A new research has suggested for the first time that a common virus is the cause of high blood pressure, a leading risk factor for heart disease, stroke and kidney disease. A team of Chinese doctors in Washington has claimed that it has got strong evidence of a link between the human cytomegalovirus, and essential hypertension – the most common form of high blood pressure. The 'Circulation' journal reported that these findings may reveal important insights into the pathogenesis of essential hypertension. According to the doctors, the research will have widespread health implications as World Health Organisation says that around a billion people worldwide suffer from high blood pressure.