More Evidence Against Aggressive Blood Pressure Treatment for Hospitalized Patients

Although recent studies have suggested that aggressive treatment of asymptomatic hospitalized patients with elevated blood pressure (BP) is unnecessary or even harmful, clinical practice continues to vary (NEJM JW Gen Med Jan 1 2020). In this retrospective study of 60,000 U.S. Veterans Affairs patients (age, ≥65) hospitalized for noncardiac conditions, researchers examined the effect of intensive treatment of elevated BP (≥2 episodes of systolic BP >140 mm Hg) within the first 48 hours of hospitalization. Intensive treatment was defined as ≥1 intravenous or oral dose of antihypertensive medications that were not taken prior to hospitalization.

In analyses adjusted extensively for confounding factors, intensive treatment occurred in 21% of pa…