Hypertension in Australia

Some Australians are at higher risk of developing hypertension. Social determinants such as socioeconomic position, educational attainment, conditions of employment, distribution of wealth and social support, can impact on health inequities, which are the unfair and avoidable differences in health status between different population groups. These factors can influence people’s exposure to risk factors and create disparities in access to quality health care.

Priority populations are groups of people within the Australian population who experience poorer health outcomes and higher disease burden due to social, economic and structural disadvantages. These include, but are not limited to, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds; people living with disability or mental illness; people living in remote, rural and regional areas; and people experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage.

For more information, see Social determinants of health.

Remoteness areas

In the 2022 NHS, the proportion of adults aged 18 and over with hypertension was (AIHW analysis of ABS 2023):

• 47% among those living in Outer regional and remote areas
• 45% among those in Inner regional areas
• 37% among those in Major cities.

After adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations, the differences in proportion of hypertension across remoteness areas were not statistically significant.

Of adults aged 18 and over with hypertension, the differences in the proportions of people with controlled hypertension across remoteness areas were also not statistically significant, after adjusting for age differences in the populations (AIHW analysis of ABS 2023).

Socioeconomic areas

In 2022, the proportion of adults aged 18 and over with hypertension was 43% in the lowest socioeconomic (most disadvantaged) areas and 35% in the highest socioeconomic (least disadvantaged) areas. After adjusting for age differences in the populations, people living in the lowest socioeconomic areas were 1.2 times as likely to have hypertension, compared with those in the highest socioeconomic areas (Figure 6).

Of adults aged 18 and over with hypertension, the differences in the proportions of people with controlled hypertension across socioeconomic groups were not statistically significant, after adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations (AIHW analysis of ABS 2023).

For more information on significance testing see Technical notes.

For information about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, see Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Nations) people.

International comparisons

Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) showed that, in 2019, an estimated 34% of Australian adults aged 30–79 had hypertension. More males (36%) than females (31%) had hypertension. Australia’s prevalence was similar to the global prevalence of 34% (WHO 2021).

After adjusting for age, the lowest proportions of adults with hypertension were seen in Peru (21%), Switzerland (22%) and Canada (22%) (WHO 2021).

Of Australian adults aged 30–79 who had hypertension, 28% had controlled hypertension, defined as effective hypertension treatment through taking medications. The proportion of Australian adults with controlled hypertension was similar for males (27%) and females (29%). Australia’s controlled hypertension rate was above the global hypertension control rate (21%), but much lower than those of similar countries such as Canada (62%).

After adjusting for age, the highest proportions of controlled hypertension were seen in Canada (61%), Republic of Korea (53%) and Iceland (52%) (WHO 2021).

For more information, see the WHO Global Health Observatory indicators.