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Clinicians often prescribe as-needed blood pressure (BP) medications for hospitalized patients with asymptomatic BP elevations, despite observational studies and a recent consensus statement that discourage this practice (NEJM JW Gen Med Oct 1 2024 and Hypertension 2024; 81:94). In this latest retrospective study, Veterans Affairs (VA) researchers examined records of 130,000 nonsurgical, non–intensive care inpatients (mean age, 71), including those with cardiovascular-related admissions, who were receiving scheduled antihypertensive medications and who had at least one systolic BP reading higher than 140 mm Hg during hospitalization.
About 28,000 patients (21%) received as-needed BP medications. After propensity-score matching, any as-needed…