Chronic disease: Increasing prevalence yet better control

In this November-December 2008 issue of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine ( JABFM ), we have collected multiple articles related to chronic diseases using methodologies from basic science, epidemiology, and clinical science. As Dr. Parchman ¹ notes, the prevalence is so great and the complexity so high, that we would all like to quickly cut through the Gordian knot of chronic diseases. In this issue, to highlight the potential impact of chronic disease, Smoley et al ² report some startlingly discouraging data about the amazingly high 75% prevalence of hypertension and prehypertension in a young, fit US military population.