Great strides in global cardiovascular health were made through research innovations at ESC Congress 2019, hosted from Aug. 31 – Sept. 4 in Paris, France. Latest findings from the multi-country Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiologic (PURE) study – published in The Lancet – add to a growing understanding of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), and provide guidance on population-level prevention strategies that could be adopted in communities worldwide.

Researchers uncovered that cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of mortality among middle-aged adults globally – but in high-income countries, cancer is now responsible for twice as many deaths as cardiovascular disease. Another report from PURE revealed that modifiable risk factors contributed to the majority of cardiovascular disease and related deaths around the world.

Additionally, new research from the LARK Hypertension Study – published in Journal of the American College of Cardiology – suggests that global community health workers equipped with tailored behavioral health strategies and mobile health technologies can make a difference in reducing blood pressure.

The study, which consisted of 1,460 individuals (58 percent women) in western Kenya, demonstrated that participants in the "smartphone" arm of the trial experienced a modestly greater reduction in systolic blood pressure vs. "usual" (standard training) care, though the difference was not statistically significant.

With hypertension the leading global risk factor for mortality, Rajesh Vedanthan, MD, MPH, et al., suggest further innovations are needed to improve hypertension control, particularly in low-resource settings around the world.

Based on the results, "The global burden of hypertension and other noncommunicable diseases is substantial and increasing, especially in low- and middle-income countries," they write.