Treatment to Lower BP Is Associated with Lower Mortality and Cardiovascular Risk When Systolic BP Is ≥140 mm Hg

Initiating treatment at lower systolic blood pressure levels might be justified in patients with known CV disease.

High blood pressure (BP), particularly high systolic BP, is the strongest predictor of cardiovascular (CV)-related mortality, but the systolic BP level at which BP-lowering treatment should be initiated is somewhat controversial. In this meta-analysis, researchers examined data from 74 mostly industry-funded randomized trials in which pharmacologic treatment was compared with placebo, or different BP goals were compared with each other. Analysis involved about 306,000 participants and 1.2 million person-years of follow-up. Two thirds of the trials were classified as primary prevention (i.e., <50% of participants had known CV disease).

For primary prevention in patients with baseline systolic BPs of 140 to 159 mm Hg, treatment was associated …

Reviewing Author

Thomas L. Schwenk, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsUpToDate

Thomas L. Schwenk, MD

Disclosures

Editorial BoardsUpToDate

Treatment to Lower BP Is Associated with Lower Mortality and Cardiovascular Risk When Systolic BP Is ≥140 mm Hg

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Reviewing Author