Hypertension affects more than 1.4 billion people worldwide, with only one in five having their blood pressure under control. The World Health Organization (WHO) has included triple single-pill combination therapy for hypertension in its Essential Medicines List, marking a milestone in addressing this health challenge.
Most individuals with hypertension require more than one medicine to manage and maintain blood pressure control. Triple single-pill combinations, particularly at low doses, simplify treatment, improve adherence, and enable more effective blood pressure control.
“Inclusion of medicines in the WHO Essential Medicines List highlights their importance and serves as a pathway to making them widely accessible and affordable. We hope that national medicines list in individual countries will adopt the inclusion of triple single-pill combination of antihypertensive drugs to provide an effective option for healthcare professionals in managing hypertension,” said Dr Abdul Salam, Program Head, Cardiovascular, The George Institute for Global Health India.
The WHO recognition is expected to accelerate progress toward the global target of achieving at least 50 per cent hypertension control by 2040.
“This listing marks a critical step forward for global hypertension care—recognising the evidence and equipping health systems to deliver simplified, effective treatment where it’s needed the most. The challenge now is to translate this into real access for patients everywhere, through large-scale implementation programs and adoption by individual countries,” said Gautam Satheesh, Research Associate, The George Institute for Global Health.
The George Institute for Global Health extended gratitude to all collaborators and partners for their collective efforts and commitment. The Institute stated that these contributions are helping advance global cardiovascular health and improve outcomes for people living with hypertension.