adults.
Keywords: blood pressure; healthy life expectancy; hypertension; life expectancy.