The 43rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Society of Hypertension

Welcome Message

Professor Yusuke Ohya
  • Professor Yusuke Ohya
  • President of The 43rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Society of Hypertension
    Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Nephrology and Neurology, Graduate School of Medicine, University of the Ryukyus

I am pleased to announce that the 43rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Society of Hypertension will be held in Okinawa. It is our great honor to host this prestigious meeting, and I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the members of the Japanese Society of Hypertension for giving us such a privileged opportunity.

The meeting is originally scheduled to be held in October 2020. However, due to the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) infection in Japan and abroad, we have decided to postpone the meeting for one year. The new meeting will be held from Friday, October 15 to Sunday, October 17, 2021, at the Okinawa Convention Center, the same location as originally planned.

The theme chosen for this meeting is “Hypertension Control and Cerebrovascular/Cardiovascular Disease Prevention under the Spirit of Yuima-ru.” Yuima-ru is a dialect of Okinawa, “yui” meaning connectedness, and “ma-ru” meaning circulating, and together this word conveys the ideas of mutual support, joint activity, workforce exchange, and collaborative learning.

Given the increasing longevity in Japan, there is an urgent need to develop an all-encompassing grand design and create a social system that is better tailored to the aging population. For example, in the field of health care, it is necessary to prevent diseases from spreading to the younger generation, to counteract frailty, to reduce nursing care, and to increase life expectancy for the elderly. In particular, the adequate control of hypertension, which is a major risk factor for cerebrovascular and cardiovascular diseases, can contribute greatly to maintaining the social system for a long-lived society due to its effectiveness in preventing such diseases and their complications and extending healthy longevity. We must also share the strategy for managing hypertension in Japan extensively with other Asian countries that face similar health problems to support them in their efforts to build a healthy and long-lived society.

On the other hand, the global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to avoid physical connections and interactions with other people. At the same time, non-physical connections seem to have been increasing in importance. In this meeting, we would like to discuss how to respond to health problems in the “With Corona” era while engaging in multidisciplinary collaborations, collaborations with relevant academic societies, exchanges with Asian countries, collaboration with the health industry, and taking collaboration with new scientific technologies into account. In preparation for future events, we would also like to examine the possibilities of new forms of general conferences and academic meetings in the “With Corona” era.

The meeting is scheduled for October, when the comfortably warm late summer climate will prevail in Okinawa. While it still depends on the situation of COVID-19 infection, participants will have the chance to see and enjoy many things with the meeting, including tourist spots such as the tropical beach at the back of the convention center, as well as awamori, Ryukyu cuisine, and culture.

We welcome members of hypertension societies around the world and clinicians and medical providers who are working to face hypertension and non-communicable disease to participate. We look forward to seeing you in Okinawa.